Describe someone who is older than you that you admire: IELTS Speaking Part 2 Cue Card and Part 3 Questions
Part 2 cue card
Describe someone who is older than you that you admire
You should say:
- Who this person is
- How you knew this person
- What kinds of things you like to do together
- And explain how you feel about this person
You will have one to two minutes to talk about this topic.
Preparation status: Predicted topic cycle. This independent practice resource is not an official IELTS paper, and the questions in your test can be different. How topics are labelled.
Part 3 discussion questions
Move one question at a time: listen, answer, compare and retry. The complete question text remains in the page HTML for accessibility and search.
- 01What can young and old people learn from each other?
- 02Has old people's life quality improved when compared to the past?
- 03Why is there a generation gap between the young and the old?
- 04What do old people usually do in their daily life?
Model answers, heard side by side
Start with the simpler answer, switch bands to hear how the same task can be developed, then record a personal response. These are teaching examples, not official answers or score guarantees.
Part 2 — Model Answer
Part 2 cue-card response
The person I admire is my neighbour, Mr Ahmed. He is about sixty-five and I met him when I moved into the house next door two years ago. He welcomed me and helped me find local shops and buses. We like to sit in his garden, drink tea and talk about simple things, and sometimes I help him with small jobs like mowing the lawn. He is kind and patient and tells good stories about his life. I feel respect for him because he is helpful and calm, and I am glad to have him nearby.
The person I admire is my former manager, Alan Roberts, who is in his early sixties. I first met Alan when I joined a small design company straight out of university, and he became my line manager. From the outset he offered practical guidance — for example, he sat with me on my first project and taught me how to break a brief down into tasks. These days we still meet most weekends for a long walk around the park and then a coffee; he’s also shown me basic woodworking in his garage, and last month we repaired an old chair together. I enjoy those simple, hands-on afternoons because they are relaxed but I always learn something useful. I feel immense respect and gratitude towards him; his calm approach and the way he treats everyone fairly changed how I behave at work. He’s encouraged me to take on more responsibility and to trust my decisions, and I know I can call him when I need straightforward, honest advice. He even read my job applications and helped me prepare for interviews, which led directly to a promotion last year.
The person I admire most is my aunt, Margaret, who’s sixty-eight and a retired nurse. I’ve known her all my life — she looked after me when I was a child and later mentored me through my first voluntary placement at a community clinic. To give a concrete example, she organised the rota and taught me how to handle anxious patients during that placement. We like to spend time together doing practical things: we cook large meals for our family, sort donations at the local charity shop and take long country walks every Sunday; last autumn we walked a ten-mile trail for a charity fundraiser. Those shared activities are a mixture of enjoyment and learning — she’s patient but exacting, so I pick up small skills like budgeting meals and basic first aid. I feel deep respect and affection for her; her calmness under pressure and clear moral compass have shaped how I react in difficult situations. She’s not just a role model but also a sounding board — I often phone her for perspective before making big decisions, and her advice is always grounded in experience. Knowing she believes in me makes me more confident to take on challenges I would otherwise avoid.
Part 3 — Model Answers
What can young and old people learn from each other?
Young people can learn experience and practical advice from older people, like how to handle work or relationships. Older people can learn about new technology and modern ways of thinking from young people, for example how to use a smartphone or social media. They both can help each other — young people bring energy and new ideas, older people bring calm and knowledge.
There’s a lot young and old can learn from each other. Young people tend to pick up digital skills and the latest cultural trends quickly, so they can help older relatives with phones, apps or social networks. Older people, on the other hand, usually pass on practical knowledge and life lessons — how to manage a household budget, or ways to stay calm under pressure. When both sides respect each other, it leads to better understanding and stronger family or community ties.
Intergenerational exchange is mutually beneficial: younger people often contribute technological fluency, fresh ideas and up-to-date knowledge of the job market, while older people offer historical perspective, emotional regulation and tested problem-solving strategies. For instance, a grandchild might teach a grandparent online banking, whereas the grandparent can share coping strategies from decades of work and family life. Programmes that pair generations — such as mentoring or community volunteering — tend to amplify these gains by creating structured opportunities for reciprocal learning.
Has old people's life quality improved when compared to the past?
Yes, in many ways older people live better now than in the past because healthcare is better and medicines help them live longer. There are also more services for pensioners. But some still have problems like loneliness or not enough money.
Overall life quality for older people has improved compared with several decades ago: medical advances, better chronic disease care and pensions have helped many live longer and more active lives. At the same time, rising living costs and cuts to local services mean improvements aren’t universal — some older adults still struggle with isolation or poor housing. So while average quality has increased, there are important inequalities to address.
Broadly speaking, the objective indicators of quality of life for older cohorts — such as life expectancy, treatment for chronic conditions and access to assistive technologies — have improved markedly. However, these gains are uneven: socioeconomic status, regional disparities and the fragility of social care systems mean that many older people face persistent insecurity, loneliness and unmet needs. Thus, improvements are real but contingent on policy choices and resource allocation.
Why is there a generation gap between the young and the old?
The generation gap exists because people grow up in different times. Young people see different music, technology and ideas, so they think differently. Older people remember other values and ways of doing things, so they don’t always agree.
Generation gaps arise because each cohort experiences different historical events, technologies and social norms while growing up. For example, someone who grew up before the internet will have different attitudes to privacy or work-life balance than someone raised online. Differences in education, economic opportunities and parenting styles also deepen the gap, and rapid social change makes these contrasts more obvious.
A generation gap stems from divergent formative experiences — economic conditions, educational norms, media landscapes and major historical events shape attitudes and expectations. These cohort effects produce distinct habits of communication, priorities and assumptions about authority or risk. Rapid technological change and polarised media can amplify perceived differences, but targeted intergenerational dialogue can help bridge those divides by revealing shared concerns beneath the surface.
What do old people usually do in their daily life?
Old people usually have a routine. They might do housework, cooking, shopping and watch TV. Many see friends, look after grandchildren or do small hobbies like gardening. Some go to medical appointments or clubs.
Daily life for older people varies a lot, but common activities include household chores, shopping, socialising with friends or family and hobbies such as gardening, knitting or walking. Many also attend community groups or volunteer, and some combine part-time work with caring responsibilities. Health appointments and transport can shape their routines, so mobility and local services make a big difference.
Retirement doesn’t mean uniformity: daily patterns among older adults range from active volunteering, part-time employment and caring for grandchildren to quieter routines centred on hobbies, reading and social clubs. Health management — such as physiotherapy, medication and regular check-ups — and access to transport or local services often determine how socially engaged someone can be. Increasingly, lifelong learning and digital communication also form part of many older people’s everyday lives.
How to answer Describe someone who is older than you that you admire IELTS Speaking questions
For the Describe someone who is older than you that you admire cue card, use the preparation minute to build a route through the talk. Choose a clear subject, add two specific moments or details and end with why it matters. Then use the linked Part 3 questions to practise broader explanation and comparison.
Cue-card prompts:
- Who this person is
- How you knew this person
- What kinds of things you like to do together
- And explain how you feel about this person
- Opening: identify the person, place, object or event.
- Development: describe two details or moments in a logical order.
- Extension: explain a reason, result, comparison or problem.
- Reflection: finish with why the subject is memorable or important.
Question-by-question approach
| Practice question | Useful answer move |
|---|---|
| What can young and old people learn from each other? | Name the thing first, then describe a specific feature or example. |
| Has old people's life quality improved when compared to the past? | Give a direct answer, one reason and a short example without memorising a script. |
| Why is there a generation gap between the young and the old? | Answer with one main cause, then support it with a concrete example. |
| What do old people usually do in their daily life? | Name the thing first, then describe a specific feature or example. |
Vocabulary focus
Useful language already demonstrated in the model answers includes reciprocal, fluency, mentoring, chronic conditions, inequalities, assistive, cohort, formative. Learn each meaning and a natural word partnership, then use the item in a fresh answer instead of copying a complete script.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Giving a memorised response that only partly answers the question.
- Adding difficult vocabulary without checking meaning or collocation.
- Restarting after every error instead of correcting briefly and continuing.
- Reading the model answer before recording your own first attempt.
Describe someone who is older than you that you admire practice FAQ
How should I use the Describe someone who is older than you that you admire cue card preparation minute?
Write keywords for an opening, two or three details and a final reflection. Do not try to write complete sentences.
Do I have to cover every cue-card bullet?
The prompts help you organise the talk. Covering them is useful, but a coherent one-to-two-minute response matters more than mechanically ticking off each line.
How are Part 3 questions connected to Part 2?
They develop the same broad theme through reasons, comparisons, social effects or future possibilities, so answers normally need more explanation than Part 1.
