CELPIP® Speaking Task 2 sample: When an Order Went Wrong

Talking about a Personal Experience · Preparation: 30 seconds · Response: 60 seconds · Published 23 October 2026

Original practice questions in CELPIP® task formats, created independently by CELPIP Study.

Practice question

Tell me about a time when something you ordered online or by phone didn't turn up the way you expected — it was late, damaged, the wrong item, or never arrived at all. What had you ordered, and why did it matter to you? How did you feel when you realized something was wrong, and what did you do? How did it all turn out?

Model answers

These are transcripts of a model response, provided for comparison with your own recording.

Level 7 sample answer

142 words

Last spring I ordered a board game online for my friend Diego's birthday. It was $55, and his party was on the Saturday. On Thursday, the tracking said delivered, but when I came home there was nothing at my door. I was worried, and kind of angry, because I thought somebody stole it. First I checked around the building and behind the bushes, but nothing. Then I sent a message to the seller, and they said I have to wait three days before they can do anything. That was too late for the party. So I decided to knock on my neighbours' doors here in Steinbach. The lady across the street, um, she had my package! The driver gave it to her because it was raining. I was so relieved. I learned that I should talk to neighbours first before I panic.

Why this answer is at level 7

This fits the level 7 teaching model because it tells a clear, complete story using concrete details and straightforward language. Compared with the higher-level answers, its emotional descriptions are simpler, its phrasing is sometimes less smooth, and the birthday outcome remains unstated.

First I checked around the building and behind the bushes, but nothing. — Content/Coherence: The search gives the story a clear sequence and a believable response to the missing delivery. The higher-level answers connect actions more closely to reasoning, explaining why a proposed solution would or would not meet the speaker's needs.
I was worried, and kind of angry, because I thought somebody stole it. — Vocabulary: The feelings and their cause are easy to understand, but the emotional vocabulary is fairly basic. The higher-level answers express disappointment and changing emotions through more precise phrases and vivid descriptions.
The lady across the street, um, she had my package! — Listenability: The exclamation makes the discovery lively, but the filler and repeated subject interrupt the phrasing slightly. The higher-level models generally maintain a smoother sentence flow while still sounding conversational.
It was $55, and his party was on the Saturday. — Task Fulfillment: The price and party deadline explain why the missing gift mattered. Although the package is recovered, the answer never explicitly confirms whether the friend received it for his birthday; a stronger ending could connect the resolution to that original purpose.

Level 9 sample answer

169 words

So, last fall I ordered a bookshelf from a furniture website because I'd just moved into a new apartment in Saskatoon and my books were still sitting in boxes all over the floor. It cost $210, which was a stretch for me that month. When it finally arrived, about a week late, I opened the box and found one of the side panels cracked right down the middle. My heart sank, honestly, because I'd been looking forward to finally unpacking. I called customer service, and the agent, Greta, told me I'd have to ship the whole thing back and wait for a new one, which could take up to a month. That seemed ridiculous for a single panel, so I asked whether they could just send the replacement part. She checked with her supervisor and, to my surprise, they agreed and even refunded the shipping fee. The panel showed up five days later. What I took away from it is that it never hurts to suggest a simpler solution.

Why this answer is at level 9

This fits the level 9 teaching model through developed motivation, natural emotional language, and a clearly reasoned solution. It goes beyond the level 7 story by explaining the negotiation, but the level 11 answer creates a more vivid scene and gives the resolution greater personal impact.

That seemed ridiculous for a single panel, so I asked whether they could just send the replacement part. — Content/Coherence: The speaker explains both the objection and the alternative, making the solution follow logically from the problem. This develops the reasoning more fully than the level 7 answer; the top model also connects its solution to a particularly meaningful final scene.
My heart sank, honestly, because I'd been looking forward to finally unpacking. — Vocabulary: The familiar expression conveys disappointment naturally, and the explanation connects that feeling to the delayed move-in process. Compared with the top model, the language offers less distinctive imagery and a narrower emotional progression.
She checked with her supervisor and, to my surprise, they agreed and even refunded the shipping fee. — Listenability: The sentence moves smoothly from the agent's action to the unexpected result, with conversational phrasing that helps a listener follow the change. The top model adds more variation in pacing, especially when moving from amusement to urgency.
The panel showed up five days later. — Task Fulfillment: This gives a concrete outcome and resolves the replacement request. A stronger ending could also show the bookshelf being used or the books finally unpacked, connecting the result to the original need as effectively as the top model's family reaction.

Level 11 sample answer

188 words

Last December, my cousin Hui and I chipped in $140 for a custom photo album to celebrate our grandparents' fiftieth anniversary. We'd spent three evenings scanning old prints, and the dinner was booked at a restaurant in Richmond for the Sunday. The parcel arrived on the Thursday, and when I opened it, I was staring at a stranger's wedding: someone else's photos, beautifully bound, with our grandparents nowhere to be seen. For a moment I just laughed, because it was so absurd, but the panic set in once I realized there was no way a reprint could be shipped in time. Rather than firing off an angry email, I phoned the printing company, explained the deadline, and asked whether a local partner could produce it. As it turned out, they had a print shop just twenty minutes away that could rush the job if we picked it up ourselves. Hui collected it on Saturday afternoon, and our grandmother cried when she saw it. Had I simply demanded a refund, we'd have shown up empty-handed — so I learned that describing what you actually need gets you further than complaining.

Why this answer is at level 11

This fits the level 11 teaching model because the vivid mix-up, changing emotions, practical negotiation, and family reaction form a tightly connected story. Precise language and varied sentence structures support a reflection that grows directly from what happened.

Had I simply demanded a refund, we'd have shown up empty-handed — Content/Coherence: The imagined alternative explains why the chosen response mattered. It connects the practical solution to the anniversary deadline and makes the final lesson feel earned through the events.
I was staring at a stranger's wedding — Vocabulary: This compact image makes the wrong order immediately visible and memorable. The contrast between the intended anniversary album and unfamiliar wedding photographs communicates the mistake more vividly than simply naming a wrong item.
For a moment I just laughed, because it was so absurd, — Listenability: The conversational opening gives the listener a brief emotional pause before the panic that follows. That change of pace makes the story expressive while preserving a clear progression toward the urgent phone call.
Hui collected it on Saturday afternoon, and our grandmother cried when she saw it. — Task Fulfillment: The ending confirms that the replacement arrived before the celebration and shows why the album mattered emotionally. It resolves both the delivery problem and the family's original purpose, bringing the response back to its opening.

What moves an answer from 7 to 9 to 11

These are model answers written to show each level. The labels are practice estimates, not examiner scores.

Tell a specific personal experience in a clear sequence. Explain what happened, how you reacted and why it mattered, using details that help the listener follow the story.

Content/Coherence: Level 7 models communicate the main ideas; level 9 models develop relevant details with clear connections; level 11 models sustain precise, well-integrated development.
Vocabulary: Compare adequate everyday wording with more varied, accurate choices at level 9 and flexible, precise expression at level 11.
Listenability: Higher-level delivery needs clear pronunciation, rhythm, intonation and controlled pauses. Transcripts suggest phrasing and organisation, but cannot demonstrate these audio features; a recording is needed.
Task Fulfillment: Compare how fully the response addresses the request, develops enough relevant detail and maintains an appropriate tone for the audience within the task limits.

Assess the criteria together. A longer answer or rarer words alone do not establish a higher level.

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