An item you use every day
IELTS Speaking Part 2 · cue card
Describe an object you use every day that is important to you.
You should say:
- what it is
- where you got it
- how you use it
- and explain why it is important to you
You have one minute to prepare and should speak for one to two minutes.
Free account required for the live AI partner.
Band 7+ sample answer
About 243 words, roughly two minutes spoken. Use it for ideas and language, not to memorise: examiners notice rehearsed answers.
Apart from my phone, which is too obvious, the object I use every day is a steel water bottle that I've had for about three years.
I actually got it for free. It was a gift for volunteers at a beach clean-up event in Cox's Bazar that I joined with a student club. It has the club's logo on the side and a few dents from being dropped, so it doesn't look very elegant, but it's very strong.
I use it constantly. Every morning I fill it with water, sometimes with a slice of lemon, and carry it in my bag all day. At university I refill it at the water filter on our floor, and when I go to the gym I take it with me as well. It keeps water cold for about twelve hours, which is perfect in our climate.
It's important to me for two reasons. The practical one is health. I used to drink hardly any water during the day and get headaches in the afternoon; carrying the bottle reminds me to drink regularly, and the headaches have mostly stopped. The second reason is more personal. Because I got it at the clean-up, it reminds me of the mountains of plastic bottles we collected from the beach. I haven't bought a single-use plastic bottle since then, which must be several hundred bottles saved by now. So it's a small object, but it represents a habit I'm proud of.
Useful vocabulary
- too obvious
- too easy to guess
- dents
- small hollow marks from being hit
- constantly
- all the time
- refill
- fill again
- single-use plastic
- plastic used once then thrown away
- represents a habit
- is a symbol of a regular behaviour
Part 3 follow-up questions
- What everyday objects would be hard to live without?
- Do people throw away things too quickly these days?
- How can governments reduce plastic waste?
- Are expensive products always better quality?
- How have everyday objects changed in your lifetime?
Tip: in Part 3, give an opinion, a reason and an example, and consider another point of view. Aim for 3–5 sentences per answer.
How to practise this card
- Set a one-minute timer and write keywords for each bullet, not full sentences.
- Speak for two minutes and record yourself on your phone.
- Listen back: did you cover every bullet and the "explain" part? Note one phrase from the vocabulary list to use next time.
- Answer two Part 3 questions out loud, then try the card again with the AI Speaking Partner.