You live in a city in a foreign country, and a friend from your home country is coming to the city for several days. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter: - ask him/her to bring some things from home that you need - explain why you need them - arrange to meet your friend
Sample Response
Dear Bijoy,
I can't express how excited I really am to learn that you'll come to Vienna just a week later. It seems ages since we last saw or talked to each other, and there is a lot we need to catch up with. I'm looking forward to meeting you soon, and I also have a favour to ask.
I'd like you to meet my parents before you pack your luggage as my parents are going to give you some things for me. Don't worry, they are just a couple of small items, and I hope they wouldn't cause you much trouble or add much weight to your luggage. The first thing is a photo album that contains some of our family pictures. This has sentimental value to me as it contains some photos from my childhood when my grandparents were alive. The second and final item is a jar of homemade cookies that my mother made for me. She makes those cookies just before my birthday each year. After I came to Austria, she did the same for the last two years but could not send those to me. I’ve told some of my classmates here how delicious the cookies are, and they're very keen to try them! And I'm sure my mother would be very delighted if she can send it to me.
I do hope that it's manageable for you, and won't cause you much trouble. I’m very excited to meet you soon. I can meet you in the evening on any Sunday. Just let me know when you're free. You've my mobile number, so just call me or send me a text.
Yours truly,
Anil
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use arrival time phrase Original: just a week later Suggested revision: in just a week Why it matters: A future arrival measured from now is expressed with "in," not "later."
- 2. Use catch-up collocation Original: with Suggested revision: on Why it matters: We catch up "on" news or events, while we catch up "with" a person.
- 3. Use future conditional Original: wouldn't Suggested revision: won't Why it matters: The speaker is expressing a real expectation about the upcoming trip.
- 4. Use continuing-time clause Original: After Suggested revision: Since Why it matters: "Since" introduces the starting point of a situation continuing to the present.
- 5. Use present perfect Original: did the same for the last two years Suggested revision: has done the same for the past two years Why it matters: The present perfect describes repeated actions from the past up to now.
- 6. Remove redundant intensifier Original: would be very delighted Suggested revision: would be delighted Why it matters: "Delighted" already expresses a strong degree of pleasure.
- 7. Fix conditional and reference Original: if she can send it to me Suggested revision: if she could send them to me Why it matters: "Could" matches the hypothetical clause, and "them" refers to the cookies.
- 8. Avoid contracted possession Original: You've my mobile number Suggested revision: You have my mobile number Why it matters: "Have" is not normally contracted when it expresses possession in this sentence.
- 9. Remove redundant intensifier Original: how excited I really am Suggested revision: how excited I am Why it matters: "Excited" already conveys the strength of feeling clearly in this sentence.
- 10. Improve parallel structure Original: we last saw or talked to each other Suggested revision: we last saw each other or talked Why it matters: The revision gives each coordinated verb a grammatically suitable complement.
- 11. Use natural travel phrase Original: luggage Suggested revision: bags Why it matters: "Pack your bags" is the natural expression for preparing luggage.
- 12. Clarify reason link Original: as my parents are going to give you Suggested revision: because my parents will give you Why it matters: "Because" makes the reason for meeting the parents explicit and concise.
Suggested Rewrites
- just a week later in just a week
- with on
- wouldn't won't
- After Since
- did the same for the last two years has done the same for the past two years
- would be very delighted would be delighted
Why this response received Band 7.0
The letter’s strongest feature is its warm, natural tone and detailed explanation of the two requested items, including their sentimental and social value. Its main limitation is that the meeting arrangement remains vague, with no definite Sunday, time, or place; the highest-priority improvement is to propose a concrete plan while correcting a few conditional and pronoun errors.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
All three bullet points are addressed with well-developed reasons and an appropriate friendly tone, although the meeting plan is not fully specified.
Offer a particular Sunday, time, and meeting place, then ask the friend to confirm whether that arrangement works.
Coherence and Cohesion
Clear paragraphs move naturally from the greeting to the requested items, their reasons, and the meeting arrangement, with only minor repetition.
Condense the repeated reassurance about inconvenience and use that space for a precise meeting plan.
Lexical Resource
The letter uses varied, natural vocabulary for feelings, practical requests, and personal memories, with a few slightly awkward collocations.
Refine phrases such as “pack your luggage” to “pack” and “sent those to me” to “sent them to me.”
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A broad range of structures is used successfully, though errors in conditionals, pronoun reference, and contraction choice occur occasionally.
Use consistent present and future forms, such as “I hope they won’t,” “if she can send them,” and “You have my number.”
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You live in a city in a foreign country, and a friend from your home country is coming to the city for several days. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter:
- ask him/her to bring some things from home that you need
- explain why you need them
- arrange to meet your friend
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.