CAE speaking tips

Part 2. Picture comparison

1. comparing
2. (talking about similarities and differences between
the pictures)
3. speculating (making guesses about what is going on
in the pictures)
4. describing
5. answering the questions
1. Comparing

Useful phrases

Talking about similar things Talking about differences

Both pictures show… Unlike the first picture, picture two

In both pictures we can see… has/shows
Both pictures one and two have… In contrast with the right picture, picture
Pictures one and two are similar in on the left has/shows/displays
the way that there is/are… in each Picture one…, while picture two…
one. Conversely, picture two…
Just like the picture on the left, the Picture on the right shows a different
right picture has/shows… approach to…
The two pictures have a number While the second picture takes place…,
things in common, namely… picture one…
These two pictures convey the same Contrastingly, these pictures show
message/idea of… // share the same different takes on… *some topic*
message/idea
The comparison part can be extremely challenging if you
choose two pictures that you can’t see any real differences in
— keep that in mind when making your choice.

2. Guessing and speculating

You have to do this when answering the questions and
when describing the pictures. Showing doubt or uncertainty
is one of the integral aspects CAE Speaking Part 2 & 3.

Modals Verbs Adverbs

This must be… Seem like/to be Likely

It might be… Appear to be Probably
The people may be… Look like Seemingly/supposedly
It has to be Apparently/evidently

3. Describing the pictures

 When describing pictures in CAE Speaking, alternate
between different phrases:
The first picture has/shows/displays

In the first picture, there is/there are/we can see

One thing to keep in mind — don’t spend more than 15

seconds describing BOTH pictures.
Another important aspect is not to just describe; you want
to include either comparing the pictures or speculating:
“While in the first picture there is a man all on his own looking
at a picture, the second one shows a group of kids, probably
schoolchildren, enjoying a show together.”

The part in bold introduces comparison, and the underlined

part speculates (makes a guess) about the picture.

4. Answering the question

When you address Part 2 questions, you usually do so
for both pictures, either talking about differences or
similarities based on the question context.
You are advised to speculate as well to make your
answer more hypothetical since we can’t really know it
for sure.
Part 3. Dialogue based on a diagram
1. Starting the dialogue

2. Connecting and transitioning the ideas

3. Reaching an agreement

1. Starting the dialogue

At the beginning of Part 3 you have to decide who will begin
the conversation.

It is important to be respectful and give your partner enough

room to make a choice.
You can either initiate this yourself or wait for your partner to
go first.

Starting the dialogue Responding

Do you mind if I go first? (If you agree, Yeah, sure, go ahead.

answer “Not at all”) Okay, I will!
Would you mind going first/starting? I’d rather you went first, if that’s okay
Would you care to go first? with you.
Should I begin, or would you like to go By all means, go ahead.
first? Sure, not a problem.
Would it be okay with you if I started
this?
Is it okay for you if I start?
2. Connecting ideas
A common mistake in Part 3 is to simply wait for your turn
to speak without paying attention to your partner’s
response. This is going to bring your mark down!

Instead, you want to implement ideas from your partner’s

answer into your own.
It’s important to transition the ideas smoothly — your
exchange should look like a dialogue, not a series of
isolated sentences!
Here are some ways to make your speech more cohesive:

Introducing an idea Supporting or including an idea

What about… Speaking of…

I believe that (aspect) deserves You’ve mentioned…, which is
mentioning/being mentioned interesting because…
If we’re talking about (topic), then I’d like to add another point
(aspect) is definitely… regarding…
I’m not sure that (aspect) is really There is one more thing about…
important, however… Another aspect of… is that…
A point worth discussing is…

3. Reaching an agreement
In the second half of Part 3 you have to agree upon one or
two aspects of the mind-map. If you fail to agree on one, it
 is okay to respectfully disagree.
Here are some useful phrases for suggesting, encouraging
a conversation, agreeing, and disagreeing:

Agreeing Disagreeing (politely)

I totally agree with your point… I see what you mean, however…
I’m with you on that one… You make some valid points, but let’s
Your arguments are very compelling consider…
I had a different idea, but your With all due respect, I can’t agree/I
arguments sounded very convincing have to disagree
Your points are very persuasive, and I Your logic here is flawless, but another
side with you on that one point to consider is…

Suggesting ideas Inviting to join

… is probably one of the things we Where do you stand on…?

should take/consider/mention, since… What’s your take on…?
I think/believe that… is worth Please share your thoughts on this
nominating/considering/mentioning/ matter?
pointing out What about your idea on?
Let’s not forget about… That’s what I think, but what about
Additionally,… should probably be you?
included, as…

What is assessed?
1. Grammar
Naturally, the variety and accuracy of your grammar. Some
examples:

Noun, relative and adverb clauses (some examples of

each)
Active and passive forms
Verb patterns (infinitives, to-infinitives, gerunds)
Contrast and command of tenses (e.g., showing a
temporary situation with Present Cont.)
Modal verbs and modality
Conditional sentences
Ability to produce longer, multiple-clause sentences
Flexibility (ability to rephrase in order to clarify).

How to improve your score?

Alternate between active and passive voices.
Try to introduce more advanced tenses into your narrative
(e.g., Present Perfect to talk about your experience of
learning English or Future Perfect to talk about plans that
you are sure of).
Learn verb patterns! They are extremely important in both
written and spoken English.
Use conditionals – Second Conditional for unlikely things in
the present or in the future, Third Conditional for unreal
results of things that didn’t happen. You should know all of
this as CAE is a C1 level exam.
 Use a variety of modal structures — modal verbs (could,
might, must) and phrases that express likelihood (probably,
likely, seems to be, appears to be, looks like).
Be ready to rephrase your phrase or sentence if you feel
that it might not have sounded clear enough (usually by
introducing the rephrased sentence with something like
“What I mean to say is…”, “In other words…”, “Allow me
to clarify — I mean that…”).

When you attempt to make your speech more complex by

adding two or more clauses to your sentences, mistakes are
likely to happen. If you notice that you’ve made a mistake in your
speech, it is perfectly normal to try to rephrase the idea. As long
as the communicative task is achieved, your score won’t suffer!

2. Vocabulary
Just like with grammar, it is all about the range and
appropriate usage of your lexical resource. Factors that
influence this mark:
Appropriate collocations.
Register (formal/informal, depending on context).
Rephrasing (if your speaking partner does not seem to
understand you (Part 3, 4).
Using synonyms and avoiding repetition of words.
How to improve your score?
Don’t be lazy and look up collocations you aren’t sure of
when you practice. A good place to start is the
freecollocation.com dictionary. This applies to writing as
well.
Keep your register consistent throughout your response.
Don’t make it too informal — be respectful to both the
examiner and your fellow test-taker.
If you see that your speaking partner struggles to
understand your phrase, make sure to rephrase it.
Be mindful of your English — listen to yourself and don’t
use the same words over and over again.
 Overused word Synonyms (f – formal, i – informal,

blank if neutral)

Like Enjoy, be fond of (f), love, adore (f), be

crazy about (i)

Have Possess (f), own

Think Believe, hold that (f), feel that

Good Great, excellent, spectacular (f), awesome

(i),superb (f)

Very Quite (f)1, extremely (f), totally, really,

absolutely (f)

Try Give a shot/give a go (i), attempt (f),

endeavour (f)

See Watch, notice, look at (all are context-

sensitive)

Go Head, set for, move, travel

Many Number of, plenty, large amount of

1.Quite in AmE means “very”, in BrE – “somewhat, sort of”

3. Discourse management

What is assessed?
In essence, this is about how well your ideas are linked —
the connection between words, phrases, and even whole
sentences.
Another important thing is how easy it is to follow and
understand your speech — how much sense it all makes,
that is.
It’s not about your pronunciation. These two aspects are
usually called coherence and cohesion.
Things that are assessed here:
Cohesive devices (more on that below).
Topical vocabulary (vocabulary related to the general
theme that is being discussed).
Various grammar that helps the listener understand what
you’re referring to (articles and personal
adjectives/pronouns).
Discourse markers (words and expressions that can
normally only be found in spoken language, like “You
know…”, “I mean… “.
Staying on topic (so-called “relevance” — you have to talk
about the question, do not stray too far away from it).
Introducing new ideas (rather than going over the things
you have already said).

How to improve your score?

Know and use cohesive devices. They can be roughly
grouped into ‘adding or elaborating’ (in addition, also,
 moreover, as well as), ‘showing consequence or result’ (as
a result, consequently, so, thus, therefore) and ‘sequencing
or ordering’ (firstly, first of all, to begin with, secondly,
finally). These help structure your speech, making it both
connected and easier to follow.
Expand your vocabulary. It is pretty sad to see CAE
candidates struggling to come up with any relevant words
on topics as simple as Food, Holidays or Career. There is
no way around it, learn new words!
Make sure to know the basics of articles in English. Use
them to your advantage. Don’t forget about possessive
pronouns and adjectives to make your speech more
cohesive (it, this, that, one).

4. Pronunciation

What is assessed?
First of all, elephant in the room — it is not about your
accent. As long as your accent is easy to understand, you
will do fine. This part checks other things, namely:
Clearly pronouncing all the sounds that should be
pronounced (more on that below).
Stressing the right syllables in words (this might sound
obvious, but it is a rather common problem).
 Using intonation to highlight and emphasise points in your
speech (well-used intonation goes a long way).

How to improve your score?

Know how to pronounce words — and pronounce them
with confidence. This is especially important when saying
the ending of each word, as test-takers who lack
confidence tend to omit the ending syllable. I would also
suggest avoiding contractions, i.e. say “I have” instead of
“I’ve” just to avoid ambiguity.
Intonation is an extremely powerful tool that can drastically
improve the general impression of your answer. Use it to
your advantage.

5. Interactive communication
Your ability to sustain a conversation as well as develop your
individual response.

This is what the examiners look at:

Expanding on your answer (not giving short, uninformative
responses).
Including and encouraging your speaking partner.
Ability to initiate the exchange and to support it by
contributing to the conversation or the topic.
 Helping the other candidate to either phrase their ideas or
suggest one for discussion.
Understanding the rhythm of a natural conversation, not
“hogging” it.

How to improve your score?

Short answers do not give enough information to
accurately assess your level of English. To give your
examiners something to work with, you should come up
with at least two long or three shorter sentences in Part 1
and about three to four longer sentences in Part 4.
Be sure to include your partner! There are some phrases
that you might find useful for that.
More phrases to initiate the dialogue and to support it with
your ideas.
Do not take up too much time in CAE Speaking Part 3 —
remember that you only have two minutes in the first half
and one minute in the second.

General CAE Speaking Tips:

There are a number of typical Speaking mistakes.
Know them to avoid embarrassment and guarantee a
higher score.

Answering the Wrong Question

It may sound silly, but this is a common mistake.
Make sure you understand the question.
Ask your examiner to repeat it if you are unsure
what exactly you are supposed to say.
It is not going to affect your score in any way.
If you still fail to get the meaning, ask to rephrase.
If your answer will have nothing to do with the
question then it won’t be scored at all.

Memorising the Answer

OK, this isn’t new, we’ve all done that. This time it
isn’t going to work because a memorised answer is
easily spotted by a professional examiner.
Instead of rote-learning the whole answer try to
remember some basic phrases and constructions for
each possible topic.
An honest answer will be much better than a
learned one.
Drinking for Confidence
This isn’t going to work. You will think slower, feel
out of place. Not to mention you will smell of
alcohol — your examiner won’t be too happy to
have you.
If you absolutely have to take the pressure off —
have some green tea before the exam. Mint works
good too. Don’t overdo it — you can get your
thinking process slowed down by drinking too
much.
Alternatively, try some of these techniques to get
your cognitive abilities in shape.

Short Answer
The whole idea of Speaking part of exam is to
showcase your language. Some tend to forget this,
responding to every other questions with only a
couple of words.
Remember: your answer has to be detailed. As long
as it is relevant to the topic — it’s good.
If you start going over the time limit the examiner
will let you know. If you are unsure what to say,
 then make something up.
Your words don’t have to be one hundred percent
truth.

Spontaneous Answer
Certain tasks give you preparation time (i.e. IELTS
Speaking Task 2 — the card question).
Some choose to keep all the bullet points of the
answer in their head. While this is acceptable, it
isn’t the optimal technique. You are much better to
write the crucial information down: the beginnings
of sentences, some words and phrases that you
think you should use and so forth.
Don’t be lazy – some writing can make your answer
much more structured and cohesive.
Do not attempt to answer other students’ questions,
even if you see them struggling — you might get
penalised for that. However, you might help them by
paraphrasing your ideas in the collaborative task.

Keep practising. The most effective way to improve

your speaking is to use the language. You can do so
 by either having live conversations or by writing.

Retrieved from: enexam.info

Prepared by: Marta Załuska EnglishTop