How To
Useful phrases for everyday situations: giving opinions, showing feelings, supporting people, asking for things and making conversation, with notes on when to use each.
Each page gives you ten phrases for one job, from the most common to the most formal, and explains when each one fits. Pick a situation you meet often, learn two or three phrases, and use them this week.
Opinions and answers
- Giving your opinion
- Asking for opinions
- Avoiding giving your opinion
- Agreeing with people
- Disagreeing with people
- Changing your mind
- Saying something is true
- Generalizing
- Having a guess
- Speculating
- Talking about improbability
- Delaying your answer
- Avoiding questions
Feelings
- Expressing surprise
- Expressing disappointment
- Expressing dislike
- Showing anger
- Showing concern
- Showing disapproval
- Complaining about hypocrisy
- Hoping for something
- Preferring things
Supporting people
- Encouraging someone
- Cheering someone up
- Reassuring someone
- Giving advice
- Making suggestions
- Giving a choice
- Talking about good ideas
- Criticizing mistakes
Asking and apologising
- Asking for help
- Asking for information
- Asking for approval
- Reminding someone to do something
- Refusing to do something
- Apologizing to someone
- Giving excuses for being late