IB Exam Command Terms List: Full Guide

IB command terms are the instructional words in examination questions, such as define, explain, compare, and evaluate. They tell you what intellectual task to perform and indicate the type and depth of answer expected.

There is no single official list used identically in every Diploma Programme subject. The IB gives command terms common meanings across subjects, but each current subject guide contains the authoritative glossary for that course. The consolidated IB exam command terms list below covers the principal terms found across DP subjects, including subject-specific mathematical, scientific, diagrammatic, and evaluative instructions.

Why IB command terms matter

Knowing the content is not enough if your response performs the wrong task. A student who describes the effects of a policy when asked to evaluate it may provide accurate knowledge but omit the required appraisal of strengths and limitations.

The IB explains that command terms indicate what a question requires and suggest the expected depth of response. They are connected to assessment objectives, although the precise classification and marks vary between subjects.

Always interpret a command term alongside:

• the subject context
• the number of marks available
• any stimulus, data, text, or case study provided
• additional wording such as “using the graph” or “with reference to the extract”
• the relevant subject guide and assessment criteria

A command term does not determine answer length by itself. Explain in a two-mark question requires less development than explain in an extended response.

The full IB exam command terms list

The following is a consolidated DP reference rather than a replacement for your subject guide. Some terms, such as prove, derive, and plot, occur mainly in quantitative subjects, while others, including discuss and to what extent, are especially common in essay-based courses.

Knowledge and concise-response terms

Command term	What it means	What to do in your answer
Define	Give the precise meaning of a word, concept, phrase, or quantity.	State an exact, subject-appropriate definition. An example alone is insufficient.
Identify	Select or provide the required answer from the available possibilities.	Name the relevant feature, item, person, or result directly.
Label	Add labels to a diagram.	Place accurate terms beside the correct features, using clear label lines where necessary.
List	Give a sequence of brief answers without explanation.	Supply the requested number of separate items.
Recall	Retrieve an answer from learned knowledge.	State the relevant fact or concept accurately and concisely.
State	Give a specific name, value, or brief answer without explanation or calculation.	Answer directly rather than adding an unnecessary paragraph.
What	Provide the requested information or identify something.	Focus on the fact, feature, or outcome requested.

Description, application, and interpretation terms

Command term	What it means	What to do in your answer
Annotate	Add brief explanatory notes to a diagram or graph.	Go beyond labels by adding short comments about features or relationships.
Apply	Use an idea, rule, equation, theory, or principle in a given situation.	Connect learned knowledge explicitly to the unfamiliar context.
Classify	Arrange or assign items to groups according to shared characteristics.	State the categories and place each item appropriately.
Describe	Give a detailed account.	Report what happens, what is present, or what a pattern looks like without necessarily explaining why.
Distinguish	Make the differences between concepts or items clear.	Use paired, comparative statements rather than two unrelated definitions.
Estimate	Obtain an approximate value.	Show a reasonable method or reading and give suitable units where relevant.
Interpret	Use knowledge to recognize trends and draw conclusions from information.	Explain what the data, source, image, or result indicates.
Outline	Give a brief account or summary.	Include the main features without extensive detail or evaluation.
Suggest	Propose a possible answer, explanation, hypothesis, or solution.	Give a plausible response supported by the context; more than one answer may be valid.
Trace	Follow the development or progression of an event, process, or argument.	Present the important stages in a clear sequence.

A frequent error is treating describe and explain as synonyms. Describing a graph means reporting its trend; explaining it means giving reasons, causes, or a mechanism for that trend.

Analysis, argument, and evaluation terms

Command term	What it means	What to do in your answer
Analyse	Break something down to reveal its essential elements, structure, or relationships.	Examine components and show how they interact or support a conclusion.
Assess	Reach a judgment about importance, value, or significance.	Establish relevant criteria, consider evidence, and give a reasoned judgment.
Comment	Give a judgment based on a statement or result.	Interpret the result and state what can reasonably be concluded.
Compare	Give an account of similarities between items, referring to each throughout.	Organize the response point by point so the comparison is explicit.
Compare and contrast	Account for both similarities and differences, referring to all items throughout.	Include both sides of the comparison in a paired structure.
Contrast	Give an account of differences between items, referring to each throughout.	Make direct paired distinctions; do not spend time on similarities.
Deduce	Reach a conclusion from the information given.	Use the stimulus or results logically rather than relying only on memorized knowledge.
Demonstrate	Make something clear through reasoning, evidence, examples, or application.	Establish the claim with a visible chain of support.
Discuss	Give a considered, balanced review involving arguments, factors, or hypotheses.	Examine relevant perspectives and support a clear conclusion with evidence.
Evaluate	Make an appraisal by weighing strengths and limitations.	Judge overall value or effectiveness, not merely list advantages and disadvantages.
Examine	Investigate an argument or concept to reveal assumptions and interrelationships.	Explore the issue carefully and support resulting conclusions.
Explain	Give a detailed account including reasons or causes.	Build a connected chain showing how or why something occurs.
Formulate

For discuss, balance does not mean giving every possible view equal space. It means considering a credible range of arguments before reaching a supported position. For evaluate, strengths and limitations must contribute to an overall appraisal rather than appearing as disconnected lists.

Mathematical, graphical, and practical terms

Command term	What it means	What to do in your answer
Calculate	Obtain a numerical answer, showing relevant working.	Display substitutions and stages, then give an appropriately rounded answer with units.
Construct	Display information in a diagrammatic or logical form.	Create the requested table, graph, diagram, sequence, or logical structure.
Derive	Manipulate mathematical relationships to obtain a new equation or relationship.	Show the algebraic progression from known information to the required result.
Design	Produce a plan, simulation, model, or method.	Specify variables, procedures, controls, measurements, or components as appropriate.
Determine	Obtain the only possible answer.	Use the available information to reach a definite result, showing working when needed.
Draw	Produce an accurate, labelled diagram or graph.	Include correct scale, plotted points, axes, units, curves, and labels as applicable.
Measure	Obtain a value for a quantity.	Read or use an instrument or diagram accurately and include units.
Plot	Mark the position of points on a diagram.	Use the stated scale and place each coordinate accurately.
Prove	Establish a result using a logically valid sequence of steps.	Provide a complete general argument rather than checking selected examples.
Show	Give the stages in a calculation or derivation.	Make the method visible even if the final result seems obvious.
Show that	Obtain a stated result, generally without requiring a formal proof.	Work logically toward the given answer and avoid reasoning backwards from it alone.
Sketch	Draw a diagram or graph showing the general shape and relevant features.	Include intercepts, asymptotes, turning points, direction, or labels where relevant; exact scale is usually unnecessary.
Solve	Obtain answers using algebraic, numerical, or graphical methods.

How to translate a command term into an answer

Before writing, separate the question into three parts:

1. Instruction: What must you do?
2. Content: What concept or topic must you address?
3. Scope: What limits the answer, such as a case study, period, source, or number of examples?

For example, “Evaluate the effectiveness of a price ceiling in improving affordability” requires an appraisal, not a description of price ceilings. A strong plan might consider affordability for successful consumers, shortages, non-price allocation, stakeholder effects, and conditions affecting the final judgment.

Use the mark allocation as a guide to depth, but do not assume a rigid formula such as one mark always equalling one sentence. Marking structures differ among subjects and question types. The IB’s official sample examination papers are useful for seeing command terms in authentic contexts.

Common command-term mistakes

• Writing everything you know: Relevant selection earns marks; an unfocused information dump does not.
• Explaining when asked to state: This wastes time that should be used on higher-mark questions.
• Describing when asked to analyse: Analysis must reveal relationships, implications, or structure.
• Giving two isolated mini-essays for a comparison: Refer to both items within each comparison point.
• Ending an evaluation without a judgment: The conclusion should state what the evidence ultimately establishes.
• Giving an unsupported opinion: A judgment requires subject knowledge, evidence, reasoning, or criteria.
• Hiding mathematical working: Commands such as calculate, derive, and show normally require visible stages.
• Ignoring subject differences: Your current guide remains authoritative if its wording differs from a general list.

Turn command-term knowledge into exam marks

Memorizing definitions helps, but the higher-leverage habit is attempting real questions before reviewing the worked method. This reveals whether you can recognize and execute the instruction under exam conditions.

Use this practice cycle:

1. Choose one term, such as explain or evaluate.
2. Attempt several exam-style questions without notes.
3. Compare your response with the mark scheme or worked solution.
4. Identify whether lost marks came from content, command-term execution, evidence, or timing.
5. Rewrite the weakest response and attempt a similar question later.

RevisionDojo’s guidance on using IB command terms effectively and practising with IB question banks can help structure this process. For sciences, the IB Chemistry per-question past paper video solutions show the worked method question by question, making it easier to see how an instruction becomes mark-earning steps.

Once individual terms are secure, move to mixed and timed practice. RevisionDojo’s exam-style question guidance, past-paper review method, and predicted papers support the transition from isolated skills to complete papers. Jojo AI can help identify when an answer contains correct knowledge but does not fully perform the command.

Conclusion

IB command terms specify the task an examiner expects you to perform. Learn their core meanings, check the glossary in each current subject guide, and adjust the depth of your response to the marks and context.

The most productive next step is not further memorization. Attempt exam questions, inspect the worked method, record why marks were lost, and repeat the skill. RevisionDojo’s Questionbank and per-question past paper video solutions are particularly useful for building that attempt-review-reattempt habit.

Sources and referenced URLs

• IB assessment principles and practices
• IB Diploma Programme assessment overview
• Official IB sample examination papers
• Current IB Biology guide and command-term glossary
• IB Economics guide and assessment objectives
• RevisionDojo guide to using command terms
• RevisionDojo guide to question banks and practice papers
• RevisionDojo Chemistry past paper video solutions
• RevisionDojo exam-style question guidance
• RevisionDojo guide to reviewing past papers
• RevisionDojo predicted papers