Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2: Living Alone - Coherence and Depth Issues
Sample Answer with Feedback

📅 Published Jun 2026⏱️ 40 minutes recommended📝 291 words · Band 5.5
This Band 5.5 IELTS essay discusses the negative aspects of living alone but struggles with coherence and depth. Key issues include abrupt transitions and limited exploration of counterarguments, impacting overall clarity.

IELTS Writing Task 2 Question

Agree/ Disagree (Opinion) · Living Alone · 40 min


In some countries, more and more people are opting to live alone these days than before. Do you think this is a positive or negative development? 

Write at least 250 words.



5.5Band

Overall Band Score

291 words · Agree/ Disagree (Opinion) · AI Evaluated

6
Task Response
5
Grammar
5.5
Vocabulary
5.5
Coherence

Score Breakdown

IELTS Writing Band Scores (1–9)

Overall Band Score
5.5
Task Response
6
Grammatical Range & Accuracy
5
Lexical Resource (Vocabulary)
5.5
Coherence & Cohesion
5.5

Summary: Hello User, the essay addresses the given prompt but lacks depth and a balanced discussion. Limited coherence and cohesion affect the essay's flow, and there are noticeable errors in grammar and vocabulary choices.

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Student Answer
Real submission • 291 words • Annotated
291 wordsBand 5.5WritingPart2
● Spelling● Grammar● Vocabulary

Nowadays, a new habit is developing: the fact that many people choose to live alone. not only if they are in a foreign country or city, but even if they are in the same place with family and close friends. For me, I think it is a negative development, and it should not be opted.

To begin with, for me to be a human is to live with others, even if not family, but at least a group of people. Because it is the nature of all humans, from the old ages until nowadays. In fact, people always want to do anything together, such as working, playing, or even eating, so living is included by default. It is not logical to accept that kind of habit has become normal for us. For example, in the past, when someone wanted to travel, they firstly think to contact family or friends to stay with, but now it is totally different, they want to go to hotels or residences even if they will pay a lot.

In addition, I think living alone is a source of many diseases and health problems; first of all, Depression, when someone lives alone, he became so stressed and tired because he thinks that he has to deal with everything alone, and over time, that can cause depression. Secondly, the overthinking, because being alone gives the time and opportunity to think about everything negatively, and when there is no one to help you, that overthinking will become deep and stronger, which is a very big problem.

To conclude, for me, everyone needs to live with family, or at least if they do not want to be family, they live with friends or get married and live with their partner.

AI Feedback Report Details

Spelling · Grammar · Vocabulary · Criteria Analysis

Grammatical Mistakes

6 errors
MistakeCorrectionExplanation
not only if they are in a foreign country or citynot only when they are in a foreign country or cityIncorrect conjunction: 'if' should be 'when' to indicate time.
it should not be optedit should not be chosenIncorrect verb usage: 'opted' requires a preposition like 'for'.
Because it is the nature of all humansbecause it is the nature of all humansSentence fragment: needs to be connected to the previous sentence.
that kind of habit has become normalthis kind of habit has become normalIncorrect demonstrative pronoun: 'that' should be 'this' for consistency and proximity in context.
they firstly think to contactthey first think to contactIncorrect adverb form: 'firstly' is rarely used when enumerating points.
he became so stressedhe becomes so stressedIncorrect tense: maintaining present tense consistency.

Vocabulary Improvements

3 suggestions
Original Word/PhraseImproved Word/PhraseExplanation
nowadayscurrentlyToo informal: 'currently' is more suited for formal writing.
a big problema significant problemToo informal: 'significant' is more appropriate in academic context.
negative developmentundesirable trendMore precise vocabulary: 'undesirable trend' is clearer and more academic.

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Submit your Living Alone essay and receive AI scores across all four IELTS criteria — with specific feedback on whether your solutions are specific, realistic, and matched to your problems.

Detailed Criteria Feedback

AI-powered analysis for each scoring criterion

Task Response6
Evaluation
The essay responds to the task by presenting a clear opinion that living alone is a negative development. However, it does not fully explore or balance the discussion by considering potential benefits of living alone.
Examples
The essay mentions depression and overthinking as negative impacts but lacks counterarguments or alternative perspectives.
How to Improve
Include a more balanced discussion with both positive and negative aspects of living alone. Provide specific examples or evidence to support the points made.
Coherence & Cohesion5.5
Evaluation
The essay is somewhat logically organized but lacks clear paragraphing, and some points do not connect smoothly.
Examples
The transition from discussing human nature to health problems is abrupt and lacks clear linking phrases.
How to Improve
Use cohesive devices like 'furthermore' or 'in contrast' to connect ideas and ensure each paragraph clearly supports one main idea.
Lexical Resource5.5
Evaluation
The essay uses a basic range of vocabulary with some repetition and occasional inappropriate word choices.
Examples
Phrases like 'living is included by default' and 'it should not be opted' are unclear or awkward.
How to Improve
Expand your vocabulary by learning synonyms and more precise expressions. Practice using them in different contexts to improve clarity and variety.
Grammatical Range & Accuracy5
Evaluation
A limited range of grammatical structures is used, and there are frequent errors in sentence structure, punctuation, and tense usage.
Examples
Errors such as 'he became so stressed' (incorrect tense) and 'they firstly think to contact family' (incorrect sentence structure) are present.
How to Improve
Practice using a wider range of complex sentence structures. Pay attention to subject-verb agreement, tense consistency, and correct use of articles and prepositions.
💡
Tip: Review the Band 9 model answer to see how a high-scoring essay structures arguments, uses advanced vocabulary, and maintains coherence throughout.

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