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Talking about animals in IELTS Speaking can be a challenge, not only for the vocabulary, but also knowing what to talk about.
In this free IELTS Speaking lesson on the topic of animals, you will learn how to talk about wild animals, pets, and well as the advantages and disadvantages of zoos.
Table of Contents
IELTS vocabulary: Animals
When talking about animals you like, the most common mistake is to use the singular, but if you are talking about this animal in general, you should use the plural.
- I like giraffe X
- I like giraffes / dogs / elephants 😄
- I adore cats
- I am into _____
- I am a big fan of ______
- I am a ___ person
- I am a cat person
Pets
- I have a pet hate, people speaking whilst eating =something I hate a lot
- I was the teacher’s pet = the teacher’s favourite
Zoos
- There are many different species (n.)
- Capture (v.) = catch (v.)
- Animals are kept in captivity (n.)
- Cage (n.)
- It’s sad to see caged (adj.) animals
- We can save endangered (adj.) animals
- Tigers are an endangered animal
- The tiger is an endangered animal
- To become / be extinct (adj.) = to disappear, no longer exist
- They are on the brink of extinction (n.) = about to become extinct
- They are on the verge of extinction = about to become extinct
- In a conservation/natural/safari park animals are allowed to roam (=to walk without direction) freely
- We can protect animals from poaching (=illegal hunting)
Wild animals
- herbivores (n.) = animals that eat plants
- e.g. Cows, rabbits, horses…
- carnivores (n.) are meat-eating animals
- e.g. lions, tigers, snakes
- mammals (n.) are warm-blooded, and the young feed on milk…
- e.g. Humans, whales, dogs dolphins, bears
- marsupials (n.) – the young lives in a pouch (native to Australia)
- e.g. Kangaroo, Koala, wombats, platypus, possums, wallabies
- Animals that eat other animals are called predators
IELTS debates and discussions about animals
Why people keep pets
You might find this kind of question in IELTS Speaking Part 3
WHY DO PEOPLE ____?
I recommend you focus on 1 group of people, and then talk about them.
This makes it easier to answer because it is very specific, otherwise, you may just give a very general, ‘surface-level’ answer.
Also as you become more specific, you will find you use more specific vocabulary which can boost your vocabulary score.
For example,
If we are talking about old people, I think….
If we are talking about disabled people, they…
When it comes to young people, they….
More useful phrases
- For security
- For company
- For companionship
- They keep you company
- In today’s isolated life they want a companion
- Pets symbolize a sense of welfare/well-being
- To curb loneliness (=reduce, keep in check)
- Help us meet other people
- Pets give us a great chance to socialize with others
Zoos: The good and the bad
As you can see from the poll in our lesson, this is a hotly debated issue. If you are not sure about your opinion, you could say…
- I am on the fence on this one =undecided
- I am in two minds about this =undecided
Zoos are not a good thing because…
- Cages and living conditions are too cramped; wild animals need liberty and freedom.
- Animals lose their instincts, for example how to hunt, and often become depressed.
- They might be good for people but if we think of animals, zoos limit their activities and natural way of spending their life.
- By keeping animals cooped up (= in a small cage), there are more chances of extinction, as they don’t get the conditions they need to mate and reproduce.
- By keeping animals in captivity, ecosystems can be badly affected.
- Some zoos abuse animals, for example, training elephants for
- entertainment.
- Zoos pose a risk, if animals can escape, they can harm people.
Zoos are a good thing because…
- They can help educate children.
- Zoos can be good for educational purposes to let children know about a wide range of animals.
- That said, we should protect the natural habitats where the endangered species live.
- I think, if workers treat animals kindly, zoos are good.
- Well, It really depends on how well zoos are managed, and how much protection can be provided to the animals.
- It’s good to keep some of the animals in zoos, as otherwise their predators will eat them and their numbers will decrease.
- I think zoos are good to provide favorable conditions to endangered species and so help save them.
- Zoos can help us understand the biodiversity on our planet
Students' questions about animals
Keith, tell us about a time when you saw a wild animal?
Well, it’s an interesting question because I live in the city, so I don’t get a lot of access to wild animals, as you can imagine.
But I do remember once when we were out trekking in the mountains, we went through a forest, it’s not far from where I live, actually.
Whilst we were going through the forest, suddenly out of the blue (=unexpectedly) we saw this fox and I didn’t know there were foxes in that forest, but there you go, lo and behold, (=used to present a new and surprising situation) there it was.
It was a lot bigger than I imagined. As I mentioned I live in a city so I don’t see many wild animals, but this fox was almost the size of a wolf and what was interesting was, it was really scared of us. It was more scared of us than we were of it.
So, it kind of peeped up (=took a quick look) from behind the bush, it looked at us and then scurried away (=ran away quickly), to run away and escape.
Obviously, it was afraid of humans. So, I felt surprised to see how big it was and how scared it was, but it was a really interesting experience that time I saw a fox in the forest near where I live.
Notice, my speech is not in perfect sentences. If you write your answers out in perfect sentences, it will not sound natural, it will sound like you are a book!
Keith, what wild animal do you like and why?
I am a big fan of elephants. I think elephants are curious and amazing creatures.
I have seen elephants on the television, not in real life, where they are trained to do amazing things, from almost acrobatics to painting with their trunk.
I just think they are lovely creatures and they seem very sociable, and very friendly, although of course in the wild I am sure they are much more aggressive,
but they are typically an animal that humans like to tame (=to domesticate) and I think they wonderful.
Useful Links
Here are some links if you want to study further about the topic of animals in IELTS Speaking.
Test your vocabulary about animals here
https://www.passporttoenglish.com/Advanced-English/Lesson14/Vocabulary.html
Are zoos good or bad? – watch the debate!
https://www.kqed.org/education/532723/are-zoos-good-or-bad-for-animals
Ideas for some interesting animals
More Free IELTS Speaking Lessons
If you liked this lesson, leave a comment below!
There are more lessons you can follow in the links below too.
AMBITION in IELTS Speaking. Vocabulary and ideas to talk about ambitions, as well as some model answers
PROTECTING ANIMALS in IELTS Speaking. Learn useful vocabulary and idioms to talk about endangered animals.
HABIT in IELTS Speaking. Vocabulary and idioms you need to describe your habits easily.
