B1 Preliminary Speaking Part 4: The General Conversation

Part 4 closes the B1 Preliminary Speaking test with three minutes of general conversation.

Cambridge names five areas: likes, dislikes, experiences, opinions and habits.

That word "opinions" is doing something. It is the only place in Cambridge's description of this test where it appears, which makes Part 4 the point where the exam asks you what you think rather than what is true.

SpeakShark is free for practising exactly that, three AI conversation sessions a day with no card, each capped at five minutes and four turns.

In this guide: what Part 4 actually is · where opinions enter · the five areas · is it linked to Part 3 · the register that fits · where it sits · what we could not verify · how we researched this · FAQ

Key takeaways

Part 4 is three minutes, closing the test.
Cambridge names likes, dislikes, experiences, opinions and habits.
It is the only part of this test where Cambridge's description says opinions.
Cambridge does not state a link to Part 3, unlike at B2 First.
The whole test is 10 to 12 minutes per pair, or 15 to 17 per group of three.

What Part 4 actually is

Cambridge's description of the task:

Discuss likes, dislikes, experiences, opinions, habits, etc.

And the timing:

3 minutes.

A conversation, in other words, about ordinary life. No card, no photograph, no prompt sheet, and no artefact to hide behind.

Where opinions enter the test

Set the four task descriptions side by side and one word only appears once.

Part	What Cambridge says candidates have to do
1, Interview	"Respond to questions, giving factual or personal information."
2, Extended turn	"Describe one colour photograph, talking for about 1 minute."
3, Discussion	"Make and respond to suggestions, discuss alternatives and negotiate agreement."
4, General conversation	"Discuss likes, dislikes, experiences, opinions, habits, etc."

Part 1 asks for facts. Part 2 asks for description. Part 3 asks for suggestions and negotiation. Part 4 is where a view about something becomes the material.

The ordering is worth using. If you find giving opinions hard, that difficulty belongs to the last three minutes of this test rather than to all twelve, and it is worth practising specifically rather than worrying about throughout.

It also shifts as you go up the ladder. At B2 First, Cambridge's list of what to practise for the interview already includes "expressing opinions about various topics", so the demand that arrives at the end of the B1 test arrives at the start of the B2 one. B2 First Part 1 covers that, and by C2 Proficiency the interview asks for "expressing your opinion or speculating", covered in C2 Proficiency Part 1.

The five areas, and the one nobody rehearses

Likes. Dislikes. Experiences. Opinions. Habits.

Four of those five are about your own life, which means the material is already yours. You are not being asked to know things.

Habits is the one candidates never prepare, and it is the easiest to talk about once you notice it. What you do most mornings. What you always do at weekends. What you never do. Ordinary repeated things, described in the present simple, with a reason attached.

A pattern that fits all five areas and fills a turn without effort:

State it. "I usually..." or "I really don't like..."
Give one reason. Because, mainly because, especially when.
Add a detail or an example. One is enough.
Stop.

Three sentences, then let the conversation move. Trying to be exhaustive in a general conversation is what makes it stop being one.

Daily use English sentences for speaking practice covers the everyday phrasing this part runs on, and twelve daily speaking drills from B1 to C1 turns it into a routine.

Is Part 4 linked to Part 3

At B2 First, Cambridge is explicit: Part 4 is "further discussion with the other candidate, guided by questions from the examiner, about the same topic as the task in Part 3". Parts 3 and 4 there are one continuous block on one subject, covered in B2 First Part 4.

On the B1 page, Cambridge says no such thing. The general conversation is described on its own terms, with its own list of areas, and no link to the previous part.

We are flagging that rather than concluding from it. The B1 page publishes shorter descriptions than the higher ones across the board, so an absence there is weaker evidence than a statement. What we can say is that Cambridge does not tell B1 candidates to expect a continuation, and it does tell B2 candidates to expect one.

Practically, prepare for either. If the conversation continues from Part 3, your engagement there gives you material. If it does not, the five named areas are the ground.

The register that fits

The Council of Europe's B1 descriptor is the calibration to hold onto. A B1 user "can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes and ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans".

Briefly give reasons. That is the register: conversational, not argumentative. Part 4 is not a debate and treating it as one usually produces worse English, because reaching for complex structure under pressure is where accuracy goes.

The B1 descriptor also says a B1 user "can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest". Simple and connected. Sentences that follow from each other, on subjects you actually know. CEFR levels explained for speaking covers what the levels either side ask for instead.

Where Part 4 sits in the test

Part	What it is	Time
1, Interview	Factual or personal information	2 minutes
2, Extended turn	Describe one colour photograph	3 minutes
3, Discussion	Suggestions, alternatives, negotiating agreement	4 minutes
4, General conversation	Likes, dislikes, experiences, opinions, habits	3 minutes

The whole test runs 10 to 12 minutes per pair, or 15 to 17 minutes per group of three. Cambridge lists B1 Preliminary at CEFR level B1 with a scale score of 140 to 159, four papers and an exam length of about 2 hours 20 minutes, and each of the four papers carries 25 per cent of the marks. A Speaking test of ten to twelve minutes therefore counts as much as a forty five minute Reading paper.

The rest of the test: Part 1, the interview, Part 2, one photograph and one minute and Part 3, the longest part.

Two details about the room, both from Cambridge: there are two examiners, one who talks to you and one who listens, and one of them could be examining remotely. Examiners may also enter marks using a mobile phone app.

For practising against a response rather than a page, role play scenarios for speaking practice, finding an online speaking partner and a free daily session are the routes. If the block is nerves, why your English speaking is not improving and online methods to build confidence in English address it, how to improve English pronunciation helps if clarity slips, and speaking exercises for adult learners plus a 30 day plan to improve speaking fit the habit around a job. Our Cambridge B2 First speaking overview shows what the next exam up asks for.

What we could not verify

We have not reproduced the assessment criteria. Cambridge publishes its own scales.

We could not confirm whether Part 4 continues the Part 3 topic at B1. Cambridge states the link at B2 First and does not address it on the B1 page. We have flagged the difference rather than resolving it.

We could not confirm who you address in Part 4 at B1. Cambridge does not specify on that page.

We have not published a list of Part 4 questions. Cambridge publishes a sample paper.

We are not stating pass rates or average scores by part. We found no attributable figure.

How we researched this guide

The Part 4 task description, the three minute timing, the other three parts, the 10 to 12 and 15 to 17 minute totals, the 25 per cent component weightings, the two examiner setup, the remote examiner note and the marking app detail come from Cambridge English's B1 Preliminary for Schools and B1 Preliminary exam format page. The CEFR level, the 140 to 159 scale score, the four papers and the exam length come from the B1 Preliminary qualification page. The B2 First and C2 Proficiency comparisons come from their own format pages. All were read directly in a browser.

The table showing where opinions first appear came from laying Cambridge's four B1 task descriptions in one column and reading them as a set. That is a small piece of work with a useful result, and it is not something any single part of the page invites you to do.

We were deliberately careful about the Part 3 link. It would have been easy to write that B1 Part 4 is independent of Part 3, and it would have been a conclusion drawn from silence on a page that is terser than its siblings throughout.

The B1 descriptor comes from the Council of Europe's global scale, Table 1, read on the page rather than quoted from memory.

Practise speaking, from SpeakShark

SpeakShark is an AI English speaking practice app, and it is our pick for Part 4 because a general conversation is precisely what it is. Somebody asks what you like, what you do, what you think, and then follows up on your actual answer. That is the whole task, and it is the one thing a worksheet cannot reproduce. You talk, the AI answers what you actually said, and you get speaking feedback while the conversation is still going. The free tier gives basic feedback; the detailed pronunciation and grammar breakdown is on Premium.

Being straight about the limits: a free session runs five minutes with four turns, which suits daily practice rather than simulating a full paired exam.

Start free with three sessions a day and no card. Paid sessions run ten minutes with unlimited turns. Limits are on the pricing page, and how it works walks through a full session.

We are a speaking improvement tool. We are not an exam preparation provider, and we are not affiliated with Cambridge English, the IELTS partners, Pearson or any exam board. For test format, booking and official practice material, go to the exam body directly. Use SpeakShark to make your spoken English stronger, and use official material to learn the test.

Site: speakshark.com
Support: speaksharksupport@gmail.com
Free tier: 3 AI conversation sessions per day, no card

Sources

Cambridge English, B1 Preliminary for Schools and B1 Preliminary exam format: all four part descriptions and timings, the 10 to 12 and 15 to 17 minute totals, the 25 per cent weightings and the two examiner setup
Cambridge English, B1 Preliminary for Schools and B1 Preliminary: the CEFR level, the 140 to 159 scale score, the four papers and the exam length
Cambridge English, B2 First exam format and C2 Proficiency exam format: the Part 4 topic link at B2 and the interview skills list at C2, used for the comparisons
Council of Europe, CEFR Table 1, common reference levels global scale: the B1 descriptor, including "briefly give reasons and explanations"

FAQ

What is B1 Preliminary Speaking Part 4?

It is the general conversation. Cambridge describes the task as discussing likes, dislikes, experiences, opinions and habits, and gives the part three minutes. It closes the four part Speaking test and it is the only part where Cambridge names opinions in its description of what candidates have to do.

How long is B1 Preliminary Speaking Part 4?

Three minutes. The whole Speaking test runs 10 to 12 minutes per pair of candidates or 15 to 17 minutes per group of three. Part 4 matches Part 2 in length, sits behind the four minute discussion in Part 3, and is longer than the two minute interview that opens the test.

What topics come up in B1 Preliminary Part 4?

Cambridge names five areas: likes, dislikes, experiences, opinions and habits. Four of those five are about your own life rather than about the world, so the material comes from you. Habits in particular is a category most candidates never rehearse, and it covers the ordinary repeated things you do.

Is Part 4 about the same topic as Part 3?

Cambridge does not say so on the B1 page, which is a notable difference from the level above. At B2 First, Cambridge states that Part 4 is further discussion about the same topic as the task in Part 3. On the B1 page the general conversation is described on its own terms, without a stated link.

Do I talk to the examiner or the other candidate in Part 4?

Cambridge calls it a general conversation and describes the task as discussing the named areas, without specifying who with. The safe assumption is that it involves both, as the rest of the test does, so engaging the other candidate rather than addressing every answer to the examiner is the sensible approach.

How should I practise for Part 4?

Practise giving a view and a reason about ordinary things, out loud, in two sentences. Take a like, a dislike and a habit each day and say what it is and why. The register that fits is conversational rather than argumentative, because the B1 descriptor asks for brief reasons and explanations rather than developed argument.