IELTS English Vocabulary P - Q

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IELTS English Vocabulary – P - Q

PARADIGM:

(noun) Example, model. For example: ‘A paradigm to illustrate the situation follows.’

PARAGRAPH:

(noun) Section of a text. For example: ‘It is important to use paragraphs in essay writing as it is easier for the reader to follow the key ideas.’

PARALLEL:

(adjective) Similar, matching, equivalent. For example: ‘It is important for couples to have parrallel goals in life and beliefs.’

PARAMETER:

(noun) limit, boundary. For example: ‘The parameters of our knowledge are expanding all the time.’

PARAPHRASE:

(verb) To write about something again in another form or other words.

PARTICIPATE:

(verb) Take part in, join, join in. For example: ‘Over 200 companies will participate in next week’s exhibition.’

PARTICULARLY:

(adverb) To a great degree; especially. Example: ‘It is important to write clearly, particularly in your IELTS exam’.

PARTNER:

(verb) Unite, connect, link up. For example: ‘The two companies intend to partner together for the purpose of the project.’

PASSAGE:

(noun) A piece of reading with more than one paragraph. Example: ‘In the IELTS reading test, you have to answer questions about the passages given’.

PASSIVE:

(adjective) Not active, learnt through exposure not action. For example: ‘We are influenced in a passive way by many factors in our lives.’

PASSIVE TENSE:

A grammar term for a sentence that changes the subject and object. For example: ‘Someone has stolen my car’ (active) becomes ‘My car has been stolen’ (passive).

PATIENCE:

(noun) Quality of being tolerant, understanding or calm. Example: ‘When working with teenagers, it is necessary to have patience’.

PATIENT:

(noun) Someone who is receiving medical care

(adjective) Tolerant, understanding, calm. For example: ‘When training a dog, you need to be patient. Shouting at the animal will not help.’

PENALISE:

(verb) To punish, to give a penalty. Example: ‘Students who hand in their assignments late are penalised by losing a percentage of their marks’.

PENALTY:

(noun) Punishment; fine; consequence. Example: ‘The penalty for driving over the speed limit is strict in many countries.’

PERCEIVE:

(verb) Understand, comprehend. For example: ‘The attitudes of our parents influence the way in which we perceive the world.’

PERCENT:

(noun) proportion out of a hundred (%). For example: ‘According to the chart less than 8 percent of people never watch television.’

PERIOD:

(noun) Phase, time. For example: ‘While summer was very busy the company is now experiencing a quiet period.’

PERSPECTIVE:

(noun) Point of view, outlook, perception. For example: ‘It is important to consider the situation from more than one perspective.’

PHASE:

(noun) Period of time, temporary period. For example: ‘Many of us go through phases in our life when we have negative experiences.’

PHENOMENON:

(noun) Occurence, happening. For example: ‘As our understanding increases many previously unexplained phenomena can now be understood.’

Phenomenon – single

Phenomena – plural

PHILOSOPHY:

(noun) Viewpoint, way of life. For example: ‘Many traditional business philosophies are still taught and useful today.’

PHYSICAL:

(adjective) Bodily. For example: ‘Physical beauty is often wrongly valued over personality in our society.’

PLURAL:

(grammar term) More than one. Example: ‘The plural of shoe is shoes.’

PLUS:

(conjunction) More, added to. Example: Everything is half price plus they are giving away free accessories.

POINT OF VIEW:

(noun phrase) An opinion . Example: ‘It can sometimes be difficult to understand other peoples’ points of view.’

POLICY:

(noun) Rule, strategy, plan. For example: ‘The change in immigration policy has resulted in more people immigrating to the country.’

POPULATION:

The total number of people living in a place. For example: ‘The population of Japan is over 120 million.’

PORTION:

(noun) part, piece. For example: ‘The company invests a significant portion of its profits into research and development.’

POSITIVE:

(adjective) In support, not negative. For example: ‘Customers’ reaction to the new product has been positive and sales are expected to increase..’

POTENTIAL:

(noun) The full possible extent of ability or excellence. Example: ‘The course allows trainees to perform in their job to their full potential’

(adjective) Possible, probable, likely. For example: ‘The idea has a lot of potential benefits if put into place carefully.’

POVERTY:

(noun) The state of being poor (opposite=wealth) Example: ‘A large proportion of the developing world lives in poverty.’

PRACTIONER:

(noun) A person with a professional skill. For example: ‘A general practioner or G.P. refers patients to specialist doctors when necessary.’

PRECEDE:

(verb) come before, preface. For example: ‘He preceded his presentation with a welcome speech.’

PRECISE:

(adjective) Accurate, exact. For example: ‘The information given at the meeting was very precise.’

PREDICT:

(verb) Foretell, estimate. For example: ‘Experts predict that house prices will continue to rise.’

PREDICTION:

(noun) A guess, an estimation about the future. Example: ‘The prediciton that the world’s population will rise is probably correct.’

PREDOMINANT:

(adjective) Main, most common. For example: ‘The predominant reason people commit crime is lack of money.’

PREFERENCE:

(noun) A preferred choice; something you would rather have/do. Example: ‘They are both good universities, but my preference would be to study at the university in my hometown’.

PRELIMINARY:

(adjective) Initial, first. For example: ‘A preliminary hearing is often held before a major court case goes to trial.’

PREPOSITION:

(noun) A part of grammar that tells you about place or time. Examples:

on the table

between the chairs

at 12 p.m.

PRESSURE:

A force or a feeling that something has to be done.

PRESUME:

(noun) Assume, suppose. For example: ‘In many legal systems someone accused of commiting a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty.’

PREVIOUS:

(adjective) Earlier, prior, before. For example: ‘The research results are similar to and support those in the previous study.’

PRIMARILY:

 (adverb) Most importantly, firstly

PRIMARY:

(adjective) Main, most important. For example: ‘The primary cause of skin cancer is over-exposure to the sun.’

PRIME:

(adjective) Major, key. For example: ‘His experience and qualifications make him a prime candidate for promotion.’

PRINCIPAL:

(noun) Head or boss of an operation (often a school). Example: ‘The school will have a new Principal from next semester’.

PRINCIPLE:

(noun) Idea, standard, belief. For example: ‘The principle behind offering free university education is to give equal opportunites to all.’

PRIOR:

(adjective) Previous, earlier. For example: ‘In the years prior to cheaper air travel, few people had the opportunity to experience different countries and their cultures.’

PRIORITY:

(noun) Factor of number one importance. For example: ‘The main priority when parents divorce should be the well-being of the children.’

PROCEED:

(verb) Go forward, begin, carry on. ‘Please proceed without me as I will be unable to attend the meeting’.

PROCESS:

(verb) Procedure, way of doing something. For example: ‘IELTS task 1 writing may involve describing a process, such as, for example, whiskey-making.’

PROFESSIONAL:

(adjective) Specialised, qualified, skilled or trained in a given area For example: ‘The country needs to attract more professional people into its workforce.’

(noun) Relating to people working in an educated field such as lawyers and accountants.

PROHIBIT:

(verb) ban, do not allow by law. For example: ‘Laws exist which prohibit the sale of alcohol and cigarettes to children.’

PROJECT:

(Noun) An undertaking involving effort. For example: ‘Improving public healthcare is a significant project for the Government.’

PROMOTE:

(verb) Advertise, publicise An undertaking involving effort. For example: ‘Improving public healthcare is a significant project for the Government.’

PROMOTION:

(noun) A raise in your job position. Example: ‘He was given a promotion from sales assistant to sales manager’

PROMPT:

(noun) Something used to help organise and structure ideas. Example: ‘Good public speakers write notes in the form of prompts to help them give a speech.’

PROPORTION:

(Noun) Amount, quantity, part. For example: ‘A number of companies donate a proportion of their profits to charity every year.’

PROPOSED:

(adjective) suggested, planned. Example: ‘The proposed building was rejected because of the cost’.

(verb) PROPOSE To suggest, to plan

(noun) PROPOSAL A suggestion, a suggested plan

PROSPECT:

(Noun) Opportunity, option, chance. For example: ‘The computer industry offers a range of job prospects to qualified people.’

PROTOCOL:

(Noun) Code of conduct, set of rules. For example: ‘Employees of the company are expected to follow a strict protocol.’

PROVIDE:

(verb) To give or offer. Example: ‘IELTS students need to provide evidence and examples to support their opinions.’

PSYCHOLOGY:

(Noun) Mental processes and behaviour, thoughts and emotions. For example: ‘Human psychology is extremely complex.’

PUBLIC TRANSPORT:

Buses and trains for example.

PUBLICATION:

(Noun) Printed work i.e. book, magazine, newspaper, journal. For example: ‘The author’s new publication is said to be his best.’

PUBLISH:

(Verb) Make public, make known. For example: ‘Not all facts are published and the General Public may not be aware of the dangers.’

PUNCTUAL:

Not late / on time.

PURCHASE:

(Verb) Buy. For example: ‘Identification is often required in order to purchase alcohol.’

PURSUE:

(Verb) Go in for, take up, engage in. For example: ‘A number of teachers are becoming disillusioned with teaching and are pursuing different careers.’

Q

QUALIFYING WORD:

(grammar term) A word that gives more information to the main subject. Example: ‘Tokyo is a lot more crowded than Auckland’.

QUOTE:

(Verb) Cite, refer to the words of another. For example: ‘No more than two or three sentences should be directly quoted from another author in academic writing.’