You borrowed a book from a friend and you have lost it. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter: - explain how you lost the book - apologise for losing it - say what you will do about it
Sample Response
Dear Ken,
I am so sorry about the novel you lent me last month. I have lost it, and I know how much that book meant to you.
Let me explain what happened. I took the book with me on the train to Osaka because I wanted to finish it during the journey. When I got off at the station, I left my bag on the seat by mistake. I contacted the lost property office the next morning, but nobody had handed the bag in.
It was completely my fault, and I feel terrible about it. I should have been much more careful with something that was not mine. I have already found the same edition in an online bookshop, and I will order it this week. It should arrive by next Friday, so I can bring it to you when we meet for lunch.
Once again, I am really sorry about this. I hope it has not caused you too much trouble. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do.
Best wishes, Taro
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Name the mistake directly Original: sorry about the novel Suggested revision: sorry for losing the novel Why it matters: This wording makes the reason for the apology explicit in the opening sentence.
- 2. Use narrative past Original: I have lost it Suggested revision: I lost it Why it matters: The simple past fits the later account of a completed event on a specific journey.
- 3. Clarify the action Original: got off at the station Suggested revision: got off the train at the station Why it matters: Naming the train makes the sequence of events immediately clear.
- 4. Use smoother phrasing Original: nobody had handed the bag in Suggested revision: no one had handed in the bag Why it matters: This particle placement is slightly smoother in a written account.
- 5. Refine the register Original: completely Suggested revision: entirely Why it matters: “Entirely” is a slightly more natural modifier of “my fault” in an apology.
- 6. Make it more personal Original: something that was not mine Suggested revision: something that belonged to you Why it matters: Referring directly to the friend strengthens the personal tone of the apology.
- 7. Use the right preposition Original: in Suggested revision: at Why it matters: “At” is the more natural preposition for the place where the edition was found.
- 8. Sentence rewrite Original: I will order it this week. Suggested revision: I will order a replacement copy this week. Why it matters: Naming the item as a replacement copy makes the proposed remedy more precise.
- 9. Sentence rewrite Original: I hope it has not caused you too much trouble. Suggested revision: I hope my mistake has not caused you too much trouble. Why it matters: Replacing the vague pronoun with “my mistake” gives the reference a clear antecedent.
Suggested Rewrites
- sorry about the novel sorry for losing the novel
- I have lost it I lost it
- got off at the station got off the train at the station
- nobody had handed the bag in no one had handed in the bag
- completely entirely
- something that was not mine something that belonged to you
Why this response received Band 9.0
The letter handles every part of the task directly and convincingly, with a natural friendly tone, a specific explanation, a sincere apology, and a practical replacement plan. There is no substantial weakness; the main opportunity is fine refinement, so the highest-priority improvement is to make the final sign-off conventionally complete by placing the writer’s name on a separate line and to maintain this level of precision.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The letter fully satisfies every bullet point with specific, convincing detail and a consistently appropriate friendly tone.
Retain this complete coverage while formatting the closing and name on separate lines for conventional presentation.
Coherence and Cohesion
Information is sequenced seamlessly from the loss to the apology and remedy, with highly effective paragraphing and unobtrusive cohesion.
Maintain this natural progression and continue using paragraph boundaries to mark each clear stage of the response.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is precise, natural, and flexible throughout, with effective phrases such as lost property office, handed the bag in, and the same edition.
For further refinement, vary the repeated references to the book where doing so remains natural and unambiguous.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide variety of sentence forms is used accurately and naturally, with virtually complete grammatical control.
Preserve this accuracy by continuing to balance concise sentences with well-controlled subordinate and coordinate clauses.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You borrowed a book from a friend and you have lost it. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter:
- explain how you lost the book
- apologise for losing it
- say what you will do about it
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.