A picture can speak a thousand

words…

but, how will we speak the

picture ???
In this session, you will

Identify different forms of visual

representation of information
and the vocabulary associated
with describing them.
What is a chart?
 A chart is a diagram that makes information
easier to understand by showing how two or
more sets of data are related.

 There are two common types of chart, a pie

chart and a bar chart.
Pie Chart
 A pie chart is a circle
divided into segments.
It is usually used to
show percentages.
Bar Chart

 A Bar chart is a
diagram that makes
information easier
to understand by
showing how two or
more sets of data
are related. A bar
chart is divided into
columns.
Graph
 A graph is a diagram,
usually a line or
curve, which shows
how two or more sets
of numbers or
measurements are
related.
Tree diagram Types of Families

Nuclear Family Joint Family Extended Family

Father Grandfather,
Large number of Grandmother,
Mother relations live Father
Child together
Mother, Child
Horizontal tree diagram
Branch
General Managers
Manager
(Marketing) Advertising
Managers
General
Managing Manager
Director (Production) Chief Engineer

General Chief
Manager Scientific
(Research) Officer
Pyramid

CM
Council of
Ministers
Bureaucracy
Inverted Pyramid

Two-wheelers
Cars
SUVs
Information Transfer
Seeing ‘structure’ in texts
Describing Graphs, Charts and
Diagrams

Vocabulary
Trends are the changes or movements in facts and
figures over a period of time.
Words used to describe graphs

Going Up: Going Down: Staying the Same

increase decrease level off

rise fall plateau
go up go down stabilize
grow drop remain + steady
climb decline stay + steady
shoot up plummet
soar plunge
rocket
Words used to describe graphs
Moving up & down repeating over a period of time
Fluctuate (v)

The number of internet users

fluctuated between 1990 and 1995.

Words used to describe graphs
Reaching the top position

Peak (v) The number of internet users peaked in 1993.

Highest level (n)

The number of internet users was at

its highest level in 1993.

The number of internet users rose to

its highest level in 1993.
Words used to describe graphs

Reaching the lowest position

Bottom off (v) The number of internet users bottomed out in 1994.

Lowest level (n)

The number of internet was at its

lowest level in 1994.

The number of internet fell to its

lowest level in 1994.
Words used to describe graphs
Focusing on particular point before we mention the movement
Stand at (v)
The number of internet users stood at 2,000 in 1990, and then it
increased gradually in the following years.
Words used to describe graphs
Moving up & down repeating over a period of time
Recover (v)
The number of internet users

recovered between 1990 and 1995.

Going Up: Going Down: Staying the Same
increase decrease stabilize
rise fall remain + constant
go up go down
grow drop
climb decline
peak* bottom out*

Pattern:
Sub + Verb.
Sales increased
in 2003.
Adverbs and Adjectives for Describing Changes

show a large change sharply /dramatically /rapidly/

considerably / steeply
• increase
• rise
• go up
• grow
• climb

Pattern: Apple Computer’s share price increased

Sub + Verb + Adv sharply between 1990 and 1995.
Adverbs and Adjectives for Describing Changes

show a large change

• decrease
• fall
• go down
• drop sharply /dramatically /rapidly/
• decline considerably / steeply

Pattern: Apple Computer’s share price decreased

Sub + Verb + Adv dramatically between 1990 and 1995.
Adverbs and Adjectives for Describing Changes

show a small change

• increase slightly / moderately / gradually*

• rise
• go up
• grow
• climb

Pattern: Apple Computer’s share price rose

Sub + Verb + Adv slightly between 1990 and 1995.
Adverbs and Adjectives for Describing Changes

show a small change

• decrease slightly / moderately / gradually*

• fall
• go down
• drop
• decline

Pattern: Apple Computer’s share price fell gradually

Sub + Verb + Adv between 1990 and 1995.
Adverbs and Adjectives for Describing Changes

show unchanged movement

• remain
• stay
the same, stable, steady, constant

Pattern: Apple Computer’s share price stayed the

same between 1990 and 1995.
Sub + Verb + Adv
Apple Computer’s share price remained
steady between 1990 and 1995.
Going Up: Going Down: Staying the Same
increase decrease stabilize
rise fall remain + constant
go up go down
grow drop
climb decline
peak* bottom out*

Pattern:
Sub + Verb.
Sales increased in
2003.
Sub + Verb + Adv
Sales increased
sharply in 2003.
Sentence Pattern: A

Subject + Verb OR Subject + Verb + Adverb

Our net profit increased last year.

Our net profit increased dramatically last year.

Sentence Pattern: B

There + was a/an + noun + in something

There + was + a/an adjective + noun + in something

Our net profit increased last year.

There was an increase in our net profit last

year.
Sentence Pattern: B

There + was a/an + noun + in something

There + was + a/an adjective + noun + in something

Our net profit increased dramatically last year.

There was a dramatic increase in our net profit

last year.
Prepositions and Other Expressions

To stand at / To start at /Verb to be

We use this expression to focus on a particular point before we
mention the changes.

Sales stood at $125 million in January.

Then, in February they rose slightly to $
127 million.

Profits were $ 29,000 in 1999 and

continued up to $ 40,000 in 2000.
Going Up: Going Down: Staying the Same
increase decrease stabilize
rise fall remain + constant
go up go down
grow drop
climb decline
peak* bottom out*

Pattern:
Sub + Verb + Adv
Sales stood at $
30 M in 2000.
Prepositions and Other Expressions
From ____ to _____
We use this preposition to describe the movement between one
point and another.

The share price fell sharply from $100

million to $60 million last year.

There was a sharp fall in the share price from

$100 million to $60 million last year.
Going Up: Going Down: Staying the Same
increase decrease stabilize
rise fall remain + constant
go up go down
grow drop
climb decline
peak* bottom out*

Pattern:
Sub + Verb + Adv
Sales increased
sharply from 5
to 50 million
dollars in 2003.
Prepositions and Other Expressions

To _____
We use this preposition to describe the end point.

The number of Internet subscribers dropped

slightly to 50,000 people.

There was a slight drop in the number of

Internet subscribers to 50,000 people.
Going Up: Going Down: Staying the Same
increase decrease stabilize
rise fall remain + constant
go up go down
grow drop
climb decline
peak* bottom out*

Pattern:
Sub + Verb + Adv
Sales increased
sharply (from 5)
to 50 million
dollars in 2003.
Prepositions and Other Expressions
Between _____ and _____
We use this preposition to describe the movement along a scale
from one point to another.

The market share fluctuated between

10 and 50 percent in the first quarter.

Prepositions and Other Expressions
By ________ Of ________
We use this preposition to describe the difference.

My salary increased from 200,000 rupees to

250,000 rupees a year.

Verb + by It increased by 50,000 rupees.

Noun + of There was an increase of 50,000

rupees.
Going Up: Going Down: Staying the Same
increase decrease stabilize
rise fall remain + constant
go up go down
grow drop
climb decline
peak* bottom out*

Pattern:
Sub + Verb + Adv
Sales increased
sharply by 45
million dollars in
2003.
Prepositions and Other Expressions
At _____ We use this preposition for a certain point.

The company’s income remained constant

at $ 100 million from 1990 to 1997.

The number of internet users peaked at

15,000 in 1993.

The number of internet users reached a peak

at 15,000 in 1993.

The number of customers bottomed out at

1,200 in 1994.
Going Up: Going Down: Staying the Same
increase decrease stabilize
rise fall remain + constant
go up go down
grow drop
climb decline
peak* bottom out*

Pattern:
Sub + Verb + Adv
Sales peaked at
50 million dollars in
2003.
Prepositions and Other Expressions
Expressing Approximation
We use words to express approximation when the point we are trying to
describe is between milestones on the graph.

Approximately The problem with computer viruses

Around rocketed to approximately 1,100
cases.
About 1,000
Roughly
More or less
Almost
Nearly
Expressions for Opening Sentences to Introduce the Graph
The opening sentences should make up the first paragraph. It should
define what the graph is about, that is the date, location, what is being
described in the graph etc. For example

The graph shows the sales of computers of ABC

Company during the 2010-11 financial year in India.

 Making inferences
Graphs and tables are visual representations which can give
information both directly and indirectly. In other words, we sometimes
may have to make inferences or draw conclusions based on the data
given as well as our knowledge of the world.

From the information given, I conclude/ infer/ assume that

______.

From the information given, it can be concluded / inferred /assumed

that _________.

The information given in the graph implies/ suggests / hints that

_________.