📈 High-Scoring Collocations for Describing Trends in IELTS General Task 1

In IELTS General Training Writing Task 1, you may need to describe changes over time, patterns, or personal or professional updates in a formal or semi-formal letter. Using natural collocations to describe trends will help you sound fluent, polite, and appropriately formal.

📩 When Are Trend Collocations Useful in Task 1 Letters?

• 📉 Describing decline in service quality or conditions (e.g., a complaint letter)
• 📈 Explaining changes in health, workload, housing, etc.
• 📆 Updating someone on progress, delays, or transitions

📦 Formal Collocations to Describe Increases

• Witness a rise – “The neighborhood has witnessed a rise in traffic congestion.”
• See steady growth – “Our team has seen steady growth in efficiency.”
• Notice an increase – “I have noticed an increase in noise during late hours.”
• Register progress – “I’m pleased to report that the project has registered good progress.”

📉 Formal Collocations to Describe Decreases

• Observe a decline – “I’ve observed a decline in service quality recently.”
• Experience a drop – “We experienced a drop in our regular staff availability.”
• See a reduction – “There has been a reduction in community events.”
• Report falling standards – “Several neighbors have reported falling standards of cleanliness.”

🔁 Describing Changes or Fluctuations

• Go through changes – “Our routine has gone through many changes since the renovation.”
• Fluctuate slightly – “My schedule fluctuates slightly depending on work hours.”
• Be subject to variation – “Availability may be subject to variation in the coming weeks.”

⏸️ Describing Stability or No Change

• Remain consistent – “Despite staff changes, the service has remained consistent.”
• Continue unchanged – “My contact details will continue unchanged after the move.”

📝 Example Sentences

“I’m writing to express concern regarding a noticeable decline in gym maintenance standards.”

“There has been a rise in late-night activity, which has resulted in increased noise levels.”

“Although my role has gone through changes, my commitment to the project remains unchanged.”

🚫 Mistakes to Avoid

• ❌ Using informal verbs like “got worse” or “went up”
• ❌ Being vague (e.g., “things changed a lot”)
• ❌ Repeating “increase” or “decrease” too often

🎯 Final Tip

Always match your tone to the letter type (formal/semi-formal), and use precise collocations to describe trends in a polite and professional way. This boosts your Lexical Resource and shows a good command of functional vocabulary.

See also next Idioms for IELTS Topics – Travel, Technology, Culture, and Work

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