On a lost-item card, the steps of the story matter: how you lost it, how you searched, how it ended. Linkers like "first", "then" and "the next morning" keep you fluent, and words for feelings lift your vocabulary score.
The cue card
Describe a time when you lost something important.
You should say:
what you lost
when and where you lost it
how you tried to find it
and explain how you felt about it.
One-minute notes
- what: passport, two weeks before my IELTS test
- where: bank, then a taxi home; noticed in the evening
- search: room, bank, bus stop, taxi app support, Telegram group
- result: driver called next morning; relief, gratitude, zipped pocket
Model answer (about 2 minutes)
I'm going to talk about the time I lost my passport, which happened, of all moments, just two weeks before my IELTS test.
I'd taken it with me to the bank to open an account, and on the way home I took a taxi. I only noticed it was missing that evening, when I went to put it back in the drawer. My heart sank, because without a passport you can't sit the test, and getting a new one would have taken weeks.
First I turned my room upside down, then I retraced my steps: I called the bank and went back to the bus stop where I'd waited. Then I remembered the taxi. I'd booked it through an app, so I contacted support and explained the situation, and I also posted a message in a local Telegram group, just in case.
The next morning the driver called me. He'd found it under the back seat and had been trying to work out how to reach me. He refused to take any money, and he even drove to my neighbourhood to give it back.
I felt a mixture of relief and embarrassment, but mostly gratitude. These days I keep important documents in one zipped pocket of my bag, and I check it every single time I get out of a car.
Useful words and phrases
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| my heart sank | my heart sank |
| sit the test | sit the test |
| turn upside down | turn upside down |
| retrace my steps | retrace my steps |
| just in case | just in case |
| work out how to | work out how to |
| a mixture of relief and embarrassment | a mixture of relief and embarrassment |
| the right thing to do | the right thing to do |
How to answer
- Show why it mattered straight away: "just two weeks before my IELTS test".
- Tell the search in steps: "First..., then..., then I remembered...".
- Use the past perfect continuous for what someone else had been doing: "he'd been trying to...".
- Finish with the lesson and a new habit.
Practise this topic now
The AI examiner asks you these questions, listens to your answers and shows your mistakes.
Part 3: follow-up discussion questions
Why do people lose things more easily these days?
Partly because we're always distracted. When you're checking your phone while getting out of a taxi, you simply don't notice what you've left behind. People also carry far more small things than they used to: earphones, cards, chargers.
Should people who find lost property be rewarded?
I think it's a nice gesture, but it shouldn't be expected. Returning something that isn't yours is just the right thing to do. That said, a small reward probably encourages people to make the effort.
How can technology help people find lost items?
Are people in your country generally honest?
Part 2 strategy: the cue card guide. Next step: the Part 3 guide.
Practise this topic now
The AI examiner asks you these questions, listens to your answers and shows your mistakes.
