IELTS Speaking band descriptors (public version)

Band Fluency and coherence Lexical resource Grammatical range and accuracy Pronunciation
9 • speaks fluently with only rare repetition or self- • uses vocabulary with full flexibility and precision in • uses a full range of structures naturally and • uses a full range of pronunciation features with
correction; any hesitation is content-related rather all topics appropriately precision and subtlety
than to find words or grammar • uses idiomatic language naturally and accurately • produces consistently accurate structures apart • sustains flexible use of features throughout
• speaks coherently with fully appropriate cohesive from ‘slips’ characteristic of native speaker speech • is effortless to understand
features
• develops topics fully and appropriately
8 • speaks fluently with only occasional repetition or • uses a wide vocabulary resource readily and • uses a wide range of structures flexibly • uses a wide range of pronunciation features
self-correction; hesitation is usually content-related flexibly to convey precise meaning • produces a majority of error-free sentences with • sustains flexible use of features, with only
and only rarely to search for language • uses less common and idiomatic vocabulary only very occasional inappropriacies or basic/non- occasional lapses
• develops topics coherently and appropriately skilfully, with occasional inaccuracies systematic errors • is easy to understand throughout; L1 accent has
• uses paraphrase effectively as required minimal effect on intelligibility
7 • speaks at length without noticeable effort or loss of • uses vocabulary resource flexibly to discuss a • uses a range of complex structures with some • shows all the positive features of Band 6 and
coherence variety of topics flexibility some, but not all, of the positive features of Band 8
• may demonstrate language-related hesitation at • uses some less common and idiomatic vocabulary • frequently produces error-free sentences, though
times, or some repetition and/or self-correction and shows some awareness of style and some grammatical mistakes persist
• uses a range of connectives and discourse collocation, with some inappropriate choices
markers with some flexibility • uses paraphrase effectively
6 • is willing to speak at length, though may lose • has a wide enough vocabulary to discuss topics at • uses a mix of simple and complex structures, but • uses a range of pronunciation features with mixed
coherence at times due to occasional repetition, length and make meaning clear in spite of with limited flexibility control
self-correction or hesitation inappropriacies • may make frequent mistakes with complex • shows some effective use of features but this is
• uses a range of connectives and discourse • generally paraphrases successfully structures, though these rarely cause not sustained
markers but not always appropriately comprehension problems • can generally be understood throughout, though
mispronunciation of individual words or sounds
reduces clarity at times
5 • usually maintains flow of speech but uses • manages to talk about familiar and unfamiliar • produces basic sentence forms with reasonable • shows all the positive features of Band 4 and
repetition, self-correction and/or slow speech to topics but uses vocabulary with limited flexibility accuracy some, but not all, of the positive features of Band 6
keep going • attempts to use paraphrase but with mixed • uses a limited range of more complex structures,
• may over-use certain connectives and discourse success but these usually contain errors and may cause
markers some comprehension problems
• produces simple speech fluently, but more
complex communication causes fluency problems
4 • cannot respond without noticeable pauses and • is able to talk about familiar topics but can only • produces basic sentence forms and some correct • uses a limited range of pronunciation features
may speak slowly, with frequent repetition and convey basic meaning on unfamiliar topics and simple sentences but subordinate structures are • attempts to control features but lapses are
self-correction makes frequent errors in word choice rare frequent
• links basic sentences but with repetitious use of • rarely attempts paraphrase • errors are frequent and may lead to • mispronunciations are frequent and cause some
simple connectives and some breakdowns in misunderstanding difficulty for the listener
coherence
3 • speaks with long pauses • uses simple vocabulary to convey personal • attempts basic sentence forms but with limited • shows some of the features of Band 2 and some,
• has limited ability to link simple sentences information success, or relies on apparently memorised but not all, of the positive features of Band 4
• has insufficient vocabulary for less familiar topics utterances
• gives only simple responses and is frequently
• makes numerous errors except in memorised
unable to convey basic message
expressions
2 • pauses lengthily before most words • only produces isolated words or memorised • cannot produce basic sentence forms • speech is often unintelligible
• little communication possible utterances

1 • no communication possible
• no rateable language
0 • does not attend