How To Discuss Food In The IELTS: A Vocabulary Guide

It's safe to say that food knows no boundaries; you can find McDonald's in China, and dumplings in America. You can find Japanese sushi in Italy, and Indian curry in Canada. Food is one of the greatest unifiers of all time.

Since food is so popular and such a beloved topic of discussion, it seems fair that we go over some of the most common food-related vocabulary in this IELTS food vocabulary guide.

Collocations

Let's start with collocations. Collocations are the groups of words that natives like to put together, and although some may seem arbitrary, if you misuse a collocation, even slightly, it's a red flag for the examiner.

Here's an example of a commonly misused collocation:

• "I usually eat home food." ✗

• "I usually eat home-cooked meals." ✓

Food Collocations

• A balanced diet: A diet that includes the right variety of nutrients.

• Processed food: Food that has been altered from its natural state, usually for convenience.

• Comfort food: Food that makes you feel good emotionally, often tied to nostalgia.

• A home-cooked meal: A meal made at home rather than bought.

• Leftovers: Food that remains after a meal, usually saved for later.

• Dietary restrictions: Limits on what someone can eat, due to health, religion, or personal choice.

• Order delivery: To have food brought to your home from a restaurant.

• Low calorie: Containing few calories.

• Sugar-free / fat-free / dairy-free: Not containing that ingredient.

• Junk food: Food that is unhealthy but often convenient or tasty.

• Guilty pleasure: Something you enjoy despite knowing it's not the "best" choice.

Example sentences:

• "I try to eat a balanced diet, but I definitely give in to cravings sometimes."

• "Most nutritionists recommend limiting processed food as much as possible."

• "Whenever I'm feeling down, I usually have some salty chips, it's definitely a comfort food for me."

• "There's nothing quite like coming home to a home-cooked meal after a long day."

• "I never throw away leftovers; I just reheat them the next day."

• "Well, I don't have any dietary restrictions, so I love to try all kinds of new foods when I travel."

• "We were too tired to cook, so we just ordered delivery."

• "The reason I like to be vegetarian is that vegetarian food is very low calorie, so I don't have to worry about gaining weight."

• "When I go to the café, I always ask for my latte to be fat-free and dairy-free."

• "Although I mostly try to avoid junk food, sometimes I can't resist KitKat bars or Oreos."

• "Chocolate ice cream is definitely my guilty pleasure."

"Tell me about a dish that is popular in your country."

When it comes to describing food, we may forget to say more than "it's tasty" or "it's salty." The following adjectives will help you describe important characteristics of food overall.

Adjective	Meaning	Example
Heavy	Very filling, makes you feel slow and possibly tired. *Often used negatively, but not always.	"The average person in America eats a lot of red meat, bread, and potatoes; the meals are quite heavy."
Light	Easy to digest and often small in portion size. It makes you feel more energetic than before eating.	"If you want to stay energetic and focused at work, have a light meal, like soup or a salad."
Greasy	Foods that contain lots of oil and fat.	"I don't like to eat KFC because it's all deep-fried and very greasy."
Hearty	Nutritious, satisfying, warm, and often large in portion and heavy. *Key difference between hearty and heavy is that hearty food is also nutritious, hot, and makes you very satisfied.	"A hot bowl of potato and beef stew is a hearty winter meal."
Creamy	Foods that are thick and smooth. They often contain or appear to contain cream.	"I love a nice, creamy plate of macaroni and cheese."

Advanced adjectives

In the IELTS, your ability to use a range of vocabulary and avoid repeating the same words is an important part of your score. The list below may come in handy when discussing a variety of foods.

Adjective	Meaning	Example
Bland	Without much flavor.	"If I ever get bland food from a restaurant, I just add some salt and pepper."
Bitter	A strong, not sweet, often unpleasant flavor such as coffee or unsweetened chocolate.	"The tea was very strong and bitter, so I added some honey and a slice of lemon."
Sour	The strong, acidic taste common in lemons or citrus fruits.	"My brother loves the sour taste of unsweetened lemonade."
Savoury	The taste of rich and satisfying food that is rather salty than sweet.	"My grandmother's meals were amazing; they were always so satisfying and savoury."
Tender	Describes meat that is soft rather than hard.	"The steak was cooked perfectly; I love a nice tender steak."
Tough	Describes meat that is hard rather than soft.	"If you overcook chicken, it becomes tough and hard to eat."
Raw	Describes a food that has not been cooked with heat.	"I am afraid to try sushi because I have never eaten raw fish before."
Moist	The opposite of dry - slightly wet.	"The freshly cooked brownies were warm and moist."

Phrasal Verbs

Now that we have a wide range of adjectives to use, there are a handful of common phrasal verbs that you can use to sound more natural and fluent. Phrasal verbs are extremely common and always quite useful.

To dine out / eat out: To eat at a restaurant rather than at home.

• "My sister and I like to dine out on Thursdays so we can catch up."

To hit (a place): To visit or stop by a restaurant, cafe, or store, usually quickly or as part of a routine (informal).

• Example: "I always hit Starbucks on my way to work to grab an iced coffee."

  
  

To go cold: When food that should be hot becomes cold.

• "Honestly, I don't like to order delivery because the food always goes cold by the time it arrives."

To go bad: When food spoils and is no longer safe to eat.

• "I try not to buy many groceries at once because I don't want everything to go bad if I don't eat it."

To whip something together: To prepare something quickly, often with limited ingredients and effort.

• "I didn't have much time, so I just whipped together an egg sandwich."

To cut down on (something): To reduce the amount of a certain food or drink you consume.

• Example: "My doctor advised me to cut down on sugar to improve my health."

To snack on (something): To eat small amounts of food between main meals.

• Example: "Instead of chips, I try to snack on fresh fruit or nuts during the day."

Idioms

In addition to words that are used to describe foods directly, there are a variety of food-inspired idioms that you can use in many non-food-related contexts.

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Bite off more than you can chew	To take on more responsibility than you can handle	"I think I bit off more than I could chew by taking three classes this semester."
Have a lot on your plate	To have a lot of responsibilities.	"He has 4 kids, and he also takes care of his mom; he has a lot on his plate."
Take it with a grain of salt	To not take some information too seriously or to be skeptical about believing it.	"I read that online, so I'm taking it with a grain of salt."
Salt in the wound	To make a bad situation worse.	"Losing the game was bad enough, but the team laughing at us was just salt in the wound."
Don't cry over spilled milk	To not be upset about small issues (or issues that cannot be fixed).	"I dropped my phone and cracked the screen this morning, but I'm not gonna cry over spilled milk; it's not a big deal."
Not my cup of tea	Not something you like or enjoy.	"Honestly, spicy food is not my cup of tea."
A tough cookie	A strong, resilient, and tough person.	"My mom was an immigrant and started her own business - she's a tough cookie."

Now that we've covered a big portion of the most common, general food-related vocabulary, let's look at some common test questions with model answers, as well as some additional, higher-level vocabulary.

"Are You A Good Cook?" (pt. 1 question)

"Well, unfortunately, I would say that I am not very good in the kitchen, especially if I have to cook from scratch; I just don't have the skill.  If I really need to cook for myself, I would just prefer to whip together something simple, like a sandwich or instant noodles."

When discussing food and cooking, you should be prepared to discuss your own cooking ability or the ability of others. The following words and phrases will come in handy.

Phrase	Meaning	Example
I can't say I am…	A polite way to admit that you are not able to cook well.	"I can't say I am. Most people never like my food, so I usually don't cook anything unless it's just for me."
I would say I am…	A polite, natural way to express your abilities. Much better than saying "I am not a good cook."	"I would say I am a pretty good cook when it comes to basic meals, but I can't cook anything too elaborate or complicated."
From scratch	Cooking something using only basic, natural ingredients rather than pre-made or pre-mixed packages.	"I love to bake cakes, but I don't bake from scratch, I just buy a box of cake mix and follow the instructions."
Instant noodles	A common packaged noodle meal that can be cooked easily.	"When I was a university student, I survived mostly on instant noodles."

"Why do some people prefer to eat out rather than cook at home?"  (pt. 3 question)

"Well, I think some people prefer dining out because of how convenient it is. I mean, cooking your own meals can be quite time-consuming, and most people are just too busy. I think the average person these days doesn't care about how pricey it is to eat out if they can avoid having to waste time cooking. However, other people with families may prefer to cook at home since it is more cost-effective. Recently, dining at a restaurant has become exorbitant, so I think anyone who prefers dining must value their time more than money."

Convenient

• Meaning: Something that is easy and saves time

• Example: "Ordering food online is extremely convenient after a long workday."

Pricey

• Meaning:  A synonym for expensive.

• Example: "Eating out at restaurants every day can be quite pricey."

Exorbitant

• Meaning: Extremely expensive.

• Example: "When we looked at the menu, we saw the exorbitant prices and decided to go somewhere else. I think $100 for a hamburger is just too much."

Tipping culture

• Meaning: The expectation of leaving extra money (a tip) for service workers.

• Example: "The US has a strong tipping culture, so I make sure I tip when I visit New York."

Adds up

• Meaning: When many small costs become a lot.

• Example: "Eating out every day may seem small, but the cost really adds up, and it becomes quite expensive."

Go cold

• Meaning: When hot food loses its heat and becomes cold.

• Example: "Food delivery takes too long where I live, so the food usually goes cold before it arrives."

Cost-effective

• Meaning: Something that saves money.

• Example: "Cooking simple foods at home is simply more cost-effective than eating McDonald's every day."

Time-consuming

• Meaning: Taking up a lot of time.

• Example: "I don't like cooking because it can be very time-consuming."

Terribly boring

• Meaning: Extremely uninteresting.

• Example: "Doing the dishes after cooking is terribly boring to me."

"Why do some people avoid unhealthy food?" (pt. 3 question)

"I think a lot of people try to steer clear of junk food because they want to eat more nutritious meals and keep a balanced diet. Fast food, for example, is usually high in sugar and fat, so it's really just empty calories, which are bad for the body. Also, a lot of people are trying to watch their weight these days, and avoiding unhealthy food is really important if you want to stay in shape."

Word / Phrase	Meaning	Example
Nutritious	Containing vitamins and minerals that are good for your body.	"I try to eat nutritious food most days, even if I treat myself on weekends."
Balanced diet	A diet containing the right variety and amount of different food groups.	"Doctors always recommend a balanced diet over any extreme diet trend."
High in ______	Containing a large amount of a specific nutrient or ingredient (used with sugar, fat, sodium, etc.).	"I avoid soda because it's usually high in sugar."
Empty calories	Calories from food with little to no nutritional value.	"Candy and soda are just empty calories; they fill you up without giving you any real nutrients."
To watch one's weight	To be careful about what you eat in order to avoid gaining weight.	"Ever since my check-up, I've been watching my weight a lot more closely."
To be bad for one's body	To have a negative effect on someone's health.	"Everyone knows fried food is bad for your body if you eat it too often."

"How often do you eat out?" (pt. 1 question)

"Oh, I love eating out! I used to do it weekly, but the cost really adds up. These days I would say I just go every now and again, maybe every other week. For instance, I think this month I dined out twice, once with my mother and just last Sunday I went out for brunch with my husband. "

Being able to use advanced adverbs of frequency is another crucial type of vocabulary that will come in handy in many questions, not just about food, but with any topic.

Weekly / Monthly - Once every week / once every month.

Example: "I try to eat out weekly, usually on Fridays after work."

Once in a blue moon -Very rarely; almost never.

Example: "I only eat fast food once in a blue moon."

Hardly ever - Almost never.

Example: "I hardly ever cook meat at home; I usually save it for when I eat out."

Quite often - Fairly frequently.

Example: "My family eats out quite often since both my parents work long hours."

Seldom - Not often; rarely (a slightly more formal synonym for "hardly ever").

Example: "I seldom order dessert unless it's a special occasion."

Every now and again - Occasionally, but not on a regular schedule.

Example: "We treat ourselves to a nice dinner every now and again."

Practice Questions:

Congratulations! You've reached the end and learned more than enough vocabulary to tackle any food-related IELTS question.

But don't stop here! I recommend putting these words into practice with some of the practice questions below:

Speaking Part 1

• What is your favorite home-cooked meal?

• How often do you order delivery or eat fast food?

• Do you have any dietary restrictions or food allergies?

• What kind of snacks do you usually snack on between meals?

Speaking Part 2 (Cue Card)

Describe a memorable meal you had with friends or family.

You should say:

• What the meal was and where you ate it

• Who you were with

• What made the food special (e.g., tender, hearty, savory, creamy)

And explain why this meal was so memorable to you.

Speaking Part 3

• Why do you think junk food and processed food remain so popular despite being bad for people's health?

• How have eating habits changed in your country over the last few decades?

• Do you think school cafeterias should be required to serve only nutritious, balanced meals?

• In many cities, the cost of dining out has become exorbitant. Do you think restaurant culture will decline as a result?

Writing Task 2

"In many countries, traditional home-cooked meals are being replaced by fast food and pre-packaged convenience meals.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this trend?"

Writing Task 2

"In many modern societies, an increasing number of people are suffering from health problems linked to poor diet and a lack of nutrition.

What are the main causes of this problem, and what measures can be taken to tackle it?"