Describe a relative you have become closer to as an adult.
A card about a sibling, cousin, uncle or grandparent you were not especially close to as a child but are now. The change is the story, so be clear about what the relationship was like before and what shifted it.
The task card
Describe a relative you have become closer to as an adult.
You should say:
- who the relative is
- what your relationship was like when you were younger
- what brought the two of you closer
and explain how your relationship is different now.
Now say it yourself
Record your own two minutes on this card and have it transcribed and marked against the Speaking criteria. Practising is free; the band estimate is part of Pro.
Record my answerHow long you have
- 1 minute
Preparation
The examiner hands you the card, paper and a pencil. Make notes — a few words per cue point, never sentences.
- 1–2 minutes
Your long turn
Speak until the examiner stops you at two minutes. Finishing early is the most common self-inflicted problem in Part 2.
- 1–2 questions
Rounding off
The examiner may ask one or two short follow-up questions, then moves straight into the Part 3 discussion on the same theme.
Part 2 takes three to four minutes in total. The whole Speaking test runs 11 to 14 minutes across three parts, and Part 3 that follows lasts four to five minutes.
How to approach this card
Introduce the relative and whatever kept you apart, such as an age gap, distance or simply different personalities. Then describe the old relationship with one honest detail: where they sat at family events, what you thought of them at ten. 'Used to' and 'would' keep this before-picture clearly in the past.
For 'what brought you closer', give a cause, not just a date: living in the same city, a shared routine, a difficult period, a conversation in which one of you admitted something. One turning-point moment with a line of what was said will carry this part of the answer.
For the final bullet, compare then and now directly: what you talk about, who asks whom for help, how you behave at family gatherings. Forms such as 'we've become' and 'he's started' show that the change is still going on.
Model answer
Speak your own answer first. Examiners are trained to spot memorised speeches and mark them down — use this to study structure, pacing and naturalness, never to recite.
Show the model answer
I'd like to talk about my cousin Imran, who's eleven years older than me. Growing up, we were never really close. At family get-togethers he'd always be with the adults, and when he did notice me, it was usually to ask about my exam marks — and then tell my parents. Honestly, I thought of him as a second, stricter uncle. That changed about three years ago, when I got my first job in the city where he lives. My mum made me promise to call him, and I put it off for nearly two months. When I finally did, he found out my office was on his way to work and offered me a lift every morning. I couldn't think of a polite way to say no. The first week was painful — forty minutes of radio and small talk. But you can't sit in a car with someone five days a week and keep it formal for long. The real turning point came a few months in, when I admitted I was thinking of quitting and going home. He went quiet, and then told me he'd failed his first year at university and had to repeat it. Nobody in the family had ever mentioned it. He said, 'Everyone thinks I had a plan. I just didn't tell anyone when it went wrong.' These days I've changed jobs, so the lifts have stopped, but we still talk every week. The biggest difference is that it goes both ways now. Last month he phoned me for advice about buying a flat, which the ten-year-old me would never have believed. And at family get-togethers now, we sit together.
Why this works: The before-picture is drawn with one honest detail — the exam marks reported to the speaker's parents — so the change has something to push against. A specific cause, the daily lift, and one turning-point conversation explain the new closeness, and the final bullet compares then and now with evidence: advice now flows both ways, and they sit together at family gatherings.
Useful vocabulary for this topic
- we were never really close
Honest, natural way to describe the earlier relationship.
- a big age gap
A large difference in age; common collocation.
- to see a different side of someone
To notice part of their personality you had not seen before.
- to open up
To start sharing personal thoughts and feelings.
- to break the ice
To end an awkward silence and start a relaxed conversation.
- to have more in common than you thought
Useful for explaining why the relationship changed.
- on an equal footing
As equals; ideal for describing the relationship now.
Part 3 discussion
After your long turn the examiner moves into a four to five minute discussion on the same theme, working from two related discussion topics with about three questions each. The first stays close to your own experience; the second widens out. Answer with reasons and examples, not one-line replies.
- 1Why do some family members only become close once they are adults?
- 2Do big age differences make it harder for relatives to get along?
- 3Should adult children try to live near their parents?
- 4Which matters more in a relationship: shared interests or shared experiences?
- 5How has moving away for work changed family life in your country?
More on how this family of cards is discussed: People and relationships. Model answers for Part 3: Part 3 questions and answers.