Topic: Books & Films | Speaking for IELTS PDF Download

Vocabulary  

Adjectives to describe books and films:
Action-packed: full of action.

Example: My brother loves action-packed movies. Probably that’s why his favourite film is “Terminator”.

Addictive: a book or film that you quickly become addicted to.

Example: “Harry Potter” series by Joanne Rowling are so addictive! I couldn’t stop after the first book and read all volumes.

Creepy: producing a sensation of uneasiness or fear, scary.

Example: Noah finds Stephen King’s stories creepy.

Dreary: gloomy or depressing.

Example: I can’t stand dramas, thrillers and other dreary movies.

Entertaining: funny and enjoyable.

Example: Comedies are very entertaining.

Futuristic: telling about the future.

Example: “Star Wars” movie is futuristic and dynamic.

Heartbreaking: that breaks your heart and evokes sad emotions.

Example: When my aunt watched “Titanic” she cried all day! It’s such a heartbreaking film.

Inspirational: evoking inspiration.

Intense: a book or film loaded with actions and emotions that evokes strong feelings.

Example: The play’s plot was very intense. Just a minute after a couple had a quarrel in the forest, the secret lover appeared and started a fire-fight.

Tear-jerking: tragic, making you cry.

Example: My sister is very emotional. I would rather watch a comedy with her than a tear-jerking movie!

Thought-provoking: a book or film that makes you think of new ideas or that changes your attitude to something.

Example: Ray Bradbury’s novel “Fahrenheit 451” is deeply thought-provoking. I had to rethink my attitude to legislation and censorship after I read it.

Advanced vocabulary:

Action movie: film with fast moving scenes, often containing violence.

Example: Last week I saw a great action movie with my brother at our local movie theatre.

Bedtime reading: a book you read in your bed before going to sleep.

Example: I’m really addicted to books! I can’t even fall asleep without an hour of bedtime reading.

Box office hit: a very successful movie, in terms of money.

Example: The new movie might be a box office hit, but I didn’t like it at all.

E-reader: a gadget for reading books.

Example: My e-reader broke a few days ago, so now I’ll need to fix it or buy a new one.

From cover to cover: from the first page to the last.

Example: I am a slow reader so it takes me a lot of time to read a book from cover to cover.

Hardcover: a book with hard cover. Opposite to softcover.

Example: My friend gave me a hardcover book as a present for my birthday.

Page turner: a book which is so good that you cannot stop reading it.

Example: My sister recommended me a great book. It was such a page turner that I read it in one day!

Plot: a storyline of a book or film.

Intricate plot: a very complex, labyrinthine plot.

Example: The famous Leo Tolstoy’s novel “War and Peace” has a very intricate plot. It  tells a story of five different families and comprises of 4 volumes.

Subordinate plot (subplot): a plot that is related to, but less important than the main plot of a story.

Example: Ernest Hemingway’s novel “The Sun Also Rises” tells a love story of a man and a woman. However, the book involves many subordinate plots that raise questions about physical and spiritual affinity, trans-racial relationships and anti-Semitism.

Threadbare plot: a simple, primitive plot.

Example: The movie’s plot was threadbare, but cutely disarming in its own way.

Unravelling of the plot: the way in which a story develops over time.

Example: I first thought Jack London’s novel “Martin Eden” to be pretty straightforward. However, the plot unravelled in a very unpredicted way.

Useful idioms:

Don’t judge a book by its cover: a metaphorical phrase which means “you shouldn’t judge someone or something by its appearance alone”.

Example: When I first met Sam I didn’t find him handsome. But, as people say, don’t judge a book by its cover. He turned out to be the most interesting person I’ve ever met and we married soon!

To catch the latest movie: to see a movie that has just come out.

Example: We need to hurry up if we want to catch the latest movie.

To flick through: to look quickly through a book.

Example: I flicked through my notes to prepare for the exam as didn’t have time to study properly.

To know like a book: to know something extremely well.

Example: I live in this city for my whole life and I know it like a book.

To read between the lines: to understand the hidden meaning about something.

Example: When I broke up with my girlfriend, I didn’t want anyone to know that. But Tom saw us in the different corners of the classroom and read everything between the lines. He’s very discerning.