Think about these questions, or answer them aloud.
The public IELTS band descriptors for Pronunciation say this about rhythm and stress:
So moving up from band 6 is not mainly about individual sounds. It is about keeping chunking, rhythm and stress under control across long turns, which is exactly where Part 2 and Part 3 put pressure on you.
In the B2 course you practised focus words, intonation patterns and connected speech in single sentences. This lesson is about long utterances: how to group words so that a 60-second answer stays easy to follow.
Notation in this lesson: | marks a chunk boundary (a short pause or a clear break in pitch) and bold marks the main stress. This is a study tool only; you won't see it in an exam.
A chunk (or thought group) is a group of words that belong together in meaning, spoken as one unit with one main stress. Inside a chunk, words are linked smoothly. Between chunks there is a slight pause or a reset in pitch.
Natural chunk boundaries come:
Don't break a tight unit: not the cost | of housing, not public | transport, not look | after. Pausing at the right places makes you sound more fluent, not less. Running everything together at speed sounds like one very long word; pausing every two words sounds hesitant.
| Chunked like this | Meaning |
|---|---|
| The students who failed the test | will retake it in May. | Only the students who failed will retake it. |
| The students, | who failed the test, | will retake it in May. | All the students failed, and all of them will retake it. |
| He said | the manager was late. | He is speaking; the manager was late. |
| He, | said the manager, | was late. | The manager is speaking; he (another person) was late. |
Each chunk has one main stress, usually on the last new content word. At C1, three habits make the biggest difference:
Used sparingly, a short pause before a key word adds emphasis: And the answer, | quite simply, | is time. Used in every sentence, it sounds theatrical.
The recording is computer-generated, so its pauses and stresses may not match the marked version exactly. Use the marked version as your guide and read it aloud yourself.
Read each mini-dialogue and decide which word in B's reply carries the main stress. The answer depends on what is new or contrasting, not on the recording.
Follow the marked versions above, not the computer voice: pause at each | and stress the bold word. Listen first, then record each sentence and check that you paused between chunks, not inside them.
Listen to each sentence, then record yourself saying it the same way. Copy the rhythm, stress and intonation.
1.It's not the price that puts people off, it's the hassle.
2.My grandmother, who's nearly ninety, still walks to the market every morning.
3.If the government had invested in the railways twenty years ago, we wouldn't be having this conversation now.
4.People say teenagers don't read, but they do read, just not the way their parents did.
5.The question isn't whether we can afford to act, it's whether we can afford not to.
6.What most people underestimate, in my view, is how long it takes to build a habit.
You have 45 seconds to prepare and 45 seconds to read. In your preparation time, decide where the chunk boundaries are and which words carry new information: times, places and changes. Notice the contrast between the information desk and the session rooms.
Read the text aloud.
Welcome to the Harbourside Conference Centre. Before today's sessions begin, please note a few changes to the programme. The opening talk, originally scheduled for the main hall, will now take place in Room Four, on the second floor. Lunch will be served from twelve thirty until one thirty in the garden restaurant, weather permitting. If you've registered for an afternoon workshop, please collect your materials from the information desk, not from the session rooms. Finally, the closing reception has been moved forward by half an hour, to five o'clock.
45 s preparation · 0:45 speaking
No preparation, as in Part 3. Focus on delivery: chunk after introductory phrases and long subjects, and stress the words you contrast. Aim for 45–60 seconds. Then listen to your recording only for chunking and stress.
Topic: Technology. Do you think people rely too much on their phones for directions and information?
No preparation time · 1:00 speaking
Save words to review them later with flashcards.
“Say the long subject as one chunk, then pause.”
“Each thought group usually has one main stress.”
“Contrastive stress on “red” shows you mean red meat, not all meat.”
“He paused slightly before and after the aside.”
“Children who are read to at home have a head start at school.”
“By the end of the year she had overtaken the rest of the class.”
“We'll have lunch outside, weather permitting.”
“The meeting has been moved forward to Tuesday.”
“Renewing my passport was a real hassle.”
“People often underestimate how long a move will take.”
