PTE Describe Image Practice Test: Sample Questions and Answers

The PTE Describe Image is the third question type in the speaking section of the PTE exam.

Students often practice PTE Describe Image sample questions to excel in this category of questions of the PTE Speaking section. PTE Describe Image practice tests are designed to cover all sorts of images that can be expected to be described in the main PTE exam. To excel in the PTE exam, students must know what is the format of the PTE exam so that they can prepare strategically. PTE test examples give a clear idea on what is the structure of the PTE exam and What is the format of the PTE exam.

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This Story also Contains

1. What is the PTE Describe the Image Task
2. PTE Describe Image Practice 1 - Table
3. PTE Describe Image Sample Answer (Table): Introduction
4. PTE Describe Image Practice 1 - Graph
5. PTE Describe Image Sample Answer (Graph): Introduction
6. Top 5 Tips for PTE Describe Image Practice Test:

What is the PTE Describe the Image Task

The PTE Describe Image is the question that checks the creative, analytical, and logical understanding of a student. In the PTE Describe Image question students have to observe the given picture for 25 seconds and speak for 40 seconds about the picture.

Overview of the Describe Image Task

As mentioned above, students have to speak for 40 seconds on a given picture after observing it for 25 seconds. The picture may be in the form of a bar graph, line graph, pie chart, or table representing data of a particular aspect. Apart from the analytical graphs, there could be map descriptions of informal images like the beach scenes, children's party images, or any image that can be described.

Key Skills Assessed

The key skills assessed in the PTE describe image questions are content, pronunciation, and oral fluency of a candidate. Students should follow the PTE exam steps and do continuous preparation from the PTE Describe Image practice test to excel in this type of question.

Three Steps for Success

The three most common steps of success in the PTE Describe Image questions are given below. Students are requested to follow the steps to excel in the PTE Describe Image questions and score 90.

Step 1:

Observe the picture carefully, many times the heading of the picture is mentioned at the top. You may also find key features representing data on the X and Y axis. Include all this information in the introduction while you attempt the PTE Describe Image practice test.

Step 2:

If the given image is a data presentation, you should strategically speak about the comparative analyses the data is representing. You should add comparative words like higher than, as high as, in comparison to, and other comparative and superlative words.

Step 3:

The last time should summarise the entire picture, for example: if the image is an informal beach scene, then the last line could be: children are having a lot of fun and the picture represents a lot of happiness.

PTE Describe Image Practice 1 - Table

Now, let's take an example of a Describe Image question from the PTE Describe Image Practice test.

The image Source: Cambridge English Test book.

PTE Describe Image Sample Answer (Table): Introduction

For the table data given above the introduction will be:

The table shows the percentage of consumer expenditure in Ireland, Italy, Spain, Sweden and Turkey in the year 2002.

Sample Answer: Description

It is noticeable that Turkey spent 32.4% on food, drinks and tobacco and the expenditure of Ireland was also high compared to Swedish which spent the least with only 15.77%. On the other hand, the lowest expenditure was on leisure and education which accounted for under 5% for all countries. Clothing and footwear was the third category and Italy and Sweden spent 9% and 5.40% respectively.

Sample Answer: Conclusion

Finally, It is observed that all countries spent the maximum on food, drink, and tobacco and the minimum on leisure and education. Also, the outlay of Turkey was higher than all the other 4 countries.

PTE Describe Image Practice 1 - Graph

Many kinds of graphs can be expected such as Bar graphs, Line graphs, Pie-chart and so on. All these can be regularly practiced from the PTE Academic practice test Describe Image questions. Let's take an example of a Bar graph.

The graph below shows the different modes of transport used to travel to and from work in one European city in 1960, 1980 and 2000.

PTE Describe Image Sample Answer (Graph): Introduction

The bar graph depicts information on travellers’ commuting preference to travel in a European city in three different years- 1960, 1980 and 2000.

Sample Answer: Description

In 1960, 20% of people used buses to travel from workplaces and this percentage grew to almost 28% after 20 years. In 2000, bus users fell to less than 20%. On the other hand, in the case of private cars, the users were only about 7% in 1960, which was the lowest among the 4 categories, and this increased sharply in 1980 amounting to 25%, and in 2000, more than 38%, making it the most used form of the transportation system.

Besides, more than 27% of people used bikes in 1960, and in 1980 the number decreased by 5% but in 2000 it dramatically fell to 7%. Finally, 35% of people used to walk to go to work and return from there. But this foot-walkers' number declined significantly in the 80s and 2000 one out of ten office goers walked.

Sample Answer: Conclusion

Overall, with the widespread use of cars, peoples' habit of using bikes and walking reduced noticeably.

Top 5 Tips for PTE Describe Image Practice Test:

Some of the useful tips for the PTE Describe image practice test questions are as follows:

Tip 1: Analyze Different Types of Images

Observe the image carefully and analyze its type and the big picture or data it represents. Check out the given images and the data in line for what it represents.

Bar Charts and Graphs

The bar chart shows the scores of Teams A, B, and C over the four different seasons.

It is clearly observed that team B has scored significantly higher than the other two teams throughout four seasons. Also, the scores of Team A and Team B were almost the same during the entire season.

Pie Charts and Tables

It can be observed that the main source of revenue for the charity was through donated food, at 86.6%. Comparably, program services, at 95.8%, accounted for the majority of the outgoings.

Maps and Diagrams

The map below shows the development of the village of Ryemouth between 1995 and the present.

It is clearly visible that the huge surface area, which was covered by the farmland and forest park, now has been turned into a golf and tennis court, apartments, and car parking facilities.

Tip 2: Develop a Structured Response Strategy

In the PTE Academic exam, you are expected to refrain from using informal language or any sort of slang. To score high, you should clearly observe the image and first categorise it into formal and informal and then introduce it mentioning what is highlighted in it.

Introduction: Summarize the Image

The introduction of the Image is the paraphrased information of what is given as the heading of the image and remember that you should not change the keywords.

Main Body: Describe Key Features

At this stage, using the connecting and transitional devices try to describe all the key features with adjectives and adverbs wherever necessary.

Conclusion: Highlight Important Points

At this stage, highlight the most important visible point, that is, something that can be observed at first glance.

Tip 3: Improve Your Speaking Fluency

Now, that you know how to describe the image, it is time to work on the speaking fluency part as this is one of the most important scoring parameters in the PTE Describe Image practice test and also in the main PTE exam.

Practice Speaking Clearly and Confidently

You have to speak loud and clear in the mike and also confidently. Do not fumble or use too many fillers like aaa, mmm, or any mother tongue short words. Practice will make you perfect in speaking. The best tip here is to record your response and review it carefully.

Focus on Pronunciation and Intonation

You have to be very careful about the pronunciation and intonation. In case you are in doubt about the pronunciation of any word, use the Google application and check the correct lip movement for pronouncing the word. Your intonation also plays a great role in gaining scores for oral fluency, accurate tone, stress to words and the pitch has to be maintained to score high.

Tip 4: Enhance Your Descriptive Vocabulary

Apart from what to speak and how to speak, lies about which words to include so that the scores for content are at the highest. Sometimes, students feel stuck in expressing the highs and lows of a graph or using adjectives to describe an informal image. So, enhancing vocabulary becomes crucial at this stage.

Use Varied Vocabulary for Accuracy

Enrich yourself with a varied variety of words to compare and contrast, to start an introduction, to conclude a fact, add information, also the sequential words. Don't just make a list of words, but understand their right usage so that you do not go wrong in your expression.

Incorporate Transitional Phrases

Using appropriate transitional phrases adds width to the content that you speak and helps in developing better sentence structures.

Words such as and, again, and then, besides, equally important, finally, further, furthermore, nor, too, next, lastly, what's more, moreover, in addition; play a huge role in scoring high in the PTE exam.

Tip 5: Practice Timing and Efficiency

After all the efforts that are mentioned above, you will be able to excel in this question type only if you regularly practice PTE Describe Image questions. We suggest that you opt for a paid subscription to the PTE official web portal to practice the PTE mock tests so that you realize your strengths and weaknesses and work accordingly.

Allocate Time for Preparation and Response

You must dedicate time to the proper preparation of the task and be aware of all the scoring parameters to score high in the main PTE exam. Give yourself time and practice dedicatedly to get a high PTE score.

Develop a Practice Routine

Maintaining consistency in preparation will lead to big success so prepare well and have dedicated practice sessions. Regularly review your mistakes and work on the strategies to overcome all the mistakes you make. Read and listen to authenticated native speakers to enrich your vocabulary and use all the strategies to perfect the ones that suit you the most.