Describe something expensive you would like to buy.
A strong long turn names the subject in the first sentence, spends most of the two minutes on the last bullet — the why — and arrives at a prepared final line rather than trailing off.
The question, as the examiner gives it
Describe something expensive you would like to buy.
You should say
- what it is
- how much it costs
- why you want it
- and explain when you think you will buy it
60 seconds to prepare, up to 2 minutes to speak
A band 7 to 8 answer
About 180 words at a natural pace — roughly what 120 seconds holds.
Answer it yourself first
Record your own answer first. A model you have read three times comes out with a flattened rhythm, and examiners are trained to hear exactly that. Read it afterwards for the vocabulary and the shape, not to memorise the sentences.The thing I would like to buy is a proper piano, an upright rather than a grand, which would cost somewhere between two and four months of my salary depending on how patient I am about finding a second-hand one. I had lessons as a child and gave them up, and for about ten years I have been saying that I will start again. There is an electric one in my flat that I bought as a compromise, and it is fine, and it has taught me exactly why people insist on the real thing. The keys on an actual piano push back. Why I want it is partly that, and partly that it is the only thing I can think of that would make me practise, because an instrument that large in a small flat is a standing accusation. When I will buy it is genuinely uncertain. Not until I am somewhere I intend to stay for several years, because moving one is a serious undertaking, and that is a decision I have been avoiding for other reasons entirely.
The words that earn marks
Each one links to how it is pronounced.
- upright
the precise noun for a type of piano
- compromise
three syllables with the stress on the first
- insist
the right verb for a strong preference
- accusation
four syllables, used figuratively and wittily
- uncertain
three syllables with the stress on the second
- undertaking
compound noun for a difficult task
- avoiding
gerund with a clean ng ending
How a strong answer is built
- 1Name the thing and be specific about the cost.
- 2Give the history behind wanting it.
- 3Explain why the cheaper version does not do.
- 4Answer when honestly, including the real obstacle.
Sounds to watch
The ones this answer leans on most.
Straight answers
How long should my answer to “Describe something expensive you would like to buy.” be?
You get 60 seconds to make notes and then speak for up to two minutes without interruption. Aim to still be talking at ninety seconds: finishing at forty is the commonest way to lose marks on this part.
Should I memorise the model answer?
No. Record your own version first, then read the model for the shape and the vocabulary. A memorised answer changes rhythm and pace noticeably, and examiners are trained to hear it — it usually costs more than the better wording gains.
Does sayit score this answer?
It scores what a microphone can observe: an estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar.
What the band on your result means
An estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar.One question a day until your test
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