Part 1 · Band 9

where is your hometown

Source-reported band score · 46 words

Sample answer

I am from Baku, Azerbaijan, which is my hometown. I was born and raised in this remarkable city. Baku is a unique blend of modern and architectural buildings, complemented by beautiful parks throughout the area. Walking through my hometown is enjoyable and therapeutic for my well-being.

Answer analysis

Fluency & Coherence

The answer develops in a clear sequence: it names Baku, adds the personal detail “I was born and raised,” describes the city, and finishes with your experience of walking there. That progression makes the response easy to follow, although the description could connect more directly to why Baku is remarkable. Practise speaking this answer for 30 seconds, then repeat it in 25 seconds while keeping the same key details and a clear beginning, middle and ending.

Lexical Resource

You use descriptive vocabulary such as “remarkable,” “unique blend” and “therapeutic,” which gives the answer a personal tone. The main opportunity is more natural and precise collocation: “modern and architectural buildings” is not an easy-to-interpret pairing, and “throughout the area” is vague after naming a city. Try replacing these with clear phrases such as “modern buildings and striking architecture” and “across the city,” while retaining your positive description.

Grammatical Range & Accuracy

The response shows good control of sentence structures, including the relative clause “which is my hometown” and the participle phrase “complemented by beautiful parks.” The sentences are complete and the relationships between ideas are understandable. There is no major grammatical error to correct; one refinement is to make the parallel description more straightforward, for example by separating the buildings and architecture. Practise varying one sentence pattern while keeping the answer concise and natural for Part 1.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation cannot be assessed from this text, so this is a practice guide, not an assessment of a recording. Practise the word stress in “remarkable” (re-MAR-ka-ble) and “therapeutic” (ther-a-PEU-tic), and say “Baku, Azerbaijan” clearly. Record the answer twice, grouping it as “I was born and raised in this remarkable city / Baku has beautiful parks throughout the area / walking there is enjoyable.” Listen back and check that each thought group is easy to understand.

A transcript shows language and organisation. Fluency, delivery and pronunciation require an audio recording; the synthetic voice demonstrates the text, not the original speaker.

  • Start with a direct response such as “My hometown is Baku, Azerbaijan,” then use the next sentence for the personal detail that you were born and raised there.
  • Make the city description precise by distinguishing its buildings and architecture, and use “across the city” instead of the less specific “throughout the area.”
  • Practise a 25–30-second version aloud, ending with your own experience of walking around Baku so the answer moves from general description to personal feeling.

Plan your answer

Try your own response before reading the samples.

Ideas to explore

  • Give the hometown’s name and country, then mention a personal connection such as being born and raised there.
  • Describe one or two features of the place, such as its architecture and parks, rather than listing many attractions.
  • Finish with a personal activity and feeling, such as enjoying walks because they are relaxing.

Suggested structure

  1. Name the hometown and country.
  2. Add a brief personal detail about your connection to the place.
  3. Describe a distinctive feature or two.
  4. End with an activity you enjoy and explain how it makes you feel.
Useful vocabulary & examples
a distinctive mix of
a noticeable combination of different features

Baku has a distinctive mix of modern buildings and striking architecture.

born and raised
born and brought up in a particular place

I was born and raised in Baku.

across the city
in different parts of the city

There are beautiful parks across the city.

I find it relaxing
I feel calm when I do it

I enjoy walking around my hometown because I find it relaxing.

Practise your answer →

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