Vocabulary
Describing trends and charts vocabulary for IELTS
Twenty precise verbs, nouns and phrases for describing changes and comparisons in Writing Task 1.
Task 1 rewards accurate, varied language for change and comparison, not fancy words. Learn each verb with its matching noun (rise / a rise, decline / a decline) so you can vary sentence structure: Sales rose sharply and There was a sharp rise in sales. Always add figures and years, and practise with one chart a day.
Common mistake: using "increased" with "to" and "by" wrongly. Rose to 50% gives the final figure; rose by 10% gives the size of the change.
rise
verb
يرتفع
বৃদ্ধি পাওয়া
बढ़ना
naik, meningkat
meningkat, naik
बढ्नु
ඉහළ යාම
بڑھنا، اضافہ ہونا
tăng lên
上升；增加
to go up or increase
“The number of internet users rose from 20 million in 2015 to 60 million in 2020.”
decline
verb
ينخفض
হ্রাস পাওয়া, কমে যাওয়া
घटना
menurun
menurun, merosot
घट्नु
පහත වැටීම, අඩු වීම
کم ہونا، گھٹنا
giảm xuống
下降；减少
to go down or become less
“Newspaper sales declined steadily throughout the period shown.”
a sharp increase
collocation
ارتفاع حاد
তীব্র বৃদ্ধি
तेज़ वृद्धि
kenaikan tajam
peningkatan mendadak
तीव्र वृद्धि
තියුණු වැඩිවීමක්
تیز اضافہ
sự tăng mạnh
急剧增长
a sudden, large rise
“There was a sharp increase in rice prices between March and April.”
a gradual decrease
collocation
انخفاض تدريجي
ধীরে ধীরে হ্রাস
क्रमिक गिरावट
penurunan bertahap
penurunan beransur-ansur
क्रमिक कमी
ක්රමික අඩුවීමක්
بتدریج کمی
sự giảm dần
逐渐减少
a slow, steady fall over time
“The chart shows a gradual decrease in the birth rate over four decades.”
plateau
verb
يستقر
স্থিতিশীল হয়ে যাওয়া
स्थिर हो जाना
stagnan, mendatar
mendatar
स्थिर हुनु
එකම මට්ටමක ස්ථාවර වීම
ایک سطح پر ٹھہر جانا
chững lại, đi ngang
趋于平稳
to stay at the same level after a period of change
“Car ownership rose rapidly until 2010 and then plateaued at around 40%.”
fluctuate
verb
يتذبذب
ওঠানামা করা
उतार-चढ़ाव होना
berfluktuasi, naik turun
turun naik
उतारचढाव हुनु
උච්චාවචනය වීම
اتار چڑھاؤ ہونا
dao động
波动
to go up and down irregularly
“Tourist numbers fluctuated between 2 and 3 million during the decade.”
peak
verb
يبلغ الذروة
সর্বোচ্চ পর্যায়ে পৌঁছানো
चरम पर पहुँचना
mencapai puncak
mencapai kemuncak
उच्चतम बिन्दुमा पुग्नु
උපරිමයට ළඟා වීම
عروج پر پہنچنا
đạt đỉnh
达到峰值
to reach the highest point
“Electricity consumption peaked in July at 950 megawatts.”
hit a low
collocation
يسجّل أدنى مستوى
সর্বনিম্ন পর্যায়ে পৌঁছানো
निम्नतम स्तर पर पहुँचना
mencapai titik terendah
mencapai paras terendah
न्यूनतम बिन्दुमा पुग्नु
අවම මට්ටමට පැමිණීම
کم ترین سطح پر پہنچنا
chạm đáy
跌至低点
to reach the lowest point
“Unemployment hit a low of 4% in 2019 before rising again.”
remain stable
collocation
يظل مستقرًا
স্থিতিশীল থাকা
स्थिर रहना
tetap stabil
kekal stabil
स्थिर रहनु
ස්ථාවරව පැවතීම
مستحکم رہنا
giữ ổn định
保持稳定
to stay at about the same level
“The proportion of students studying science remained stable at roughly 30%.”
account for
phrase
يشكّل (نسبة من)
অংশ গঠন করা
हिस्सा होना
mencakup, merupakan
merangkumi
हिस्सा ओगट्नु
(ප්රතිශතයක්) දරීම, සමන්විත වීම
حصہ بنانا، تشکیل دینا
chiếm (tỷ lệ)
占（比例）
to form a particular part or percentage of a total
“Garments accounted for over 80% of the country's total exports.”
respectively
adverb
على التوالي
যথাক্রমে
क्रमशः
masing-masing, berturut-turut
masing-masing
क्रमशः
පිළිවෙළින්
بالترتیب
lần lượt, tương ứng
分别地
in the same order as the items just mentioned
“Men and women spent 12 and 18 hours per week on housework, respectively.”
the proportion of
phrase
نسبة
এর অনুপাত
का अनुपात
proporsi, persentase
perkadaran
को अनुपात
අනුපාතය, කොටස
کا تناسب
tỷ lệ của
……的比例
the share or percentage of a group
“The proportion of elderly people is expected to double by 2050.”
overtake
verb
يتجاوز
ছাড়িয়ে যাওয়া
से आगे निकल जाना
melampaui
mengatasi
उछिन्नु
අභිබවා යාම
سبقت لے جانا، آگے نکلنا
vượt qua
超过
to become higher or greater than something else
“Online sales overtook in-store sales for the first time in 2021.”
double
verb
يتضاعف
দ্বিগুণ হওয়া
दोगुना होना
berlipat dua
berganda
दोब्बर हुनु
දෙගුණ වීම
دگنا ہونا
tăng gấp đôi
翻倍
to become twice as large
“The population of the city doubled between 1990 and 2010.”
dramatically
adverb
بشكل كبير، بشكل حاد
নাটকীয়ভাবে, ব্যাপকভাবে
नाटकीय रूप से, बहुत तेज़ी से
secara drastis
secara mendadak
अत्यधिक रूपमा, नाटकीय रूपमा
නාටකාකාර ලෙස, විශාල ලෙස
ڈرامائی طور پر، نمایاں طور پر
đáng kể, mạnh mẽ
急剧地；大幅地
suddenly and to a very large degree
“Mobile phone use increased dramatically after prices fell.”
slightly
adverb
بشكل طفيف
সামান্য, কিছুটা
थोड़ा, मामूली रूप से
sedikit
sedikit
अलिकति, थोरै
සුළු වශයෙන්
معمولی سا، تھوڑا سا
nhẹ, không đáng kể
略微；稍微
by a small amount
“Spending on entertainment fell slightly, from 12% to 10%.”
in comparison
phrase
بالمقارنة
তুলনায়
तुलना में
sebagai perbandingan
sebagai perbandingan
तुलनामा
සැසඳීමේදී
اس کے مقابلے میں
so với, trái lại
相比之下
used to show how one thing is different from another
“Japan spent 9% on healthcare; in comparison, India spent just 3%.”
stand at
phrase
يبلغ، يقف عند
অবস্থান করা, দাঁড়ানো
पर होना, के स्तर पर होना
berada pada angka
berada pada
(कुनै अङ्कमा) रहनु
(මට්ටමක) පැවතීම
کی سطح پر ہونا
ở mức
为；达到（某数值）
to be at a particular level or amount at a certain time
“In 2000, the literacy rate stood at 47%.”
an upward trend
collocation
اتجاه تصاعدي
ঊর্ধ্বমুখী প্রবণতা
बढ़ती प्रवृत्ति
tren naik
trend menaik
बढ्दो प्रवृत्ति
ඉහළ යන ප්රවණතාවක්
بڑھتا ہوا رجحان
xu hướng tăng
上升趋势
a general movement towards higher figures
“All three countries show an upward trend in renewable energy production.”
overall
adverb
بشكل عام، إجمالًا
সামগ্রিকভাবে
कुल मिलाकर
secara keseluruhan
secara keseluruhan
समग्रमा
සමස්තයක් ලෙස
مجموعی طور پر
nhìn chung
总体来说
considering everything; used to introduce the main summary
“Overall, it is clear that urban populations grew while rural populations shrank.”