左列是一些相当常见或候选人使用不正确的语义的词汇。右列是在参加雅思考试时应该使用的词汇，以取得高分。
| Quite common | Should use | Example |
| Hard-working | Diligent/industrious/studious | I have never seen such a diligent guy like him. |
| Intelligent | Brainy (infml) | She is the brainiest girl in our class. |
| Attractive | Appealing/tempting | I found Brad Pitt greatly appealing. |
| Hang out with | Socialise/interact | Dancing is a way of socialising with different people. |
| Do... without being told | Self-starter | Self-starters tend to achieve success more easily. |
| Cover a variety of ground | Well-rounded | The essence of education is to provide well-rounded knowledge. |
| Confidence | Self-belief | I want to see a bit more self-belief from you. |
| Good friend | Intimate companion | As an intimate companion, she told me everything about her family. |
| Toughness | Strong-mindedness | I really admire his strong-mindedness. |
| Work hard on | Apply oneself to | We can all make a success provided that we apply ourselves to what we're doing. |
| Practical | Be down-to-earth | We need to be down-to-earth to start it over. |
| Encourage | Inspire/motivate | A leader should be able to inspire hí subordinates. |
有话要说：