Monday, 15 September 2025

Describe an interesting traditional story You should say: -What the story is about - When/how you knew it -Who told you the story - And explain how you felt when you first heard it | Ielts onestop september to december 2025 speaking cue cards |

1. Describe an interesting traditional story 

You should say: 

-          What the story is about 

-          When/how you knew it 

-          Who told you the story 

-          And explain how you felt when you first heard it


📝 Sample Answer

Honestly speaking, I have heard several stories in my life. I remember it was almost a daily routine for me to listen to stories from my grandmother before going to bed, and one such story that I truly admire is about langar, which means free food, and the story behind it is really phenomenal.

Basically, the story revolves around Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founding father of Sikhism, who was the one to start the free food tradition in Sikhism, a practice that continues even today. As the story goes, Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s father once gave him 20 rupees and asked him to do some business. On his way, Guru Nanak Dev Ji noticed a group of spiritual people who were hungry and in need of food. At that moment, he realized it would be more meaningful to feed them rather than use the money for business. So, he bought food and distributed it among those people.

When he returned home empty-handed, his father scolded him for not doing business. But Guru Nanak Dev Ji calmly responded that he had actually done the real business—the business of serving humanity. This story carries a deep lesson. When I first heard it, I was truly mesmerized by the devotion of Guru Nanak Dev Ji to serve those in need.

Even today, this practice is highly relevant in the Sikh community. People continue to prioritize helping others before thinking of themselves. Personally, I also try to live up to this value so that I can contribute to the well-being of people around me and, in my own small way, make the world a better place to live.


📚 Vocabulary, Idioms & Phrases

  •     Daily routine – something done regularly
  •     Truly admire – deeply respect or appreciate
  •     Phenomenal – extraordinary, remarkable
  •     Founding father – the originator of a religion/movement
  •    Continues even today – still relevant in the present
  •     More meaningful – carrying deeper value
  •     Empty-handed – without bringing anything back
  •    Scolded him – reprimanded, spoke angrily
  •     The real business – metaphor for true purpose or meaningful action
  •      Serving humanity – helping people selflessly
  •     Carries a deep lesson – contains an important moral
  •     Truly mesmerized – deeply fascinated or impressed
  •     Highly relevant – very important or applicable in current times
  •     Live up to this value – maintain or uphold a principle
  •     Contribute to the well-being – add positively to someone’s life
  •      Make the world a better place – a common expression for improving society



Honestly speaking, I'm not someone who is into reading, and that's why I've read very few stories in my entire life. But the one which I truly recall was from my school days. I suppose I was in primary school at that point of time, and I got an opportunity to read a story. It was about a thirsty crow. It is one of the most famous stories, and I think almost everyone might have heard of it. And that is the one which I truly remember.

So, talking specifically about the story, this storyline revolves around a crow who is thirsty and is not able to find water anywhere around. Suddenly, he notices that there is a jar kept on a table. When he tries to drink the water, he is unable to because the water level is below his reach. Initially, he was struggling a lot, but after thinking for a while, the crow noticed that there were some pebbles kept on the other side of the jar. Then he picked each pebble and put it into the jar until the water reached a level where he was able to drink it.

So, I think it was quite an interesting story. I remember I was having a lot of fun listening to and understanding this story with my classmates. After that, we also discussed it a lot with our teacher. So, that's why this was one of the most memorable lessons that I had.

I think this story teaches a lot — that if we are passionate about something or if we work hard on things, then eventually we are going to learn and we are going to get what we desire. So, this is something that I learned from it.


 

📘 Vocabulary & Phrases with Meanings + Better Alternatives

Word / Phrase from your answer

Meaning (Simple)

Advanced / Band 7+ Alternatives

honestly speaking

to tell the truth

frankly speaking / to be honest / truth be told

into reading

interested in reading

fond of reading / passionate about reading / an avid reader

recall

to remember

recollect / bring back to mind

primary school

early schooling stage

elementary school / early schooling years

opportunity

a chance to do something

a golden chance / a valuable opportunity

famous stories

well-known stories

popular tales / widely-known narratives

storyline

the plot or events of a story

sequence of events / narrative arc

revolves around

mainly focuses on

centers on / is based on / is set around

notices

becomes aware of

spots / comes across / observes

unable to

not able to

incapable of / finds it impossible to

struggling

having difficulty

having a hard time / facing challenges

pebbles

small stones

tiny rocks (or just "stones")

memorable lessons

lessons that are easy to remember

unforgettable experiences / lasting impressions

passionate about

very interested or excited about

deeply interested in / enthusiastic about / dedicated to

eventually

after some time / in the end

ultimately / finally / at the end of the day

desire

a strong wish

aspiration / goal / ambition

talking specifically about

focusing on one point

to be more precise / specifically speaking

quite an interesting story

very interesting

a truly fascinating story / a captivating tale

having a lot of fun listening to and understanding

enjoying the process of hearing and learning

thoroughly enjoyed listening to and grasping / found it really enjoyable and engaging

discussed it a lot with our teacher

talked about it with teacher

had an in-depth discussion with our teacher / exchanged views with our teacher

we are going to get what we desire

we will achieve what we want

we will accomplish our goals / we will attain our dreams

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