Lời giải ĐỀ THI IELTS 05/01/2020

Lời giải Task 1:

The line graph gives information about the number of marriages and divorces in the UK over a period of 25 years.

Overall, while the number of marriages increased over the period, the number of first marriages declined.  The figure for divorces rose steadily.

There were almost 500,000 marriages in the UK in 1975, and this figure rose steadily to reach a peak of 640,000 in 1985. Despite a gradual decrease to 560,000 in 1995, the number rose again to 570,000 at the end of the period. By contrast, although the figure for first marriages rose from 370,000 to 410,000 from 1975 to 1985, the number then declined steadily to just over 300,000 in 2020.

However, whereas the figure for second marriages stood at only 200,000 in 1975, this rose to 260,000 by the end of the period.  In 1975, there were only 80,000 divorces, although this number more than doubled over the next 5 years.  The numbers then witnessed an increase to reach a peak of 250,000 by 2020, at times overtaking the figures for second marriages.

176 words

Written by NgocBach 

Lời giải Task 2:

It is widely believed that one solution to environmental problems would be for governments to raise the price of petrolWhile I consider that this might be an effective measure, I would argue that other measures might have an even greater impact.

If national authorities raised taxes on petrol, this would address two environmental issues.  Firstly, in terms of private cars, motorists would limit the number and length of their journeys to compensate for the extra expense. Governments would then be forced to upgrade and expand public transport provision, as people would still need to travel to work, to school or to travel to shops and hospitals, for example. Secondly, from the perspective of freight services, more goods would have to be transported by rail rather than by truck. Both these measures would cut down on emissions from vehicles and help to reduce the greenhouse effect.

On the other hand, while this rise in fuel prices might be a useful stopgap measure, governments could adopt transport policies which would be more effective in the long term. The local authorities in London, for instance, introduced a congestion charge on all vehicles visiting the city centre. They use the money raised to subsidize the cost of fares and to invest in transport infrastructure. In turn, this has improved the air quality in the city, as a result of the reduction in exhaust fumes. Another policy would be to introduce free bus and train passes, as the increased use of public transport would reduce pollution from private cars and help in the effort to combat global warming.

In conclusion, a sharp rise in petrol prices would be a useful environmentally-friendly transport measure, although in the longer term other steps would be more effective.

290 words

Written by NgocBach

Ghi chú

Vocabulary from transport:

  • to raise petrol prices (a sharp rise in petrol prices = increase the cost of fuel)
    Meaning: to increase the price which people pay for petrol
    Example: Raising petrol prices would not be an effective method of reducing the amount of traffic on the roads.
  • to upgrade and expand public transport provision
    Meaning: to improve bus and train services and to make these services more available
    Example: One way to reduce traffic on the roads is to upgrade and expand public transport provision.
  • freight services
    Meaning: the system of transporting goods
    Example: Railways must provide more freight services in order to reduce the number of trucks on the roads.
  • congestion charge
    Meaning: an amount of money that people have to pay for driving their cars into the centre of some cities, as a way of stopping the city centre from becoming too full of traffic
    Example: More cities should follow the example of London and introduce a congestion charge in order to ease traffic flow in the city centre.
  • to subsidize the cost of fares
    Meaning: to give money to a business or organization to help to pay for the cost of using public transport
    ​​​​​​​Example: Governments must subsidize the cost of fares on public transport.
  • to invest in transport infrastructure
    Meaning: to spend money on improving roads, railway lines, train and bus stations
    Example: Governments must invest in transport infrastructure to make journeys by road and rail safer.

Vocabulary from government:

  • national and local authorities
    Meaning: government organizations acting at a national level or within a smaller, local area
    Example: Tackling crime is a responsibility of both national and local authorities.
  • to raise taxes on
    Meaning: to increase the amount of tax on something
    Example: Governments should raise taxes on cigarettes to persuade more people to give up smoking.
  • a stopgap measure
    Meaning: a policy or action adopted for a short time until some more permanent solution is found
    Example:  Building more prisons will not solve the problem of rising crime rates, but it is a stopgap measure which the government must take to protect ordinary citizens.
  • to adopt policies
    Meaning: to start to use particular policies
    Example: In order to deal with traffic congestion, the government must adopt policies to restrict the use of private cars.

Vocabulary from the environment:

  • to cut down on emissions
    Meaning: to reduce the amount of gases sent out into the air
    Example: People must be made aware of the need to cut down on emissions from their cars if we are to reduce air pollution.
  • the greenhouse effect
    Meaning: the natural process by which the sun warms the surface of the Earth.The greenhouse effect occurs when Earth's atmosphere traps solar radiation because of the presence of certain gases, which causes short wavelength visible sunlight shines through the glass panes and warms the air and the plants inside.
    Example: Our burning of fossil fuels is increasing the greenhouse effect and making the Earth hotter, endangering all life on the planet.
  • global warming
    Meaning: the process by which the Earth is getting hotter, as a result of the greenhouse effect – in particular the increase in carbon dioxide in the air.
    Example: Perhaps the major environmental challenge which faces humanity today is global warming, because it threatens our survival.
  • environmentally friendly
    Meaning: behavior or products that do not harm the environment
    Example: We can help to protect the environment by using detergents and cosmetics that are environmentally friendly.

Other vocabulary:

  • to address [verb]:
    Meaning: to think about a problem or situation and decide how you are going to deal with it
    Example: We must address the problem of traffic pollution urgently.
  • exhaust fumes [noun]:
    Meaning:  smoke from cars or other vehicles which is dangerous for people to breathe in
    Example: I hate walking in the city centre, because of all the exhaust fumes which pollute the air.