PNJA DISCOURSE MARKERS P.
MORMOL
ACCEPTED FACTS
 It's common knowledge that...
 Anyone will tell you..
 It's a well-established fact that
 Few people would deny that..
 It's no secret that…
 I think we can all accept / agree that..
 It is generally assumed that...
DELAYING ANSWERING
 It has been scientifically proven that…
AGREEING WITH SB
 I'm with you on that one.
 I couldn't agree more.
 Yes, absolutely.
 I'd go along with that.
 You've got a point there.
 Hear, hear !
 I think so too.
 I couldn't have put it better myself.
 Great minds think alike.
DISAGREEING WITH A PREDICTION
 You took the words right out of my mouth.
ASKING SOMEBODY’S OPINION
 What do you think of...?
 What do you think about...?
 How d'you feel (about...)?
 What d'you reckon (about...)?
 What's your opinion of...?
 (What do think about) that?
 What are your views on...?
 Where do you stand (on...)?
 What would you say to... / if we...?
DISAGREEING WITH PEOPLE
 Are you aware of.....?
AVOIDING GIVING INFORMATION
 No comment.
 I'm not at liberty to say.
 Wait and see.
 Let me get back to you.
 I'm sorry, that's confidential.
 (Sorry) That's personal.
 I'd rather not talk about it.
 Mind your own business.
 Never you mind.
GENERALIZING
 I'll tell you when you're older.
CHANGING YOUR MIND
 (Actually,) I've changed my mind.
 On second thoughts...
 Come to think of it...
 I've had a change of heart.
 Hang on a minute / a second.
 I've had a bit of a rethink.
 Did I really say that?
 What was I thinking?
 On reflection...
 After further consideration...
 Well, you see...
 Now, let me see.
 Just a moment / Just a second
 Hang on a moment / second / mo / sec
 How shall I put it?
 What's the word for it..
 Now, let me think...
 Let me get this right...
 It's on the tip of my tongue..
 (Now) that's an interesting question...
 As if!
 In your dreams!
 You wish!
 No chance!
 Not a chance!
 Not likely!
 Dream on!
 Never in a million years!
 You'll be lucky!
 Yes, and pigs might fly!
 I'm not sure about that!
 You could be right, but...
 (I'm afraid) I don't agree.
 I agree up to a point, but..
 That's an interesting idea, but..
 Do you really think..?
 Rubbish! / Nonsense!
 You can't be serious!
 Actually, as a matter of fact. I think..
 That's not how I see it.
 Ninety percent of the time...
 Nine times out of ten...
 More often than not...
 Usually...
 As a rule (of thumb)...
 PNJA DISCOURSE MARKERS P. MORMOL
 What normally happens is...
 In general...
 Generally speaking...
 On the whole...
 By and large...
GIVING AN OPINION
 I reckon...
 I'd say...
 Personally, I think...
 What I reckon is...
 If you ask me...
 The way I see it...
 As far as I'm concerned...
 If you don't mind me saying...
 I'm utterly convinced that...
 In my humble opinion...
GIVING YOUR OPINION
 In my opinion, this one would be better.
 To my mind this one's better.
 If you ask me, this one's better.
 To my way of thinking, this one's fine.
 In my view, this one is best.
 Know what I think? That one's best.
 I'd say that one's better.
 What I think is that one's better.
 For me, that one's better.
 I tell you what I think, that one's best.
NOT GIVING YOUR OPINION
 I couldn't say.
 I've never given it much thought.
 I don't have any feelings either way.
 Your guess is as good as mine.
 I (really) don't know what to say.
 I really can't say.
 You're asking the wrong person.
 It doesn't affect me (either way).
 It doesn't make any difference to me.
 That's an interesting question.
PARAPHRASING
 Basically,
 In a nutshell,
 To paraphrase,
 To put it another way,
 What it all boils down to is...
 To sum up (then)...
 In other words,
 What this means is (that)...
 Put it this way.
 Look at it this way.
QUOTING AND DISBELIEVING
 (The UK Government) claims that...
 (The UK Government) alleges that...
 They are trying to convince us that...
 They are asserting that...
 According to (the government)...
 If (the government) is to be believed...
 If they are to be believed...
 Supposedly...
 Apparently...
 The so-called (success of the project)...
SAYING SOMETHING IS TRUE
 I'm sure…
 I'm absolutely positive...
 I'm a hundred percent certain..
 I'm utterly convinced..
 I can assure you that...
 I couldn't be more sure of...
 I'd stake my life on it.
 It's a known fact that..
 Everybody knows that...
 I can state categorically that...
SAYING YOU DON’T BELIEVE
 You're having me on.
 You're pulling my leg.
 That's a bit of an exaggeration.
 That's an outright lie.
 That's a pack of lies.
 That's a fishy story.
 What you're saying is libelous.
 A half-truth
 That's a fib
 That's stretching the truth a bit
SPECULATING
 No doubt the Joneses will be there
 It's unlikely that she'll come now
 I bet / you can bet (that) they'll be late
 I imagine (that) it'll be busy
 The chances are that he'll win
 There's no chance of them coming now
 In all probability, it will be raining
 My guess is that she'll lose
 PNJA DISCOURSE MARKERS P. MORMOL
 There's just a chance that it will work  Around about 6 o'clock
 I wouldn't be surprised if it rained
TALKING ABOUT GOOD IDEAS
SAYING SOMEBODY IS CORRECT
 That's a great idea.
 Yes, that's right.  That's an idea.
 You're quite right.  Good idea!
 Yes, that's correct.  What a great idea!
 That's spot on.  I think that's a fantastic idea.
 You're dead right (there).  I like that idea.
 Absolutely.  I like the idea of that.
 You've hit the nail on the head.  That's not a bad idea.
 You could say so.  You know what? That's a good idea.
 I'm afraid so.  Cool!
 (I'm) sorry to say so.

SAYING SOMEONE IS WRONG

 I'm afraid that's not quite right.

 Actually, I think you'll find that...
 I'm afraid you're mistaken.
 I don't think you're right about...
 Actually, I don't think...
 No, you've got it wrong.
 No, that's all wrong.
 Rubbish! / You're talking rubbish.
 Where did you hear that?
 If you check your facts, you'll find...

ASKING FOR INFORMATION

 Can you tell me...?

 Could you tell me...?
 I'd like to know...
 Do you know...
 (Got / Have you) any idea...?
 Could anyone tell me...?
 (Do / Would) you happen to know...?
 I don't suppose you (would) know...?
 I wonder if you could tell me...?
 I wonder if someone could tell me...?

HAVE A GUESS

 Off the top of my head, I think she's 26.

 Knowing (the English), he likes football.
 If I had to take a guess, I'd say she's 26
 I'd say she's 26.
 Chances are she's 26.
 At a guess, I'd say she's 26.
 Probably about 26.
 We're talking maybe late twenties.
 About 6-ish