Lesson 1 — See & Say

IELTS Task 1 Set-Phrase Mastery · B2 · Lesson 1 of 3

What you'll be able to do by the end of this lesson: look at a simple chart, pick the right change-verb and adverb, and say the same idea two ways — verb form (rose dramatically) and noun form (a dramatic rise). That one skill picks up marks in every single Task 1.

Look at each chart. Pick the right verb.

There's no trick — just match the line/bar movement to the verb. Click an answer to check.

Chart A — Coffee shop revenue, 2015–2022 (£ millions)

Revenue ______ steadily from £2m to £10m.

plummeted

rose

fluctuated

remained stable

Chart B — Newspaper sales, 2000–2020 (millions)

Newspaper sales ______ sharply over the two decades.

soared

levelled off

declined

doubled

Chart C — Tourist numbers, 2010–2020 (millions)

Tourist numbers ______ at around 5 million throughout the period.

surged

remained stable

plummeted

tripled

Chart D — Monthly rainfall (mm), 2023

Rainfall ______ considerably from month to month.

skyrocketed

halved

fluctuated

stabilised

Two ways to say every trend

This is the single biggest move for Band 7 in Task 1: show the examiner that you can express the same idea with a verb + adverb AND with an adjective + noun. You don't need new ideas — just a new grammatical shape.

Change	Verb + adverb	Adjective + noun
↑ big rise	Sales rose dramatically.	There was a dramatic rise in sales.
↑ sudden rise	Prices increased sharply.	Prices saw a sharp increase.
↓ big fall	Profits fell significantly.	There was a significant fall in profits.
↓ gradual fall	Attendance declined steadily.	Attendance showed a steady decline.
↓ tiny fall	Numbers dropped slightly.	There was a slight drop in numbers.
↔ no change	Figures remained stable.	Figures remained at the same level.
↕ up & down	Prices fluctuated considerably.	There was considerable fluctuation in prices.

The three linking verbs that let you switch to noun form

Memorise these — they are the bridge:

There was / there were + adjective + noun → There was a sharp rise in sales.
saw / experienced / witnessed + adjective + noun → Sales saw a sharp rise. / The company experienced a sharp rise in sales.
showed + adjective + noun → Sales showed a sharp rise.

Mini-quiz — rewrite using "There was…"

Tourism grew rapidly.

There was a rapid growth in tourism. Note: growth (noun) from grew (verb). Same idea, different shape.

Now rewrite using "saw"

Unemployment fell sharply.

Unemployment saw a sharp fall. (Or: Unemployment experienced a sharp fall.)

Pick the right strength word

Every change is big, medium, small, or almost nothing. The adverb (or adjective) has to match the size of the change. Pick wrong and the examiner marks you down for lexical accuracy.

Tiny / small

slightly · marginally

slight · marginal

Moderate / steady

steadily · gradually · moderately

steady · gradual · moderate

Big / clear

significantly · considerably · substantially

significant · considerable · substantial

Huge / sudden

dramatically · sharply · rapidly · steeply

dramatic · sharp · rapid · steep

Match the size to the word — multiple choice

1. A value changes from 40% to 41%. Which adverb?

marginally

dramatically

sharply

2. A value falls from 100 to 20 in one year. Which adjective?

slight

gradual

dramatic

3. A value rises from 30% to 55% over 25 years — slow and consistent. Which adverb?

sharply

steadily

dramatically

4. A value doubles in six months. Which adjective?

marginal

moderate

rapid

5. A value rises by about 15% over a decade — clear but not huge. Which adverb?

slightly

considerably

steeply

Apply it — describe this chart

Now you try. Below is a bar chart showing household spending on three items in the UK. Read the paragraph and choose the right word for each gap.

UK household spending (% of budget) — 1990 vs 2020

Housing 18→32% · Food 22→11% · Leisure 8→18%

Use each option once: rose · fell · saw · more than doubled · halved · sharply · considerable · dramatic

1. Between 1990 and 2020, spending on housing from 18% to 32% — a increase.

2. Food spending a fall from 22% to 11% — it almost .

3. Spending on leisure , rising from 8% to 18%.

1. rose / considerable

2. saw / dramatic / halved

3. more than doubled / sharply

Notice: sentence 2 uses the noun form (saw + adjective + fall), sentence 1 uses the verb form (rose + adjective increase). That variety is the whole point.

Now say each sentence the OTHER way

Sentence 1 was: "Housing rose considerably from 18% to 32%." — rewrite with saw + noun.

Housing saw a considerable rise from 18% to 32%.

Sentence 2 was: "Food saw a dramatic fall from 22% to 11%." — rewrite with a verb + adverb.

Food fell dramatically from 22% to 11%. (Or: Food dropped sharply from 22% to 11%.)

The transform drill — say it the other way

Ten cards. Read the left side, cover the right, say (or type) the transformation, then reveal. If you get 8 out of 10, you're ready for Lesson 2.

V + adv

Prices rose sharply.

Adj + N

There was a sharp rise in prices.

Adj + N

There was a dramatic fall in sales.

V + adv

Sales fell dramatically.

V + adv

Tourism grew steadily.

Adj + N

There was a steady growth in tourism. (or: Tourism saw steady growth.)

Adj + N

The chart shows a gradual decline in smoking.

V + adv

Smoking declined gradually.

V + adv

Unemployment dropped slightly.

Adj + N

There was a slight drop in unemployment.

Adj + N

The country experienced a considerable increase in rainfall.

V + adv

Rainfall increased considerably.

V + adv

Wages rose marginally.

Adj + N

There was a marginal rise in wages.

Adj + N

The report shows a significant decrease in crime.

V + adv

Crime decreased significantly.

V + adv

Temperatures fluctuated considerably.

Adj + N

There was considerable fluctuation in temperatures.

Adj + N

Energy use showed a steep rise.

V + adv

Energy use rose steeply.

Done. Go to Lesson 2.

Now move to Lesson 2 — Transform. You'll get tested on this cold (no strength table, no transform table) and then put it into a real chart description.