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Describe a person who can use/speak a second language

IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card 223 with Model Answer:

Describe a person who can use/speak a second language.

You should say:
  • who this person is
  • what language this person can use/speak
  • how often this person uses/speaks this language
and explain how this second language is helpful for this person.

[You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you're going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.]

Model Answer 1:
The use of the second language in Vietnam is very important and most of the people are unable to speak a second language properly or they have some sort of pronunciation problem. But I know a man who is able to speak a second language flawlessly and he uses the language to his everyday tasks.

Mr Giang Dung is my neighbour and lives in the next apartment at the apartment complex we are living now. He is a mobile phone engineer by profession and owns a mobile selling business at a shopping mall located in the downtown of the city. He mostly uses the language with his clients. Some of his clients are foreigners and he needs to communicate with them in the second language to serve them in the right manner. Besides, he also takes classes at a local language club and teaches how to speak the second language. He can speak the language like the native speakers and the key behind his speaking fluency is that he visited some of the European countries for around 10 years before he started his own mobile phone selling businesses in Vietnam.

Mr Giang Dung is able to speak English as his second language. He is also capable of speaking some other languages like French, Japanese and German. He has spent a part of his life in those countries and learnt the languages. He has spent a notable time of his life in England and thus he has made English as his second language. He is able to speak fluently and his pronunciation is like the native English people. Usually, he uses English with people who are not familiar with the local language. Since English is an international language, it is used everywhere in the world for communication. Almost all the countries use English as their second language and the scenario is similar in Vietnam as well. But many of the English speaking people are unable to articulate the words perfectly as it is done by Mr Dung. He has made his speaking tone attractive that most of the times people keep listening to him.

Mr Dung uses English frequently with everyone and prefers to practice the language with his students most. As Vietnam is gradually developing and many of the global tourists come here to visit the historical places especially related to the wars, the necessity of English is emerging here. Besides, many of the visitors need to buy or repair their cellular phones during their stay in the country and thus they have to move to the shopping malls where the mobile phones are sold or repaired. Mr Dung is quite familiar in the city for his business and in most of the cases, he is referred by the people as he can take a good care of the tourists and visitors arriving out of Vietnam. He speaks his second language with the people and sometimes he uses the other languages as well if the tourists belong to Germany or Japan. In fact, he loves to speak English and shares positive information about Vietnam to them.

English has helped him to perform some good jobs. Mr Dung is the man of a good heart and he loves to help people. One day an English traveller came to his shop and explained some troubles to him. Mr Dung helped the man unconditionally and after some days, the man returned the favour in plenty which was surprising for Mr Dung. None of the people of the locality could come to help the man as they did not have command of the English language. Mr Dung was able to help for his good skill at the language. Besides, his business is expanding comparing the other businessmen of the shopping mall as he could bargain with the foreign clients in English. Rest of the shopkeepers and businessmen are unable to bargain the way he does in English with the foreigners and thus they are lagging behind in the business competition with him. If he did not know the second language, he might not have done so well in his business. Moreover, he has very good relations with the other people and they admire him for his skill in the languages. In a word, the second language has benefited him from several aspects.



Sample Answer 2:
Mr Robert Ferguson is a British national but he is able to speak the Spanish language like the Spanish people. He is a businessman by profession and been staying here in Spain for a long time. Despite being a foreign national, he speaks Spanish really good. Thank you for this great cue card topic. I will describe Mr Robert here.

Mr Robert is a computer mechanic and owns a computer repairing and selling shop in the centre of Toledo in Spain. He has been living in this city for over 15 years and can speak the local language like the natives. In fact, it does not appear that he is a non-native, except is complexion. Spanish is his second language and he is skilled in communicating with the locals and other people who come to visit his shop.

Spanish is a very sweet language. But there are some difficulties in pronunciation and spelling. This is a bit different from the other languages like English. Moreover, you will need to add some additional words before pronouncing any statement or to define genders which may appear weird to the non-natives. But once someone is accustomed to the words and their uses, it is really easy to use the language. But it took over years for Mr Robert to get a command in this language. He had practised a lot to speak in Spanish and in the early days, he was unable to express his opinions in this language. But now he is able to continue a public speaking session in Spanish.

Mr Robert uses the language in his everyday life. He got married to a gorgeous Spanish lady and they have three kids. So, Mr Robert needs to speak Spanish at his home every day. The majority of his customers and clients are Spanish. He provides them with several services related to computer servicing, getting connected to the Internet and more troubleshooting. When he deals with his clients, he needs to speak Spanish. But sometimes he speaks English too when needed. People from the other countries frequently come to visit the city and Mr Robert needs to communicate in English with them.

Spanish, as his second language is really helpful for him. Mr Robert has a great business and that is expanding gradually. He loves to socialize with people and helps them in needs. As a result, the locals have started relying on him more while he is expanding his business by pleasing everyone. If he did not know the language, he would have failed to communicate with the locals. Even, he could not have got married to the lady with whom he was in love for two years. It appears that Mr Robert is a gainer at learning the second language.

Idea generation for this Cue Card topic: 

"Describe a person who can use/speak a second language."

Speaking a second language is considered a blessing. In fact, the speakers of the second language can communicate more effectively than speakers of a single language. Thereby, many of the people are now tending to learn a second language. The cue card wants to know about a person who can use a second language. Here are some extra hints for the candidates to generate their answers.

1. Mr Yun lI is my neighbour here in Beijing. He is able to use English very well. In fact, I am highly impressed with his English language. He speaks a British tone and almost like the native English people. Often, I make mistake while hearing his English speeches.

2. Mr Robert works at a local company in Sydney. He is able to speak the Chinese language. In fact, the company he works in deals with Chinese products and often Mr Robert needs to use the language to communicate with the Chinese suppliers abroad. So, he has learned the language and uses it smoothly.

3. Samantha is my younger sister and recently she has learned the Thai language. Actually, she is planning to be an air hostess and she prefers the Thai airways for this purpose. So, she has learned the second language. Besides, she was enthralled with the natural views of the country and changed her career plan to enjoy the beauties of the land.

4. Sebastian Roger is an employee of my shop located in Hamburg. He has learned to speak the French language. In fact, he is making preparations to shift in Paris from Germany. And so, he needs to learn French for communicating during his stay in the country. I appreciated his attempt to learn another language.

5. Speaking Spanish appears troublesome to me but Nadia, my younger sister can speak it fluently. In fact, she speaks like the native speakers and had spent around one year to learn it. Her devotion to learning the language was adorable. I have never seen anyone be so perseverant as like her before.

6. Roger Brown is my colleague and can speak the Arabic language perfectly. He has learned the language when he was in Saudi Arabia. He has spent a notable period of his childhood in the country as his father worked with the US Embassy in Saudi Arabia. His pronunciation appears nice and lucid.

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