Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-30

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say the main way to be happy in life is to have a lot of money. How might having a lot of money make people happy? What other things in life can make people happy?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 5.0)

Few individuals say the main way to be happy in life is to have a lot of money.While, other assume by having a lot of money how masses can be happy. There are numerous things which can make people happy. Reasons for this are explained in the underneath paragraphs.

To commence with, the first and the foremost reason is that if the person is spending time with their family it is the thing which money can not buy. Taking a good illustration, when a person is preparing dinner for family by helping their better half in that case they are making memories together which money can not do. By spending time with family, a person will be stress free as well as their family will be happy that by passing gossips together and by sharing laugh together.

Furthermore, money can give the person luxury life in which they do not have closeness with their family. For instance, if a family have the big house they all have their personal rooms, they are not spending time together. Because all of them are busy with technology gadgets as well as more active on social media platforms rather than sitting together. Money gives all the comforts which are mandatory for the luxury but it take away the closiness so far.

To be conclude, money gives all the luxury life which a person needs. However, it takes the closeiness so far. In addition, spending time with family is a precious time which is never gonna come back in this money does not matter.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You address both questions: family time is presented as a source of happiness, while money is linked to comfort and luxury. The dinner example gives one relevant illustration, but the response does not explain clearly how having a lot of money itself can make people happy; instead, it mainly describes how luxury may reduce family closeness. The position is therefore only partly clear and the ideas remain limited and under-developed. The conclusion repeats the contrast rather than adding a developed answer. The response is 244 words, six words below the 250-word minimum; the 16 words copied from the task prompt were not counted. To strengthen the response, explain specific benefits money can provide, such as security or access to opportunities, and develop another non-financial source of happiness.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, two body paragraphs and a conclusion. The paragraphs also have distinct focuses: family time and the possible isolating effects of luxury. Linking expressions such as “Furthermore,” “For instance,” and “To be conclude” help signal movement between points. However, the overall progression is not always clear: the first body paragraph discusses family happiness, while the second shifts to money’s drawbacks without directly explaining how money can create happiness. Some connections are mechanical or unclear, particularly “In addition” in the conclusion. Improve cohesion by making each paragraph’s main point explicit and using references that clearly connect examples to the question.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “memories,” “stress free,” “luxury,” “comforts,” and “social media platforms.” These choices make the general subject understandable, and there is an attempt to use a range of expressions. However, vocabulary is often inaccurate or unnatural, which limits precision: “Few individuals say” does not convey the intended general view, “passing gossips” is an awkward phrase, and “takes the closiness so far” is difficult to interpret. Spelling and word-form errors such as “closiness” and “closeiness” also reduce control. Aim for natural collocations and check spelling; for example, describe money as providing “financial security” and family members as “sharing a laugh.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including conditional and subordinate structures, as in “if a person is preparing dinner for family…” and “Because all of them are busy…”. However, complex sentences are often faulty, and errors in agreement, articles, verb forms and punctuation occur frequently enough to affect fluency. Examples include “a family have,” “it take away,” and “if the person is spending time with their family it is the thing,” where the sentence structure is difficult to follow. The opening also has a punctuation problem in “money.While,” and several sentences are joined or punctuated awkwardly. Practise building accurate sentences with one clear main clause, then add subordinate clauses and check subject–verb agreement.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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