EXPRESSIONS FOR CONVERSATION AND PERSONAL COMMENT

(1) When you start saying something contributing to a conversation,

making a contribution

First of all, I would like to say/state that.............
To begin with, I...................
In the first line, I.............

(2) What can you say instead of "I think" (don't sink, please)

I would say/think
In my opinion
To my mind
I am of the opinion that
I hold the opinion that

(3) When you want to stress your "personal opinion":

Personally I think
As far as I am concerned
As for me
As I take it
As far as I can see

(4) When you "agree" or when you "don't agree":

I entirely/quite agree with you.
I agree to (with) her plan.
I am of the same opinion.
I differ from/with you entirely.
I disagree with you: I am sure you're mistaken.
I stick to my opinion.
Let's agree to differ!

(5) When you want to say the "opposite" of what someone else said:

on the contrary! quite the contrary! just the opposite!
That is the very opposite of what I said.
That is quite the contrary to what I said.
I maintain the contrary.
In contrast to what you said, I maintain that...........

(6) When you are "quite sure" of something:

of course!
That goes without saying (It goes without saying that......)
I contend/maintain that................
It's my conviction that..................

(7) When you want to "ask a question":

May I interrupt you?
There arises the question/point whether/if......
This question raises the whole issue

(8) When you "haven't understood":

I beg your pardon. / Pardon?
Could you repeat what you've just said? But slower, please./
Could you slow down a bit?

(9) If you should want to "correct a mistake":

Excuse me (for interrupting) you should have said:"....."

(10)When you want to "distinguish" (make a distinction between)

two aspects of a question, when you want to distinguish one
aspect from the other:
on the one hand on the other hand
in general in particular
generally speaking
on the whole
taken as a whole
at first sight on second thoughts

(11)When you want to "add" something:

In addition,.........................
Moreover,....................
Furthermore,........................
Finally,...........................

(12)When you want to "emphasize" something:

I would like to lay (put) emphasis (stress) on the fact
that..
I just want to point out that................
(13)When you want to "say the truth":
To be frank (with you),...................
Frankly (speaking),.........................
To say the truth,........................

(14)And if you are "not sure":

I don't know exactly.
I don't know for certain.

(A) General phrases:
in other words in this respect
to a certain degree/extent It depends on your point
of
in brief/short.......... view
To be brief,..................
To cut a long story short,...... Let me put it this
way:....
I don't know. - I don't know either. Nor/Neither do I.


REMEMBER THAT THE SPEAKING WILL BE ASSESSED IN
ACCORDANCE WITH: FLUENCY, GENERAL PRONOUNCIATION,
VARIETY OF GRAMMAR STRUCTURES, VARIETY OF VOCABULARY,
COHERENCE AND RELEVANCE, COMPLETION OF THE TASK (THAT
MEANS ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS ASKED).


Topics for Debate
Here are 20 topics to discuss with a friend or group. Practise agreeing and
disagreeing even if you have to argue against something you actually believe in. One
way to have fun with this is to make up a bunch of cards that say agree or disagree.
Each person has to pick up a card and then the topic is read out. It is more fun to
have a debate this way because you don't have to play your true self. Try to continue
each discussion for at least five minutes. Use the expressions that you learned,
including agreeing, disagreeing, asking for opinions, interrupting, etc.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.
Swimming in the ocean is better than swimming in a public pool.
Alcohol should be illegal.
Children should provide room and board for their aging parents.
Studying grammar is more important than practising conversation skills.
Television is the leading cause of violence in today's society.
Dogs make better companions than cats.
Smoking should be permitted in public places.
Females are better students than males.
A parent shouldn't pierce a baby's ears.
Women should be allowed to go topless in public.
Lawyers should make a higher salary than nurses.
Everyone should plan their own funeral.
Reading English is more difficult than writing English.
Summer is the best season of the year.
Children under 13 should not be allowed to babysit.
High school students should wear uniforms.
21 should be the legal driving age around the world.
Rock and Roll is the best kind of music.
The government should pay for post secondary education.


Expressions for Agreeing and Disagreeing
Stating an opinion
In my opinion...
The way I see it...
If you want my honest opinion....
According to Lisa...
As far as I'm concerned...
If you ask me...
Asking for an
opinon
What's your idea?
What are your thoughts on all of this?
How do you feel about that?
Do you have anything to say about this?
What do you think?
Do you agree?
Wouldn't you say?
Expressing
agreement
I agree with you 100 percent.
I couldn't agree with you more.
That's so true.
That's for sure.
(slang) Tell me about it!
You're absolutely right.
Absolutely.
That's exactly how I feel.
Exactly.
I'm afraid I agree with James.
I have to side with Dad on this one.
No doubt about it.
(agree with negative statement) Me neither.
(weak) I suppose so./I guess so.
You have a point there.
I was just going to say that.
Expressing
disagreement
I don't think so.
(strong) No way.
I'm afraid I disagree.
(strong) I totally disagree.
I beg to differ.
(strong) I'd say the exact opposite.
Not necessarily.
That's not always true.
That's not always the case.
No, I'm not so sure about that.
Interruptions
Can I add something here?
Is it okay if I jump in for a second?
If I might add something...
Can I throw my two cents in?
Sorry to interrupt, but...
(after accidentally interrupting someone) Sorry, go
ahead. OR Sorry, you were saying...
(after being interrupted) You didn't let me finish.
Settling an
argument
Let's just move on, shall we?
Let's drop it.
I think we're going to have to agree to disagree.
(sarcastic) Whatever you say./If you say so.