PTE Describe Image vocabulary practice should train you to select the main information and describe only relationships the image supports. Pearson's official materials place Describe Image in the Speaking & Writing section and identify Speaking as the skill assessed; they emphasize key information and relationships. The original text-based data below lets you check every claim without relying on an unseen graphic.
Use the PTE Academic vocabulary hub for the complete route. Do not memorize the models as templates; reuse the decisions.
Practice 1: line movement
Annual visits to a reserve, in thousands:
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Visits | 24 | 27 | 46 | 45 |
Choose the accurate phrase for each interval.
- 2022–2023: rose slightly / surged
- 2023–2024: increased sharply / remained stable
- 2024–2025: fell marginally / plummeted
Answers: 1 rose slightly; the gain is 3, compared with 19 next. 2 increased sharply. 3 fell marginally; the change is only 1. A concise overview is: “Visits increased overall, with the largest rise between 2023 and 2024, before remaining broadly stable.”
Practice 2: compare categories
Weekly commuting modes among 200 employees:
| Mode | Employees |
|---|---|
| Bus | 82 |
| Car | 61 |
| Bicycle | 37 |
| Walking | 20 |
Mark each claim true or false.
- Bus travel was the most common mode.
- A majority traveled by bus.
- Cycling accounted for just under one fifth.
- Walking and cycling together exceeded car use.
Answers: 1 true: 82 is the largest category. 2 false: 82/200 is 41%, not a majority. 3 true: 37/200 is 18.5%. 4 false: 37 + 20 = 57, below 61. Largest does not automatically mean majority.
Understanding is only the first step.
Lyra Practice helps you retrieve and use high-value workplace expressions in realistic situations until they feel natural.
Start a practice session →Practice 3: proportions
A training budget is divided into technical courses 45%, communication 30%, compliance 15%, and administration 10%.
Choose the one accurate completion.
- Technical courses received the largest / smallest share.
- Communication accounted for nearly one third / nearly one half of the budget.
- Compliance received half / twice as much as communication.
- Administration represented the smallest / largest category.
Answers: 1 largest. 2 nearly one third. 3 half. 4 smallest. Do not say technical courses received most of the budget: 45% is the largest single share but less than half.
Practice 4: process language
A recycling process has five stages: collection → sorting → cleaning → shredding → remanufacture.
Put these in logical order: subsequently, initially, finally, after being sorted, before it is shredded.
Model: “Initially, material is collected. After being sorted, it is subsequently cleaned before it is shredded. Finally, the material is remanufactured.”
The sequence words clarify order. They do not explain why a stage occurs unless the diagram supplies a cause.
Practice 5: build a bounded response
Monthly output in units: January 120, February 118, March 150, April 149, May 131.
Select three main features before speaking. One defensible model is:
The data show monthly output from January to May. Overall, production fluctuated, reaching a peak of 150 units in March. It was broadly stable at about 120 in the first two months, rose sharply in March, and remained almost unchanged in April before falling to 131 in May. Despite the final decline, May output was still above the January level.
Every claim is checkable. It does not invent reasons for the March increase or call the final fall catastrophic.
Final evidence check
Before accepting a trend word, ask: What are the start and end values? Is the change large relative to nearby changes? Does majority really exceed 50%? Does peak identify the highest value? Is a proposed cause visible? Precision is more valuable than variety detached from the image.
Follow that evidence check in Lyra Practice's trend vocabulary guide or proportions and shares guide, depending on the image type you need to practice.
Sources
Related
- PTE Describe Image trend vocabulary
- PTE Describe Image pie-chart vocabulary
- PTE speaking vocabulary by question type
- What the PTE vocabulary score guide rewards
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