Paper 2 · Descriptive writing: past paper questions
Real questions on paper 2 · descriptive writing
The newest 20 of 92 written questions. Open one to see it on the real paper.
- 0500/21 · May/June 2026 · Q2[40]
Describe the surroundings as you travel out of a city into the countryside. OR Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/21 · May/June 2026 · Q3[40]
Describe the moment you find an object which was lost. OR Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/22 · May/June 2026 · Q2[40]
Describe a person in a place you wouldn’t expect to see them. Or Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/22 · May/June 2026 · Q3[40]
Describe an area where waste or rubbish is dumped. Or Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/23 · May/June 2026 · Q2[40]
Describe what you saw, heard and felt when you were transported to a different time or place. Or Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/23 · May/June 2026 · Q3[40]
Describe your first impressions of someone you later came to know well. Or Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/22 · February/March 2026 · Q2[40]
Describe people picking fruit or harvesting a crop. Or Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/22 · February/March 2026 · Q3[40]
Describe an object before and after it is cleaned. Or Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/21 · October/November 2025 · Q2[40]
Write a description of a café just after it has closed. OR Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/21 · October/November 2025 · Q3[40]
Write a description that involves someone finding an old photograph. OR Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/22 · October/November 2025 · Q2[40]
Write a description of a shop before and after a busy day’s trading. OR Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/22 · October/November 2025 · Q3[40]
Write a description with the title, ‘A boat ride’. OR Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/23 · October/November 2025 · Q2[40]
Write a description of an area where children are playing. OR Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/23 · October/November 2025 · Q3[40]
Write a description with the title, ‘The athlete’. OR Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/21 · May/June 2025 · Q2[40]
Write a description with the title, ‘The shelter’. OR Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/21 · May/June 2025 · Q3[40]
Describe a time when you had to wait for a delivery. OR Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/22 · May/June 2025 · Q2[40]
Describe a tense moment during a competition. OR Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/22 · May/June 2025 · Q3[40]
Write a description with the title, ‘The artist’. OR Narrative writing
See it on the paper → - 0500/23 · May/June 2025 · Q2[40]
Describe an uncomfortable ride on public transport. OR Descriptive writing 2
See it on the paper → - 0500/23 · May/June 2025 · Q3[40]
Describe someone working outdoors. OR Narrative writing
See it on the paper →
What examiners said
Comprehensive responses • Responses were written from interesting points of view (for example, from the perspective of a bee gathering pollen, a poor worker describing back-breaking work in an incongruously beautiful landscape, or a farmer under pressure from an incoming storm). • Imagery and personification were used sparingly but in striking ways to engage the reader and create evocative scenes....
— Examiner report, February/March 2026, 0500/22 Q2 (Cambridge)
Comprehensive responses • Candidates selected objects to describe which evoked ideas, images and memories for the writer to help engage the reader (for example, a gift from a relative, a toy from the writer’s childhood or an apparently ordinary object which was significant in different ways). • Candidates used the wording of the question to describe contrasting details of the object before and aft...
— Examiner report, February/March 2026, 0500/22 Q3 (Cambridge)
Both descriptive writing questions were popular choices for candidates, though Question 2 was much more often selected; examiners awarded a wide range of marks for these responses. Both questions elicited responses describing a wide variety of scenarios which examiners could reward appropriately. A sense of a very specific place, brought to life in vivid ways, was often key to the effectiveness of...
— Examiner report, May/June 2025, 0500/21 Q3 (Cambridge)
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