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PERFECT PHRASES™ for

ESL Conversatio Conversation n Skills Hundreds of Ready-to-Use Phrases That Help You Express Your Thoughts, Ideas, and Feelings in English Conversations of All Typ Types es

Diane Engelhardt

Ne w York Chicag Chicago o San Francisco Francisco Lisbo Lisbon n London Madrid Ma drid Mexi Mex ico City City Milan N ew Delhi Del hi San Juan Seoul Singapore Singapore Sydney Toronto

https://vk.com/clubthegroup







































Copyright © 2013 by Diane Engelhardt. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. ISBN: 978-0-07-177407-9 MHID: 0-07-177407-6 The material in this eBook also appears in the print version of this title: ISBN: 978-0-07-177027-9, MHID: 0-07-177027-5. All trademarks are trade marks of their their respective respective owners. Rather Rather than than put put a trademark symbol after every occurrence occurrence of a trademarked name, we use names in an editorial fashion only, and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of infringement of the trademark. trade mark. Where such designati d esignations ons app a ppear ear in this this book b ook,, they have been bee n printed printed with ini initi tial al caps. McGraw-Hill eBooks are available at special quantity discounts to use as premiums and sales promotions, or for use in corporate training programs. To contact a representative please e-mail us at [email protected] [email protected].. McGraw-Hill, the McGraw-Hill Publishing logo, Perfect Phrases, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of The McGraw-Hill Companies and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. The McGraw-Hill Companies is not associated with any product or vendor vendo r mentioned mentioned in this this bo ok.

TERMS TER MS OF USE USE This is a copyrighted work and The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. (“McGrawHill”) and its licensors reserve all rights in and to the work. Use of this work is subject to these terms. Except as permitted under the Copyright Act of 1976 and the right to store and retrieve one copy of the work, you may not decompile, disassemble, reverse engineer, reproduce, modify, create derivative works based upon, transmit, distribute, disseminate, sell, publish or sublicense the work or any part of it without McGraw-Hill’s prior consent. You may use the work for your own noncommercial and personal use; any other use of the work is strictly prohibited. Your right to use the work may be terminated if you fail to comply with these terms. THE WORK IS PROVIDED “AS IS.” McGRAW-HILL AND ITS LICENSORS MAKE NO GUARANTEES OR WARRANTIES AS TO THE ACCURACY, ADEQUACY OR COMPLETENESS OF OR RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED FROM USING THE WORK, INCLUDING ANY INFORMATION THAT CAN BE ACCESSED THROUGH THE WORK VIA HYPERLINK OR OTHERWISE, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. McGraw-Hill and its licensors do not warrant or guarantee that the functions contained in the work will meet your requirements or that its operation will be uninterrupted or error free. Neither Neither McG Mc Graw-Hill nor its licensors licensors shall be liable to you o r anyone el se for any a ny inaccur inaccuracy, acy, error or omissi omission, on, regardl ess of cause, in the work or for any damages resulting therefrom. McGraw-Hill has no responsibility for the content of any information accessed through the work. Under no circumstances shall McGraw-Hill and/or its licensors be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, punitive, consequential or similar damages that result from the use of or inability to use the work, even if any of them has been advised of the possibility of such damages. This limitation of liability shall apply to any claim or cause whatsoever whether such claim or cause arises in contract, tort or otherwise.







































Contents

Acknowledgments Acknowledgments Introduction: Introducti on: Who Can Benefit from Using This Book?

Part 1 Chapter Cha pter 1

Phrase Phr asess fo forr Conversation Small Talk Openers: Opener s: Excuse Me… Talking About Your Your self Showing Interest Introducing Yourself Breaking the Ice Ice Staying in Touch Saying Say ing Goo Good-B d-Bye ye Dialogue: Small Wor Wor ld Topics for Pr act actice ice

Chapter Cha pter 2

Past Expe Experien riences ces Opener s: Greetings Opener Making Introductions Catching Up Past Experi Experiences ences Transitions and Connector Connector s Discour Disc ourse se Marker Markerss







































Chapter 3

Likes, Li kes, Di Disli slikes, kes, and In Intt erest erestss Opener s: Feeling Opener Feeling Things T hings Out Likes Dislikes Preferences Interests Desires and Dependency Dependency Indifference Making Offers Offer s Dates and Invitations Expressing Exp ressing Emotions Compliments Dialogue: What’s for Dinner? Topics for Pr act actice ice

Chapter Cha pter 4

Obje Ob ject ctss and Pro Processes cesses Openers: Take a Look! Describing De scribing Object Objectss Properties Pro perties and Features Features Cost and Estimates Use and Availability Making Comparisons Compari sons Making Contrasts Evaluatio Evaluat ions ns and Judgments Judgm ents Giving Instructions Expressing Exp ressing Emotions Dialogue: The New Smartphone Topics for Pr act actice ice

Chapter 5

Pro blem blemss and Advi Advice ce Openers: What’s Wrong? Stating a Problem Asking Ask ing for fo r He Help lp or Ad Advice vice







































Reluctance and Avoidance Expressing Exp ressing Emotions Dialogue: What’s the Matter? Topics for Pr act actice ice

Chapter 6

Decisions Decisi ons and Go Goals als Opener s: What Are We Openers: We Going Go ing to Do? Options and Alternatives Reasons and Purpose Advantages Adv antages and Disadvantages Making a Decision Indecisio Ind ecision n and Hesitatio Hesitation n Setting Set ting Schedules and Deadlines Goals and Plans Encouragement, Recognition, and Congratulations Expressing Exp ressing Emotions Dialogue: A Tough Decision Topics for Pr act actice ice

Part 2 Chapter 7

Phrase Phr asess for Discuss iscussions ions Opinions Opi nions Opener s: Asking Opener Asking for an Opinion Stating an Opinion Value Judg Judgments ments Generalizations Agreeing and Disagreeing Suppor Sup porting ting an Opinion Figur es and Statistics Statistics Making an Argument Solutions and Recommendations Expressing Exp ressing Emotions Dialogue: Dialog ue: The Best Idea Idea I’ve Hear Heard d So Far









































Clarification and Explanations Misunderstandings Managing the Discussion In Conclusion Dialogue: The Holiday Party Topics for Pr act actice ice

Chapter 9

Serious Subj Subject ectss Opener s: Commo Opener Common n Concerns Offering Solutions to General Problems Levels of Language Direct vs. Indir Indirect ect Languag Languagee Irony Iro ny,, Sarcasm, Sarcasm , and Euphemism Euphemism Complaints and Demand Demandss Rules and Conditio Conditions ns Bad News and Good News Causes and Consequences Certainty and Possi Possibility bility Apolo Ap olo gies and Agr Agr eement eementss Dialogue: A Hard Bargain Topics for Pr act actice ice

Part 3 Chapter 10

Afterthoughts Afterthoug hts Special Occasions Openers: Words of Welcome Honor s and Awards Awards









































Acknowledgments

would first like to express my gratitude to McGraw-Hill Professional for the opportunity to publish publish this this book boo k and to to my editor, Holly McGuire, McGuire, for choosing me for this this particular pr oject. I would also like to acknowledge the valuable insights my colleague and friend, Barb Donaldson, has provided along the way. My thanks go out to as well to my students: Yuko, Joo-Weoun, Hye-Sin, Chae-Rin, Mayumi, and Satoko Satoko for their their perceptive perceptive feedback. feedback. Last but not least, my appreciation to my husband, Erich, for his support and encouragement.

I









































Introduction Who Can Benefit from Using This Book?

students and learners lear ners who want to to erfect Phrases for ESL: Conversation Conversation Skills was written for ESL students improve their conversation skills inside and outside of the classroom. The content was selected to familiarize you with the kind of language native English speakers use regularly in everyday conversations and discussions at home, school, and work. Although it was written with intermediatelevel speakers in mind, there is something for every motivated learner who aims to develop his or her ability to participate participate in conversations and discussions discussions o n a bro ad variety of topics.

P

How to Use This Book The book consists of ten chapters divided into three parts: conversation, discussions, and special occasions. Beginning with small talk, the book progresses in depth and difficulty and concludes with an independent chapter on special occasions to round things off.

Objectives These indicate the skills you can expect to gain from using the phrases in each chapter.









































Phrases that are not indicated in bold type are fixed expressions and can stand on their own. For example: What a pity! (Chapt Chapter er 5) I couldn’t agr ee with with you mor e! (Chapt Chapter er 7) Of course it is not necessary for you to master or even attempt to master all of the phrases under each heading and subheading. One or two may suit your purposes quite nicely. Choose the phrases that that you fit your personal style, style, and once you’re comfortable comfo rtable using them, you you can try out another another one. Listen carefully to native English speakers and make a note of the phrases that you hear them use.

Dialogues The dialogue in each chapter shows you how native English speakers might use the particular phrases in a typical conversation. If you are learning English in a classroom situation, you can act out the dialogue dialog ue as a skit skit or use it as a model for a conversation ro le-play. le-play.

Topics for Practice At the end of each chapter you will find a list of topics to stimulate conversation. Practice with a friend fr iend or classmate. classmate. The mor e people you include in the the conversation, the the merr ier.

Final Notes Make a point of writing down new vocabulary and the English definition. As you will notice, some words and phrases cannot be easily translated into your native language. Remember: it will be much easier to converse co nverse in English if you lear n to think think and explain explain your yourself self in English. In the end, the best and only way to develop your conversation and discussion skills is to talk. I sincerely hope that Perfect Phrases for ESL: Conversation Conversati on Skills Skill s will accompany and guide you on the the r oad to successful successful communication! communication! Go for it!









































PART I Phrases for Conversa Conversation tion “Conversation “Conversation is the t he laboratory and workshop of the student.”

—Ralph Waldo Waldo Emerso Emer son n











































CHAPTER

Small Talk

Objectives to introduce yourself











































where you live or come from; fro m; what what you do for a living; what what brings bring s you to a particular location. location. If the conversation continues, you’ll usually move on to everyday subjects with which you’re familiar such as: as: perso nal interests and hobbies; the weather; your environment envir onment (the airpor air por t, r estaurant, hotel, park, beach, beach, etc.); etc.); your location (city, (city, countr countr y, school, or workplace); curr ent happenings such as sports and cultural events events or the news. Although Although English-speaking English-speaking people tend tend to engage engag e easily in co nversations nversations with str str angers, there ar e certain topics that may be considered too intimate. Topics that should be avoided are: marital mar ital status, status, age, income, religion,











































Would you mind telling me where where you got that that book? boo k? Could I trouble tro uble / bother you for change? I don’t seem to have have any quarters. quarter s. You wouldn’t happen to know if there’s a café / a bank / a gr ocer y stor stor e near here? The direct approach takes the the initiative in a fr iendly, open manner: manner : Excuse me, do you have the time? This is a gr eat hotel, isn’t it? I can’t believe how busy the airpor air por t is today. today. Nice day, isn’t isn’ t it / eh? So, what what brings bring s you here? Do you come here often? Are you from fro m here?

Talk alking ing A bout Yourself Yourself A conversation with a stranger is a good opportunity not only to pass the time but also to practice your English. If the person to whom you are speaking is in the mood to continue the conversation,











































I’m into into aerobics aero bics / gourmet go urmet cooking coo king / pottery. pottery.

Showing Interes Interestt It is important and polite, of course, to show interest in what your conversation partner tells you; otherwise what’s the point of talking to someone? While it is courteous to respond to the person you have just met, it is even more important to be sincere and to reply in a comfortable, natural manner.











































We use the verb ver b to meet when we want to say that we make a person’s acquaintance. If someone asks you: How did you meet your husband o r wife, they mean how were you first introduced , not when when did you see him or her last.

Example: A: How did you meet your yo ur husband? B: Actually he was a friend of my brother’s from his college days, and at first I didn’t even like him.

Responses

Breaking the Ice













































Did you come here to study English / to travel aro und? Do you plan to stay stay here long? Which school schoo l / university universi ty are ar e you studying studying at? at? How long are you you staying staying / visiting? visiting?

Questions About the Person’s Person’s Experiences So Far Have you seen much of the city / country? So how how do you you like it here so far? How was was your your flig ht / tr tr ip / first lesson? The weather weather’s ’s been gr eat / nice / very cold, hasn’t it?











































How long are you staying staying here? Two weeks. Are Are you here very long? long ? What do you do for a living? I’m an architect. And where do you work? Other acceptable topics for small talk are the weather, local sights and attractions, the event you are attending, and the services or facilities in the hotel where you’re staying.

Staying in Touch It’s It’s been gr eat seeing you / talking talking to you. We’ll e’l l have to stay in touch. We should should get together together again / sometime sometime / soon. soo n. Look Loo k me up next time you’r e in town.





















































































You have a nice day, day, too. too . I wish you the same. Same to you. Likewise. You, too. too .

Dialogue: Small World This dialogue takes place at an airport café. Underline or highlight the phrases from the chapter.

Jenny: Excuse me. Do you have the time? Brett: Uh, sure. Let me take a look. It’s ten to. I’m sor so r r y to bother you, but my watch watch seems to to have stopped. Jenny: Thanks. I’m











































Brett: Yeah, you don’t want to miss that plane. gr eat talking talking to you, Brett Br ett.. Jenny: It was great Brett: Same here. thankss for your card. Jenny: And thank Brett: My pleasure. Have a good flight, and don’t gamble away your money. Jenny: I won’t. Bye-bye. Brett: See ya!

Topics for f or Practice What can you say about: 1. your job or studies; studies; 2. your family;













































CHAPTER











































Phrases

Openers: Greeti Greetings ngs When you haven’t seen someone for a long time, it’s customary to begin the conversation by asking about the other person’s well-being and by commenting positively on changes that you may notice.











































Just fine. fine . And you? yo u? Great. Gr eat. And your self? Couldn’t Coul dn’t be better. How about abo ut you? yo u? Pretty Pretty good. go od. Can’t complain. compl ain.











































Catching Ca tching Up











































Shared Experiences Remember when when we held a mock election in our afternoo after noon n class? Didn’t we have fun / a goo d time on that camping trip? Wasn’t the food fo od in the cafeteria delicio us / awful? awful? Don’t you miss the the beach / scenery / go ing out to to the disco?





























































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































asked to to assist someone or o r to explain the the process in mo re detail. detail. To describe a process pr ocess or to give instructions, you you can do two two things: Use command for ms such as press, select, turn t he machi machine ne on, etc.

Example: to start a new line. Press ENTER to Use modal verbs ver bs such as have have to, to , need to , or to be supposed supposed to. to .

Example: You have pr ess ENTER to start a new line. have to / need to / are supposed supposed to press As you go along, you will have to correct or confirm what the person is doing, and if there’s danger of cr eating eating a bigger bigg er pr oblem, a wor wor d of caution caution might mig ht be necessary necessary..

Questions What do I do fir st / next / then then / after that? that? What am I doing wrong? wrong ? Why doesn’t this work? wor k? How come this this doesn’t work wor k / nothing happens? happens? I can’t figur fig uree this out / understand understand this. I can’t seem to get this to wor wor k. This doesn’t seem to work. The following example shows phrases that you can use to give instructions on how to record an outgoing message on an answering answering machine. machine.

How to Begin / press pr ess the MENU MENU key. key. Firstly Firstly / first first of o f all / to t o start off /

T he first / initial initial step / t hing hing is press the MENU key.

What to Do Next







































and the handset will automatically start recording.

How to Finish hear your yo ur message. Finally / lastly / at the t he end end press OK to play and hear and play your message. T he final final step / t hing hing is to pr ess OK and

Making Corrections When you give someone instructions, it is sometimes necessary to correct a mistake or give a warning. It is also important to let the person know when he or she is doing the right thing. You have to to back up a step / to to go g o back to the the first fir st / last step. Go back and start again agai n / over. Give it one mor e / anothe anotherr try / go. go . Erase / delete delete / cancel that that and try again / star startt over. Let’s Let’s try it another time. time. You seem to be doing something wr wr ong. ong .

Caution Wait / hold it a second second befor befor e you you go on. Slow down and take it easy / take take your time. Make / be sure sur e to pr pr ess SELECT SELECT fir st. Be careful car eful to adjust the setting setting / not to to press pr ess down too hard har d on the the foot feed. Take care car e to turn the the knob gently. gently. Remember Remember / don’t for get to press OK.

Confirm C onfirmation ation Good, Goo d,

he

/ following st







































You’ve ou’ ve g ot it!

Expressing Emotions Confusion I can’t figur e these these instr instr uctions uctions out for the the life of me. I don’t know if / whet whether her I’m I’m coming or go ing. I can’t make heads or tails of this. this. I’m completely compl etely / totally totally lost / at sea. This is over my head / beyond beyond me. This has has got go t me confounded / bamboozled. bamboozled.

Frustration This is driving me crazy / up the wall / around ar ound the the bend. I’m at my wit’ wit’ss end / at the end of my ro pe. I don’t have a clue / the the faintest idea what what to do. I can’t figur fig uree out how to get this this to to wor wor k. I just can’t get a handle on this. this. This has r eally got me stumped / stymied. stymied. I’ve had it up to here.

Wonde Wonderr I’m impr essed with the quality quali ty.. I’m amazed / astonis astonished hed / flabbergasted flabberg asted / blown away. away. The sound quality blows blo ws me away / bog bog gles gl es my mind!







































Dialogue: The New New Smartphone Smar tphone Underline Underline or o r highlight highlig ht the the phrases from fr om the the chapter. chapter.

Sean: Hey, Paul, check this out! Paul: What’ve you got now? Sean: Get a load of my new Mango smartphone. Paul: Wow! Is that the Mango 3000z? Man, everybody’s talking about it. That must have cost you an arm and a leg. Sean: Well, it wasn’t exactly cheap, but it’s worth every penny. whistles. Paul: I suppose it has all the bell and whistles. Sean: Besides all the regular cell-phone features, this baby’s got assisted GPS, plus WiFi and mobile broadband access that’s much faster than other phones. And I can send and receive e-mails, plus edit messages. Paul: How many applications can you run? Sean: Besides the standard built-in apps that come with it, there are literally thousands more to download. And whereas most phones can only do one thing at a time, with the Mango you can run third-par ty apps and multi-task multi-task at the the same time. Paul: I’m impressed big time! By comparison my mobile looks like it came out of the Stone Ages. Sean: Take a look at the smudge-resistant interface. All you have to do is touch an application like this and there there it i t is! pretty cool, coo l, too. Paul: The sleek design’s pretty Sean: Yeah, and it’s light as a feather. It weighs less than five ounces, and is about a fourth of an inch thick so it’s definitely pocket-size. And look at this feature. If you want to type a message, it has a QWERTY* QWERTY* keyboard so you don’t have to fiddle around with numbers like you do on a normal cell phone. Paul: Since when are you into typing messages? text all the time, time, but of cour co urse se I don’t have to to no w ‘cause—and this will knock your yo ur socks o ff, Sean: I text buddy—now I can make video calls right from my Mango. Paul: How can you do that? Sean: See, it has two cameras. One on the front here and the other on the back. So what you do is go into your yo ur contacts list and find a number. Then you touch to uch video call and bingo. bingo . It’s It’s easy as pie. Paul: Get out of here! You’re sure it’s not just some gimmick. Sean: No way, man. Mango really lives up to its name. And get this, I can record my own videos and edit them them into movies mo vies r ight ig ht here on o n my phone. YouTube, YouTube, here I come. g oing to do that? that? Paul: So how are you going







































1. a surr sur r ound-sound ound-so und system; 2. a microwave micr owave oven; 3. an MP3 MP3 player ; 4. a camera; camer a; 5. a sailboat; sailbo at; 6. a dishwasher; 7. a car; car ; 8. a blender blender or o r kitchen machine; 9. a pair pair of runn r unning ing shoes; 10. your dream house or o r apartment. apartment. Describe how to: 1. send an e-mail; e-mail ; 2. change a car tire; 3. tie a necktie; 4. make coffee; cof fee; 5. parallel park a car; 9. 6. use an ATM ATM machine; machi ne; 7. make a pizza; 8. r ecord ecor d a movie or television show; 9. download images from fro m a digital camera; camera; 10. burn a CD. Compare the follo wing: wing: 1. a minivan miniva n and an SUV SUV; 2. a laptop and a desktop desktop computer; com puter; 3. a walking walking shoe sho e and a hiking boot; boo t; 4. a bicycle and a motorcycle; motor cycle;









































10. wine and beer.

*

Australia Australia and New Zealand also use the the dolla r but but have have different different coins. coins.

*

QWERTY QWERTY key board: boa rd: Standard US U S keybo ards have the letters le tters QWERTY QWERTY arranged o n the the top left le ft row of keys, giving giving itit its its name. name.









































CHAPTER

Problems and Advice

Objectives to explain a problem pro blem and to give advice advice to express sympathy sympathy and understanding

Patricia Patrici a is getting getti ng married this summer, summer, and she and her fiancé, fiancé , Matthew Matthe w, will be living livi ng in San Francisco. Patricia’ Patrici a’ss future in-laws in-l aws have welcomed her into their family, yet to Patricia Patrici a they seem quite reserved in comparison to her family in Mexico, who are given to expressing their feelings and opinions loudly and openly. Her English is very good — or or so everyone tells her — and and she has worked hard to lose her Spanish accent, but she wishes the right words would come to her more naturally .









































Phrases

Openers: What’s Wrong? Wrong ? You don’t seem to be your self. Is anything anything wro ng / the the matter? matter? Is there anything anything you’d like to to tell me / talk talk about? What seems to to be wrong wro ng / the the matter matter / the the trouble? tro uble? What’s What’s botheri bothering ng / troubling / eating eating you? What’s What’s wrong wro ng / the matter matter / the pro blem? What’s What’s on your mind? What’s What’s the story stor y with you? Why so glum / down in the the mo mouth uth?? Anyt Anything hing bother bother ing / troubling you? you?

Stating a Problem A popular saying advises that when life hands you a lemon, you should make lemonade. In other words, every problem has a solution, and you should try to make the best of things. Nevertheless, problems pro blems come in a variety of shapes and sizes, sizes, and befor befor e you can arri ar rive ve at a solution, you have have to open up. Native English speakers sometimes ask “What’s your problem?” when they object to what someone is doing, for example, when someone is looking at them or is angry or upset for no









































I’ve been feeling r eally stressed out o ut / under pressure pressure lately. wor k. I’m up to my neck / my ears / my eyeballs in wor this pressure pressur e anymor anymor e. I can’t handle / take / deal with all this I’m feeling overworked / o vertaxed / overwhelm overwhelmed / burned out . The wedding wedding plans are all getting to be too much. things anymor e. I can’t seem to manage / handle / deal with / cope with things

I’m having a bad / hard time with my assignments. This new prog ram is causin causing g me a lot of tro uble uble / nothing no thing but headaches. computer course. co urse. I’m not getting anywhere with my computer I need som somee downtim downt imee / personal perso nal time. time.

Problems with Things The r emote control doesn’t work / won’t work / doesn’ do esn’tt seem t o work.

I can’t figure this answering machine out. I can’t get this switch to work / to do anything. anything. The micro wave wave is on the fritz / kaput / a piece piece of t rash. My laptop’s lapto p’s just bit t he dust.

Money Matters I’m a little little hard up / shor t on finances / short shor t of money mo ney / out of cash at the moment. mom ent.









































My biology biolo gy class is a killer / is killing killing me. The traffic is gett get t ing ing on my my nerves. Getting Getting an extension on my visa is one big hassle. There’s Ther e’s something I need to talk talk about / deal with. with. I need to get som something ething off my chest.

Asking Aski ng for Help or Advice Althoug Although h you may not no t always always want to admit it, sometimes you yo u need to to ask for f or help.

Asking for Confidentiality I hope you’ll keep quiet about this / keep it to yourself. yours elf. Please don’t breathe br eathe / say a word wor d to anyone. anyone. This is just between between you and me.











































Identifying Identifyi ng the Ca Cause use of a Problem Problem Asking About the Cause How long has this this been been going go ing on / happen happening? ing? When / how did this start / happen? happen? What happened / set things off? of f? What’s What’s behind behind / at the bottom of this? this? How did this all come about? What’s What’s the story? stor y? What / who who caused the problem pr oblem / was the cause? Whose fault / r esponsibility esponsibil ity was it?

Blame and Responsibility It’s It’s all because because of a misunderstanding. misunder standing.











































Asking for Sympathy Try to to see / look at things things fro m my side side / end end / point point of view. view. If only onl y you knew knew how I feel. Put yourself in my shoes. Y

have

idea.











































The verbs to suggest and and to recommend recommend require the use of the subjunctive and can be tricky to use. The subjunctive looks like the indicative (simple present) and is recognizable only when you use the ver verb b to be, the third person singular, or the negative.

Example:











































Sounds good go od to me!

Negative Responses That sounds like too much trouble tro uble / hassle. It’s It’s useless / pointless / senseless / no use. Thanks, but I don’t think think that’ that’ss for me. That makes no sense. What good go od would that do? A lot lo t of goo d that does! I’d r ather not. You can’t be serio ser ious! us! Are you kidding kidding / joking? No way!

Offering Advice











































That’s the best idea I’ve heard. hear d.

Negative Responses I know you mean well / your intentio intentions ns are ar e go od, but … That’s That’s easy for you yo u to say. say. That’s That’s easier said than done. If only onl y it were so easy. easy.

Offering Assistance Problem: An elderly customer at the café where Meiko works seems to have lost something.













































/ aware of dangerous dangero us people. people. Be careful / beware beware of o f /

Don’t hitchhike at nig ht, or you might might be sorry so rry.. Hitchhiking Hitchhiking alone alo ne could could get you into into troub tro uble le.. take rides fro m strang strangers ers / strange people. You’d better not take

Just a heads-up: hitchhiking can be dangerous.

Last Resorts If you ask ten people for help with a problem, you will probably get ten different solutions, but there is no guarantee that any of them will work. If you really don’t know what to do, a last resort or extreme extreme measure may be your only option.

Problem: Although Ulla has tried different diets, she still can’t take off the last five pounds she wants































































































































I didn’t mean to bother you. Really? That’s too bad. No problem pro blem / trouble at all.

Reassurances If someone’s been through a rough patch or has even lost a loved one, you can reassure him or her that that everything everything will be all right ri ght or o ffer comfor co mfor t or condolences.

Making Reassurances Ever Ever ything’s ything’s going go ing to be be / to turn turn out all right rig ht.. Everything will will work wor k out, just you wait wait and see.











































You’d ou’ d be best to put it all behind you. You’r e out of the the woods now. now. Just chalk it up to experience. experi ence.

Comfort and Condolences I’m sorry sor ry for your loss. My deepest sympathies sympathies / my condolences. condo lences. My heart go es out to you. My thoughts are ar e with you. I’ll be thinking of you.













































Get over it! Get r eal / a gr ip!

Reluctance and Avoidance Avoidance Depending on the circumstances, it is not always easy or desirable to talk about a problem. Sometimes you may not completely understand where the problem comes from or you may not be











































This pro pro blem has me worr ied / concerned concerned / upset upset.. That really freaks fr eaks me out. I’m very wor wor r ied / concerned / upset upset / uptight uptight.. I’m a bundle of nerves. I’m just sick with worr wor r y / fear.











































I’m feeling blue / out of sor ts / down / down in the the dumps dumps / down down in the mo mouth uth.. Jeanne’s Jeanne’s beside herself hers elf with gr ief. Gabriel’s broken-h bro ken-hearted. earted. I just can’t snap out of it. I feel so bad / so sad I could cry.











































With ice cream? A feel-goo d movie? Some fr esh air? Katie: How? With tell you yo u what. what. Let’s Let’s walk walk over o ver to the video stor e and stop for ice cream cr eam on the way back. back. Jamie: I tell Now, you’r e talking. I feel better better already alr eady.. Katie: Now,

Topics for f or Practice Talk about a recent problem you’ve had:











































CHAPTER













































Phrases





































We have no alternativ alternat ivee / choice cho ice / option opt ion but to wait and save our





































What’s behind your going to the United States?





































On the minus / negative side / downside the rents downtown are more expensive and there’s





































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































Asking for Responses to Questi Que stions ons Who’d like to to answer / take / respond respo nd to the the question? Does anyone have an answer / r esponse? Could I have a response / reply to to the question? Let’s Let’s have som somee feedback feedback on the the last point. Any comments? comm ents?

Participating in a Group Discussion As a participant in a group discussion, each member should: try to make points clearly clear ly and concisely; concisel y; wait his/her turn to speak without without interr upting upting unnecessarily; unnecessaril y; avoid monopoli mono polizing zing the discussion discussio n even if he/she has a lot lo t to say on the the topic; respect other people’s people’s opinions and and their their right r ight to to these these opinions; r espect the r ole ol e of the leader and try not to take take over.

Stating Stat ing a Position Position To state state your position on an issue, refer to “Statin “Stating g an Opinion” in Chapt Chapter er 7.

Referring Re ferring to Other Participants’ Participants’ Points you said

ned







































Introducing an Opposing Argument What you said may be possi possible ble / tr tr ue, but if you loo k at / consider the facts … I understand your position, po sition, but don’t you you think think … I agr ee in principle, but you should should consider consider … Your point po int is well well taken, but … That’s That’s a valid poi point, nt, but … I see your point, but … On the other hand hand …

Making Contradicti Cont radictions ons Your statement / remark remar k clearly clear ly contradicts contr adicts the evidence. I’m afraid afr aid I have to contradict / challenge you on this. this. If you look lo ok at the facts you’ll you’l l see that that the opposite oppo site / the contrar contr ary y is true. Didn’t you know / weren’t you aware aware that the facts pro ve otherwise / the opposite? oppo site? That’s That’s wrong wro ng / false / just not the case. Contrar y to what you said … On the the contrary …

Making Ma king Objections Objections







































Criticizing Criticizing Your Your Opponen Oppo nentt It is clear / obvio us to to us that that you are unable to to see the the differ differ ence between between … I’m afraid you lack a clear clear understanding understanding of the the impor tance tance of … You don’t seem to to gr asp / realize the the full full importa impor tance nce of … How can you possibly propose pro pose / believe believe such an idea! Don’t you think you should be be mor e open-minded? open-mi nded? Don’t be unfair.

Asking for Justification I don’t know / see / under understand stand how you’ve come up with with that. that. On what gr ounds do you make that assumption?







































Responding to a Point or Question If I may, may, I’d I’d like to to answer / respond r espond / reply r eply to to the question question / make a comment. I’d like to address the the point / the the issue by saying saying that … There’s something something I’d I’d like to say say in response. I want to / need to make som something ething clear …

Redirecting a Question What / how about you? And you? Yourself?

Interruptions At some point in the discussion you may want to add a point or ask a question while someone else is speaking. Instead Instead of butting butting in, there ar e phrases that you can use to interr inter r upt pol politely itely and respectfully. On the other hand, there may be occasions when you need to be more direct.

Interrupting Inte rrupting (Participants) (Participants)







































Handling Interruptions (Lead (Leader) er)

Clarification and Explana Expl anations tions Asking for Clarification









































Giving Clarification What I mean / meant to say is we we need to to cut costs to to stay competitive. What I’m trying to say / to to get at is … This is how I see it … I was r eally trying to say … Let me clear this this up / make this perfectly perf ectly clear … It’s It’s as clear as / as plain as day day. Anyone can see that …

Asking for Explanations









































To begin with with this … First of all … For one thing thing / for another another … It’s It’s like li ke this … That is to say … Namely … (See Chapt Chapter er 7 for giving examples.) examples.)

Rephrasing What I mean to to / intended to say is … Let me put it this way way … By this / that I mean … In other words … Another way way to look loo k at it . .

Misunderstandings Asking for Repetiti Repe tition on Would you please repeat r epeat that / say that that again agai n / speak up / slow down? Do you you think think you could repeat that / go over that again? agai n?









































What are ar e you getting at? I think I’m missing something here. That doesn’t seem to make sense. I’m afraid afr aid I don’t understand. That’s That’s beyond beyond me / over my head head / all Greek to to me. I can’t make heads or tails of this. this. I haven’t go t the fog giest gi est / faintest faintest idea. I don’t get / didn’t get that that at all. Can you say / put that in plain English?

Checki Che cking ng for Understanding Understand ing

Confirm C onfirming ing Understanding So, what you’r e saying is this …









































Managi Mana ging ng the Discussion Discussion When the discussion gets going, the leader will want to make sure that participants stay focused and on track and that not everyone talks at once. In the event of a heated discussion, a good leader may have to to calm participants participants down and rest r estor or e order. o rder.

Focusing Focusing on the Main Issue The main main / primar y / r eal problem pro blem / issue / concern is how to raise more money. money. The essence / crux of the the matter matter / most impor impo r tant thing is … It all com comes es down to … The bottom bottom line line is …

Getting Attention









































Asking for Brevity Could you be brief? Could you get to the the point poi nt / spare us the details? How about putting putting that that in fewer fewer words? wor ds? What are ar e you trying to say exactly? What’s What’s your point? poi nt? Cut to the chase.

Defusing a Situat Situation ion We’d bett better er take a breather br eather / a time-out first.











































Could we have some order please? please? Will everyone everyo ne calm down down / settle settle down? Let’s Let’s not all talk talk at once! Quiet down! Silence Silence / or der, please!

In Concl Conclusion usion Whereas an informal discussion can end in a simple summary or conclusion, a more formal discussion at work or in an organization will probably end in an official decision that requires members to make a motion and to vote.

Summarizi Summa rizing ng To summarize / sum up / recap … In brief / short shor t / summary … To make a long stor stor y short shor t … Long story short shor t











































Would anyone like to to make one last comment? comm ent? Are ther theree any last / final words wor ds on the the matter matter?? Now is the the chance to make a final comment. comm ent. This is your last chance. chance. Speak Speak now, now, or forever fo rever hold your peace. peace. Any last comments? comm ents?

Making a Motion I’d like to move / to to make a motion motio n that that we increase incr ease our member ship fees by by 10 10 percent. I mo move ve / r esolve esol ve that … I second the motion. motio n.

Asking for a Vote or Consensus Consen sus Could we we have a show of hands? Who’s in favor / against?











































Dialogue: The Holiday Party Underline Underline or o r highlight highlig ht the the phrases from fr om the the chapter. chapter.

Will: Now that everyone’s here, I’d like to begin by thanking all of you for being on time. As you can see from the agenda, our first topic is this year’s Christmas party. Has anyone got any ideas they’d like to share? Erin: Sure, I’d like to see us do something a little different this year. Why, what’s what’s wr wr ong with go ing to the place we we always go to? Ken: Why, that. It’s It’s the the same r estaurant, same food, fo od, same atmosphere. atmospher e. Erin: Just that. Ken: Far as I know you’re the only one who doesn’t like it. Erin: Don’t get me wr ong I didn’t say I didn’t like it.











































catering, ing, but we’d have money left lef t over. Erin: I’d need an estimate on the cater Tina: Will, I’ve got a question. Tina. Will: Go ahead, Tina. Tina: I don’t know how well games would go over, so I was wondering if you could tell us what you’re suggesting? We don’t necessar ily have to play games. g ames. Maybe Maybe I could come co me up with a contest. Erin: We Ken: Like guess the names of Santa’s reindeer? Deb: C’mon, Ken. You don’t have to be sarcastic. everyo ne. Let’s Let’s remember it’s Chri Christmas stmas we’re talking about. Will: Okay, everyone. Tina: I know! Why don’t we exchange presents? We wouldn’t need to spend more than five to ten dollars. Yeah, and someo ne can dress dr ess up like li ke Santa Santa Claus. Deb: Yeah, Hey, now wait a minute. Don’t Don’t ever ybody lo ok at me! Will: Hey,

Topics for f or Practice With a gro up of fr iends or classmates, classmates, discuss: discuss: 1. the details of a trip you’d yo u’d like to take take on a holiday weekend; 2. how you’d like to to celebr ate som someone’s eone’s birthday, birthday, a wedding, wedding, or o r a special occasion; occasi on;











































CHAPTER

Seriou Seriouss Subjects

Objectives to discuss discuss complaints, demands, mistakes, causes, and consequences to apolog ize and make amends amends













































Phrases

Openers: Common Concerns tr affic congestio co ngestion n in the city. city. I don’t don’t know kno w why why they don’ do n’tt do som so mething about the tr cost of living. l iving. T hey / somebody somebody shoul sho uld d do som so mething about the cost ho melessness. ss. I wish somebody would do something about homelessne The waste waste of energ energy y is intolerable / unacceptable. Gang violence is really getting to be a problem / hassle / pain. built a new bridge. bridg e. It’s It’s about abo ut t ime ime / high hig h tim t imee they built when food prices keep going up for no reason? r eason? Don’t Don’t you just hate hat e it when





















































































Using direct or indirect language can make a difference in situations where you have to negotiate an outcome. Look at some of the ways you can turn direct into indirect language:











































particularly / ter ter ribly ri bly / really / all that that much

Examples: I find the situation somewh somewhat at / rather rat her annoying. co uld make a few changes to the schedule. Perhaps / maybe maybe you could We’d appreciate if you’d be a little more accommodating. I don’t do n’t really care for fo r this this seating seating arrang ar rangement ement..

Saying “No” Nicely A negative answer can be the simplest and perhaps the most honest one, but there are times when it may be necessary necessary to word a r efusal in milder language.

I’d like to join you, but I really have to be somewhere else in a few minutes.











































wor ds that mean the opposite with the the intentio intention n of being witty or funny) Irony (using words

Examples: (after (after thr thr ee days of solid so lid rain) r ain) Don’t you you just love the rain? (about unclear unclear dir ections) ections) These T hese directions are as clear as mud.

Sarcasm (using sharp words that mean the opposite with the intention of mocking, insulting, or wounding) Examples: (to a slow waiter) You really didn’t have to be in such a hurry! (to someone who hasn’t called you in a long time) I was wondering if maybe you’d had your phone disco nnected. nnected. You You never seem to use it.

Tongue-in-cheek (saying something that one doesn’t mean seriously, and indicating so with a













































Isn’t that nice / lovely / just wonderful! wonderf ul! How kind / sweet sweet / considerate consider ate / thoug thoughtful htful / inter interesting! esting! I’ve never been so happy / glad / pleased pleased in all my life. Thank you very ver y much!

Complaints and Demands











































I’ll see what I can do about it. We’ll take care car e of / see to to it r ight ig ht away. away. We’re e’r e here to help you. I’m sure sur e we we can work wor k this this out / get to to the bottom of this.

Showing Understand Understanding ing or Agreement





















































































three-year contract in order to get a free T he terms terms of the contract state st ate that t hat you must sign a three-year cell phone.

Rules and Regulations Parking is not permitt str eet. permitted ed / allowed allowed on this street. Smoking is prohibited / forbidden / banned on airplane air planes. s.











































It gives gi ves me no pleasure at all to tell tell you that that … I wish I had another another way to to break br eak this this to you but … Unfortunat Unfor tunately ely / r egr ettably ettably / apparently … It seems / appear s that … For some reason / some odd reason …













































It turned turne d ut that





































Social-networking has made communication. made / makes a difference t communication.





































50

t

T h CPI might / may have increased incr eased

































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































Perfect Phrases

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