Pie Charts: Useful Language (British Council Academic IELTS: Writing): Study Material

Pie charts: making comparisons

When describing pie charts in IELTS Writing Task 1, comparison language is essential because your primary task is to highlight similarities and differences between categories or time periods. The following expressions can help you do that.

• Higher than/Lower than

  • Example: Crime movies were more popular among boys than girls, at 44% compared with 19%

• Significantly/Considerably/Substantially + comparative

  • Example: UK residents spent a significantly larger percentage of their household budgets on leisure (34%) than their Canadian counterparts (9%)

• Twice as much/Three times as much/Half as much

  • Example: In 2008, New Zealanders spent only half as much on recreation as UK residents—17% versus 34%

• While/Whereas/While... by contrast

  • Example: Utility bills accounted for 31% of household spending in Germany in 2018, while the equivalent figure for the UK was only 8%

• In contrast to/Compared with/Unlike

  • Example: In contrast to boys, who favoured crime movies most strongly at 44%, girls showed a clear preference for comedy films at 44%

• Outranked/Exceeded /Surpassed

  • Example: Spending on food and drink exceeded expenditure on all other categories in both countries in 1980, reaching 29% in Italy and 23% in the US

• The opposite was true for/The reverse was the case for

  • Example: Adventure films appealed more to girls (55%) than to boys (20%); the opposite was true for crime movies, which boys preferred by a wide margin

• Ranked first/Came second/Took third place

  • Example: Travel activities accounted for the highest proportion of UK household spending in both years, while transport costs consistently took third place at around 20%

• A clear preference for/A marked tendency towards

  • Example: Overall, boys showed a clear preference for crime and action genres, whereas girls demonstrated a marked tendency towards comedy and romance

• Equaled/Matched/Mirrored

  • Example: The proportion of water used for drinking and cooking in Canada (12%) mirrored that seen in Sweden (11%), suggesting similar domestic consumption patterns in both nations

• Lagged (far) behind

  • Example: At 11%, horror movies lagged far behind the other categories in popularity among boys

• Wide disparity/Considerable difference

  • Example: Overall, there was a wide disparity between boys’ and girls’ preferences for pop music

Pie charts: ratio, proportion, fractions

Because pie charts show how a whole (100%) is divided, you often need language for proportions, fractions and ratios. Using a range of expressions helps you avoid repeating phrases such as “X% of people”. Doing so can also help you get a higher score in Lexical Resource. Here are some useful expressions you could use.

• Accounted for/Made up/Comprised + percentage/proportion

  • Example: Agricultural irrigation accounted for the largest share of water consumption in India at 52%

• Represented/Constituted /Formed + fraction/percentage

  • Example: Industrial water usage constituted nearly half (46%) of America's total water consumption, making it the dominant category by a considerable margin

• Took up + share/slice

  • Example: In the Netherlands, commuting and leisure cycling together took up almost three-quarters (73%) of all bicycle usage

• A small minority/A tiny proportion/A negligible amount

  • Example: Bicycle usage for competitive racing represented a tiny proportion of total bike journeys in Denmark, accounting for a mere 3% of all trips

• The vast majority/By far the largest part

  • Example: Agricultural water consumption accounted for the vast majority of Egypt's water resources at 65%

• Approximately/Around/Roughly/Just over/Just under

  • Example: Household water use in Australia stood at roughly one-fifth (22%) of total consumption, while industrial applications required just under half (47%)

• One in X/ X out of every Y

  • Example: Nearly one in three bicycle trips made by Dutch residents (33%) were for leisure purposes, compared with one in five journeys (20%) in Germany

• A quarter/A third/Half /Three-quarters

  • Example: Industrial processes consumed over a third (35%) of Brazil's water resources, whereas domestic use claimed less than a quarter (23%)

• X% of the tota /X% of the overall figure/X% of the whole

  • Example: When combined, exercise-related cycling and shopping trips comprised less than one-fifth of the total bicycle usage recorded across all five European countries

• A modest share/A considerable portion/A substantial slice

  • Example: While environmental conservation efforts consumed a modest share of Australia's water budget in 2001, this figure rose to a considerable portion in 2009

• Respectively

  • Example: Crime and comedy were preferred by 44% and 25% of boys, respectively