Can You Say “I Don’t Know” in IELTS Speaking? What to Say Next

Yes, you can say “I don’t know” in IELTS Speaking. My advice is to explain what you do know, why the topic is unfamiliar, or what you think might be true, then develop that response. You can be honest and still give the examiner something useful to assess.

The difficulty usually begins when you think you need an impressive answer before you can start speaking. Perhaps you have never visited a museum, followed a particular sport, or considered why cities spend money on public art. That does not mean you have nothing to say. It means you need to find a connection you can explain.

I want you to separate two problems: not knowing much about a topic, and not understanding the question. They need different responses.

What if you understand the question but have no experience?

Start with that fact. Then explain it. Your lack of experience can give you a reason, a comparison, or something you would like to try.

For example, imagine a Part 1 question:

Do you often visit museums?

A short response would be:

No. I don’t really know any.

I would encourage you to develop the same honest answer:

Not very often. I usually spend my days off outdoors because I work inside all week. If I visited a museum, I would probably choose one about local history. I would enjoy finding out what my city looked like before the buildings I know today were there.

You have answered the question, explained your preference, and described an interest. You have not needed to invent the name of a museum or pretend that you visit one every weekend.

Notice that the connection is ordinary: working indoors, enjoying time outside, and being curious about your own city. Those details give you something specific to explain. That is the kind of connection I want you to practice finding.

What if the question asks about something you are not an expert in?

In Part 3, you may need to discuss a wider issue. I want you to distinguish between offering a reasonable opinion and claiming to know facts you cannot explain.

Consider this question:

Why do some cities spend money on public art?

You could respond:

I don’t know exactly how cities decide their budgets, but I think public art can make an ordinary place more appealing. For example, a mural could make a blank wall near a bus stop more pleasant to look at. It might also give local artists a chance to show their work.

The opening makes your position clear. You are offering an opinion, then explaining it through a recognizable situation. You are not claiming that every city uses the same budget or that you have researched public spending.

The official IELTS Speaking format describes Part 3 as an opportunity to explain opinions and analyze, discuss, and speculate about issues. I would practice doing those things with ideas you understand, rather than searching for a complicated argument that becomes difficult to express.

What if you did not understand the question?

If you did not hear the question clearly, ask for it to be repeated:

Could you repeat the question, please?

That is different from understanding the question and needing a moment to think. Repeating a question about museums will not create a museum visit you have never had. Once the meaning is clear, work with your own experience or perspective.

IELTS guidance on speaking more fluently confirms that you can ask the examiner to repeat a question you did not hear properly. It also advises against asking for a different question. I recommend practicing this distinction so you know what help you actually need.

Do you need to make up a story?

IELTS does not assess whether every detail of your story really happened. My advice to start with real experience is practical: you already know the details, so you can give more attention to expressing them.

When you invent an elaborate story, you also have to remember what you have invented and decide what happens next. If that makes you hesitate or lose your train of thought, the story is creating more work for you.

IELTS’s own Speaking advice encourages candidates to draw on personal experiences and interests. That is the approach I recommend. If you need to speculate, make it clear that you are describing a possibility, then explain it in language you can manage.

How I would practice answering an unfamiliar question

I would choose a question on a topic I do not usually discuss, then record an answer. Before speaking, I would identify three things:

• My direct response. Have I done this? Do I like it? What do I think?
• A reason I can explain. Why do I have that experience or opinion?
• One useful detail. What have I seen, experienced, compared, or imagined that makes the explanation clearer?

This is a way to organize your thinking during practice. It is not a sentence pattern you must recite in every answer.

When you listen back, check whether your reason actually connects to the question. In the museum example, the reason explains why you rarely visit museums. In the public-art example, the bus stop helps explain why a city might want art in an everyday place. A longer response is useful when its details develop the answer.

Then answer the same question again. Keep the idea, but explain it more clearly. Perhaps your first recording contains a long pause while you search for a word. Can you express the same point with words you already use comfortably?

What about IELTS Speaking Part 2?

For Part 2, I would use the one-minute preparation time to choose an experience that fits the actual task card and jot down details I can develop. Keep the topic in view as you plan.

For a task about a skill you learned, for example, learning to cook a familiar meal can give you plenty to describe: who helped you, what went wrong at first, and what you can do now. The experience does not need to sound extraordinary. It needs to give you enough relevant detail to speak about.

Build the response before test day

I want you to become comfortable developing an answer while the topic is still unfamiliar. That confidence comes from using the approach, listening to what you produced, and improving it.

With the Lexis Success Package, study how answers are developed in the masterclasses and sample Writing & Speaking responses, then apply the approach in Practice Studio with feedback. Use what you learn about your responses to decide what to work on next in your personal study plan.

If you also find yourself searching for the perfect argument when you write, my guide to developing essay ideas without overthinking explains the same starting point: connect the question to something you understand well enough to explain.

Frequently asked questions

Will I lose marks for saying “I don’t know” in IELTS Speaking?

I would focus on what follows those words. IELTS assesses fluency and coherence, vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation. Explain what is unfamiliar and develop a relevant response so the examiner can hear how you use English.

Can I ask for another IELTS Speaking question?

I advise you to work with the question you are given. You can ask for a question to be repeated if you did not hear it properly, but that is different from requesting a new topic.

Should I memorize an answer for every possible topic?

I recommend practicing how to develop answers instead. Learn to explain a preference, give a reason, compare experiences, and describe details. Those abilities give you more to work with when the question changes.

Cover photo by Ketut Subiyanto on Pexels.