IELTS Speaking Part 1
Four to five minutes of questions about you — where you live, what you study or do, and two or three everyday topics. It is the easiest part of the test to speak in and the easiest to under-perform in, because the questions are simple enough to answer in three words.
The right length
Two to three sentences per answer. One word gives the examiner nothing to mark, and a ninety-second monologue in Part 1 stops the examiner collecting the range of questions they need.
- Answer, then extend. Give the direct answer, then a reason, an example or a contrast.
- Do not wait to be asked why. The extension is where the vocabulary and grammar are shown.
- Stop when you have made your point. Part 1 is a conversation, not a presentation.
Topics and preparation
Part 1 topics are drawn from everyday life: home, hometown, work or study, plus rotating subjects such as food, weather, transport, music, reading, holidays, technology. You cannot predict the questions, and you can prepare the vocabulary — the words for your own job, your own town and your own routine are worth having ready, because they are certain to come up.
Memorised answers are marked down. Preparing the vocabulary of your life is preparation; preparing a paragraph to recite is detectable and counts against you.
Part 1 — Introduction — FAQs
2 questions
Yes, and asking naturally costs nothing. Asking them to explain what a word means is also allowed in Part 1 and Part 3.
Two or three sentences. Longer belongs in Part 2 and Part 3.
More speaking question types
Sources
Written from the test board's own published material and checked on 1 October 2026.