It is sometimes said that borrowing money from a friend can harm or damage the friendship. Do you agree? Why or why not? Use reasons and specific examples to explain your answer.
Sample Response
I think that borrowing money from a friend has some negative aspects and can harm or damage the friendship in some cases. For example, a person borrowed some money from his or her friend and did not return it can lead to misunderstanding and can create a crack in belief in friendship. However, I believe that borrowing money from a friend and returning it on time can not harm friendship. Moreover, it even can strengthen the relationships between them. For several reasons, which I will mention bellow, I think borrowing money from a friend and returning it do not damage the friendship. I think that borrowing money from a person who is close to one is normal. Imagine that someone needs help and no doubt that his or her friends will offer it. For example, when my friend asks me to babysit her child while she is taking her classes I agree because I know that she desperately needs my help in order to finish her degree and save some money. Furthermore, I am sure that she will be there for me if I need help. The same thing is with the money, sometimes we borrow money from each other but we always return it to each other. I think it is very important to return money borrowed from a friend. I am glad that I can lend her some money when she needs it because I am sure that she will return it as soon as possible. In addition, I believe that when friends lend and borrow money from each other it means that they trust each other. However, I cannot disagree with the fact that money often can cause the end of the friendship. For example, a person, who borrowed money from his or her friend and did not return it, will try to avoid any contacts with the second person. At the same time, a person who lent the money to his or her friend and did not get it back will have more likely an unpleasant feeling about the situation too. As a result, friends will fall apart. In conclusion, I think that borrowing money and returning it will help to keep friends together.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use precise consequence Original: aspects Suggested revision: consequences Why it matters: Consequences states the harmful result more precisely than aspects.
- 2. Remove redundant wording Original: harm or damage Suggested revision: harm Why it matters: Harm and damage express the same idea here, so one verb is sufficient.
- 3. Correct form and article Original: can not harm friendship Suggested revision: cannot harm a friendship Why it matters: Cannot is written as one word, and the singular countable noun friendship needs an article here.
- 4. Use clearer signposting Original: For several reasons Suggested revision: For the following reasons Why it matters: The following reasons points forward to the explanation more naturally.
- 5. Place adverb naturally Original: it even can strengthen Suggested revision: it can even strengthen Why it matters: Even normally follows the modal verb when it modifies strengthen.
- 6. Use concise phrasing Original: the relationships between them Suggested revision: their relationship Why it matters: The singular possessive phrase fits the relationship between the two friends more naturally.
- 7. Correct spelling Original: bellow Suggested revision: below Why it matters: Below is the correct spelling of the adverb meaning later in the text.
- 8. Fix subject agreement Original: do Suggested revision: does Why it matters: The gerund phrase returning it is singular and requires does.
- 9. Use natural expression Original: a person who is close to one Suggested revision: a close friend Why it matters: A close friend expresses the intended relationship more directly and naturally.
- 10. Separate dependent clause Original: classes I agree Suggested revision: classes, I agree Why it matters: A comma is needed after the introductory while-clause.
- 11. Use idiomatic phrasing Original: The same thing is with the money Suggested revision: The same is true of money Why it matters: The replacement is the idiomatic way to extend the comparison to money.
- 12. Add clause comma Original: each other but Suggested revision: each other, but Why it matters: A comma should precede but when it joins two independent clauses.
Suggested Rewrites
- aspects consequences
- harm or damage harm
- can not harm friendship cannot harm a friendship
- For several reasons For the following reasons
- it even can strengthen it can even strengthen
- the relationships between them their relationship
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response maintains a clear, sensible position and supports it with relevant personal and hypothetical examples, so the argument is easy to follow. Its main limitation is repetition: the conditional idea about returning money is restated several times, while some examples are only indirectly connected to borrowing. Prioritise distinct body paragraphs that each develop one reason with a directly relevant example, then edit frequent grammatical and collocational errors.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
A clear qualified position answers the question and receives relevant support, although some reasoning is repetitive or only indirectly illustrated.
Develop each main reason once and support it with a specific example involving borrowing money rather than an analogous favour.
Coherence and Cohesion
The argument has a broadly clear progression, but the single extended paragraph and repeated transitions weaken its organisation.
Separate the introduction, supporting reasons, counterpoint, and conclusion into purposeful paragraphs with less repetition between them.
Lexical Resource
The vocabulary is adequate for the topic and sometimes varied, but spelling and awkward collocations reduce precision.
Replace phrases such as “a crack in belief” and “avoid any contacts” with natural, context-specific collocations.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A mix of simple and complex structures communicates meaning clearly despite recurring agreement, article, and clause-construction errors.
Proofread sentence subjects and verb forms, especially in clauses describing a person who borrowed or lent money.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
It is sometimes said that borrowing money from a friend can harm or damage the friendship. Do you agree? Why or why not? Use reasons and specific examples to explain your answer.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.