Cae Tips and Tricks
Cae Tips and Tricks
Cae Tips and Tricks
PART 2
What strikes me about the first picture is the fact that...
What I think is…
This picture reminds me of...
PROVIDES US WITH
good
Judging from the photograph, the children...
BUT OF COURSE REMEMBER DON’T DESCRIBE THE PICTURE
The man appears to be...
From what we can see here, he must...
There are many similarities...
Both pictures depict...
Both pictures are quite similar in that they show...
STUDENT- UNDERGRADUATE- SCHOLARS-Professional Students- pupil – young learners,
more experienced ESL learners,
Athletes, sportsmen, adolescents,
You have to have limber fingers
Your fingers will betray, will fail you, your fingers won’t work the way you want to them,
It's difficult to tell from a photograph but this picture could have been taken in ...
I might be wrong, but I'd say that this picture ...
I would imagine/guess that this picture comes from ...
PART 3
Up to the problem in question ...
The main problem centres around ...
PART 4
Just following from what X was saying, I also feel ...
While generally agreeing with X, I must say that ...
Adding to what X has just said, I think ...
I can sympathise with what X said but ...
One thing X didn't mention is ...
Surprising, as it may seem, I don't support X's view on ...
Perhaps it should be also emphasized that ... / it should be pointed out that ...
Writing for FCE/CAE/CPE
Useful language
FORMAL LETTERS
Letters of complaint
Letters of recommendation
I am writing about the article on ... , which appeared (in last night's paper).
I am writing with reference to the article you published (in last month's issue).
I have just read your article on ... and I feel I must ...
You raised some issues which I feel strongly about.
At the start of your article, you appear to claim that ...
I am afraid I totally disagree.
I am completely in agreement.
I am sure readers will agree with me when I say that ...
ARTICLES
Sequencing
At first / To start with/In the beginning, ...
Then/Next/After that, ...
The next thing that happened was ...
The next thing I knew was ...
Seconds/Minutes later,
Late on/Some time later,
It wasn't until much later that ...
After some time/After what seemed like years, ...
Finally/In the end, ...
At last, ...
Simultaneous events
Meanwhile/In the meantime,
While all this was going on,
In the middle of all this, ...
During all this time, ...
Rapid events
As quick as a flash, ...
In the wink of an eye, ...
In a matter of seconds/minutes, ...
In no time at all, ...
Looking back
In retrospect, ...
When I think back to what happened then, ...
REPORTS
Introductory comments
I recently visited (the new Leisure Centre) and have prepared the following report for
your consideration.
Further to my visit to ... , I have prepared the following report.
The following report relates to my recent visit to ...
General comments
On the whole, I found that ...
Although ... , I should point out that ...
It is a fact that ...
Concluding comments
All things considered, I believe that ...
Taking all these points into consideration, I would recommend ...
I recommend that we look into the possibility of ...
PROPOSALS
REVIEWS
These words and phrases can be used in the following text types, depending on what are
asked to write about:
• letters
• essays
• articles
• proposals
• reports
• reviews
These words and expressions are especially useful in letters, essays and articles.
Opening phrases
These words and expressions are especially useful in letters, essays and articles.
Making statements
These words and expressions are especially useful in letters, essays and articles.
These words and expressions are especially useful in letters, essays and articles.
Listing arguments
These words and expressions are especially useful in letters, essays and articles.
Persuading
These words and expressions are especially useful in letters and proposals.
Evaluating
These words and expressions are especially useful in reports, proposals and reviews.
Making recommendations
These words and expressions are especially useful in proposals and reports.
Summarising
These words and expressions are especially useful in letters, essays,articles, reports,
proposals and reviews.
All in all, I think that ...
To sum up, I believe that ...
In conclusion, the facts suggest that ...
Describing
These words and expressions are especially useful in articles, reviews, and letters.
Character/Personality
He tends to be ...
She can be ...
He is inclined to be ...
She appears/seems to be ...
Hobbies and interests
He is crazy about ... -ing.
She loves ... -ing.
His greatest love is ...
What she loves most in life is ...
He spends all his time ... -ing.