Describing Trends

Describing Trends

Lesson Overview ｜课程概述

Expressions for Changes ｜ 趋势的表达

1. Verb / Nouns about changes.

• Growing Trend

  • Verbs:

    • increase

    • rise (compare raise)

    • grow

    • climb

    • go up

  • Nouns:

    • an increase

    • a rise

    • a growth

    • a climb

    • an upward movement / trend

• Rapid Increase

  • Verbs:

    • surge

    • (sky)rocket

    • soar

    • jump

    • shoot up

    • escalate

  • Nouns:

    • a surge

    • a jump

    • a sharp rise

    • a dramatic increase

    • a spike

    • an escalation

• Gradual Increase

  • Verbs:

    • rise gradually

    • increase steadily

    • grow slowly

    • edge up

  • Nouns:

    • a gradual rise

    • a steady increase

    • a slow growth

• Falling Trend

  • Verbs:

    • decrease

    • fall

    • drop

    • go down

    • be reduced*

    • shrink

    • diminish

    • contract

  • Nouns:

    • a decrease

    • a decline

    • a fall

    • a drop

    • a reduction

    • a contraction

    • a downward movement / trend

• Rapid Decrease

  • Verbs:

    • plummet

    • plunge

    • crash

    • tumble

  • Nouns:

    • a plummet

    • a plunge

    • a crash

    • a sharp fall

    • a steep decline

• Gradual Decrease

  • Verbs:

    • decrease gradually

    • decline steadily

    • fall slowly

    • edge down

  • Nouns:

    • a gradual decrease

    • a steady decline

    • a slow fall

• Peak Trend

  • peak at

  • reach a peak of

  • go up to

  • hit the highest point at

  • reach its highest level at

  • top out at

  • a high of

• Trough Trend

  • hit the lowest point at

  • bottom out at

  • reach a trough at

  • dip to the lowest level at

  • a low of

• Stable Trend

  • stabilize

  • remain stable / constant / unchanged / the same

  • maintain the same level

  • hold steady

  • a period of stability

• Unstable Trend

  • Verbs:

    • fluctuate

    • vary

    • oscillate

    • swing

  • Nouns:

    • fluctuations

    • variations

    • oscillations

    • instability

• Plateau Trend

  • level off

  • level out

  • flatten out

  • stabilize

  • a plateau (for growth)

• Anywhere

  • stand at

  • start at / begin at

  • end at / finish at

1. Adjectives / Adverbs about changing rate and degree.

huge/hugely enormous/enormously significant/significantly noticeable/noticeably considerable/considerably marked/markedly remarkable/remarkably dramatic/dramatically drastic/drastically substantial/substantially moderate/moderately modest/modestly slight/slightly minimal/minimally marginal/marginally

quick/quickly prompt/promptly steep/steeply sudden/suddenly swift/swiftly abrupt/abruptly unexpected/unexpectedly rapid/rapidly sharp/sharply wild/wildly slow/slowly steady/steadily consistent/consistently constant/constantly gradual/gradually

Approximation Words ｜ 约数词

💡 学会使用 approximately, almost, around/about, roughly, nearly, just above/below.

For example

• Approximately 10% of the population is over 75 years old.

• Almost all students attended the session.

• Around 40% of students passed the test.

• About a quarter of the females in the program received a promotion.

• Roughly half of the male candidates received approval.

• Nearly 30% of people voted for the election.

• Just below 20% of citizens were eligible for the application.

• Just above/over 15% of students were qualified to pass.

Exercise 1:

At the beginning of 2020, the price of gold 位于________________around $50 per gram. It then 稳步上升________________throughout 2020, 到达顶峰________________roughly $65 per gram by mid-year. However, the price 波动________________for the remainder of 2020, with some 轻微下降________________and recoveries, eventually 稳定在________________around $60 per gram by the end of the year.

Throughout 2021 and 2022, the price showed a 相对不稳定的趋势________________, with 频繁波动________________. It 轻微下降________________at some points, 到达最低点大约________________ $55 per gram in 2022, before beginning to 逐渐恢复________________.

From late 2022 onwards, the price of gold began to 稳步上升________________. This growth was particularly notable in the latter half of 2023, where the price 激增到________________around $75 per gram. The upward trend continued into 2024, with the price 飞升到最高点大约________________$90 per gram by early 2025.

Use of Prepositions ｜ 常见介词使用

📌 between X and Y / from X to Y

• The line graph shows the amount of household expenditure on different items between 1995 and 2005.

• The bar chart illustrates the rise in the number of tourists from 1 million to 5 million over a decade.

• The temperature varied between -5°C and 10°C during the winter months.

时间介词区分：

From 1990 to 1995 / Between 1990 and 1995 During / throughout the period from 1995 to 2005 During a period of 10 years Over the (three-month) period (between April and June) In 1990 By 1995 For 5 years

📌 in

• There was an increase in the number of cars on the road in Britain.

• There was a decline in the percentage of cinema-goers.

• There was a rise in the amount of natural gas produced in 2010.

• Last decade saw a significant drop in shopping for luxury items.

📌 to

• There is a marked reduction to 20% of the amount of time playing sports.

• The price of oil had considerable growth to 32$ per barrel in 2007.

📌 at

• The divorce rate was at its highest point in 2000.

• The figure stood at 56% in 1880 when it started to rise gradually.

• The number of cars peaked at 34 million in the following year.

• It went up gradually at a high rate.

📌 with

• The trend reached its highest point, with(at) 45% in 1990.

• There was a remarkable decline to the lowest point with 30% two years later.

• Germany came top in the table, with 25 million travelers in 2006.

📌 of / by

• There was a substantial increase of 12% in the amount of household expenditure. (For example, the amount rose from 22% to 34%, which shows a 12% increase.)

• There was a minimal reduction of 2% in the annual income for X company. (For instance, the income fell from 34% to 32%, showing a 2% difference.)

• The interest rate reached a peak of 10% in 2005.

• The price of gold increased by 12% between 2012 and 2015.

• There was an increase of 12% in the price of gold between 2012 and 2015.

📌 for

• There was a comparison between the two groups for reading and playing sports as hobbies.

• The annual salary for the low-income group went up slightly.

• The percentage of absenteeism was much higher for male workers than female workers in 1960.

• The household expenditure on food accounted for the highest amount for the UK.

Exercise 2:

Compare & Constrast ｜ 对比句型

📌 more adj. than.. , as adj. as, not as….as

• The number of female students was higher than that of male students in 1995.

• The trend for Spain had a more dramatic rise than that of France.

• Based on the given statistics, Germany is as cold as Italy in December.

📌 compare to/with, compared to/with, in comparison to/with, make/draw a comparison between A and B.

• The bar chart compares the percentages for the popularity of different school subjects.

• In comparison with girls, boys of the same age group had a lower success rate.

• Compared with the year 2000, the number of high-school graduates had a rise.

• Annual net income draws/makes a comparison between the two countries .

  Tip: “to” 和 “with” 在这里可以替换

📌 double, half, triple, or quadruple that of something else

• The company’s profit was triple that of the year before after implementing new marketing strategies.

• The figure for unemployment tripled due to the economic recession.

• The rate for crime halved over the given period.

📌 其他比较词汇：similarly, both X and Y, like, same as, in a similar way, in a similar fashion.

• Similarly , Germany and France had a high rate of unemployment at 23%.

• Both the UK and France established strict social rules in 2015.

• Like the US , Canada contributed to the reconstruction of the affected areas after the war.

• The interest rate in Japan was the same as this figure in China in 2005.

📌 对比结构：In contrast, in contrast to, a contrast between X and Y

• In contrast, the figure for volleyball had a gradual decline.

• In contrast to the UK , Germany had the highest number of medals in 2010.

• 53% of the population in Korea was 50+ years old, in contrast to 23% of the teenage population.

• There was a stark contrast between the two teams.

Sentence Structures ｜ 常用句型

一般常用句式

There + Be + adj. + Noun + In + Noun Phrase + Time

There was a significant increase in the number of unemployed people during the period.

There was a slight increase in the gold price / the price of gold between 2005 and 2010

Noun Phrase + Verb + Adverb (+ Noun) + Time

The number of unemployed people increased significantly (experienced / witnessed / saw a significant rise) during the period.

The gold price / the price of gold increased slightly.

将来时（预测类）可以用到的句式

1. The prediction/expectation/projection/forecast/anticipation/likelihood + shows/reveals/indicates/is that there is likely to be a dramatic increase in the number of car users.

2. It is predicted/expected/projected/estimated/ anticipated/forecast/likely that the price of food will increase dramatically (will undergo/witness/experience an increase) from 20 dollars in 2005 to 25 dollars in 2025.

3. The price of food is predicted/expected/anticipated/forecast/estimated to decline from 20 dollars in 2000 to 10 dollars in 2025.