MOVING AROUND THE

ASKING FOR THINGS:

CLASSROOM:
From a friend:
-Excuse me/Can I get by? (if someone is -Hey, you got an eraser?
blocking your path)
-Yeah, here you go.
-Yep. / Yeah, sorry.
-No (sorry).

-Sorry. (if you walk close to someone or make

-Can you pass me a pencil?
contact)
-Here you go.
-You're good.
-No worries. -I don't have one.
-Hey! Watch it!
From a classmate you don't know:
-(Are) You okay? (if you make accidental -Do you have an eraser I could
contact with someone) borrow?
-Yeah, here you go.
-No, sorry.
RUDE (IMPOLITE):

-Move! From a teacher or authority figure:

-Give me a pencil. -Could I borrow an eraser?
-Can I borrow a pencil?
The ‘imperative’* for instructions: More examples of giving instructions to
people:
(you) → Go! -To move things (friends):
(we) → Let's go!
-Hey, could you move that (desk, chair, pencil,
(y'all) → Go! etc)?
-Yeah, sure. / Of course. / Yeah.
Examples:
-Go away! -To move things (strangers/ older people):
-Ask the teacher if he has a pencil.
-Would you mind moving that (desk, chair, pencil,
-Move your head!
etc)?
-Yeah, sure. / Of course. / Yeah.
*Tone of voice is important because they can be seen as rude
if used alone and with emphasis. ‘Please’ is the magic word, -To get people to help you (friends):
and makes any imperative phrase sound more polite.
-Can you help me (with)…?
Note: Adding modals is an option if you are -Yeah, sure. / Of course. / Yeah.
afraid of sounding rude:
-To get people to help you (strangers/ older
people):
Examples: -(Would/do) You mind helping me (with)…?
-Could you please go away? -Yeah, sure. / Of course. / Yeah.
-Would you mind asking the teacher if he has a
pencil? -To get your group to focus / work together:
-Do you mind moving your head? -Let's get to work, guys.
-Hey can you help us with ____ ?
-We can watch that TikTok video after we finish
the activity.
How to apologize (respectfully):
1. Initial apology
2. Accept responsibility/place blame
3. Give explanation
4. Promise action
Examples:
1. Initial apology:
- I’m really/so sorry for (verb -ing / that / my -Apologies for the way I treated that customer. That
behavior, etc).
was my bad. It's just that I hate it when customers
- Apologies for (verb -ing/ that / my behavior, etc).
scream. It won't happen again.

2. Accept responsibility:
-Hi Teacher, I’m really sorry for being late. It’s my
-That’s my bad / It's my fault.
fault. I was having lunch with my friends and I lost
-I accept responsibility (for what happened).
track of time. It won’t happen again.
3. Introduce explanation or excuse:
-(excuse: There was a lot of traffic, I woke up late, -Hi Teacher, would it be ok if I left early today? I’ll
etc.) only miss the last 20 minutes of class. The thing is, I
-You see,... have a dentist’s appointment at 3 o’clock. It’s the only
-It’s just that… appointment time they had. I’ll get the notes from
- What had happened was… María before next class and check the Moodle course
for the homework.
4. Promise future corrective action:
-It won’t happen again.
-I’ll try harder to (verb in base) …. next time.
-I promise I’ll/I won’t…
Adapted from https://freeenglishlessonplans.com/tag/functional-language
GREETINGS:
-Hey!

-How (are) you doing?

-(Good) Mornin'/ Afternoon!
-I'm good, thanks!
-Good morning
-Doing alright, you?
-Mornin'!
-I'm good, how're you doing?
-Afternoon! -Alright, how're you doing?

-How's it going?
-Hey, good. How are you?
-Good, you?
NOT A GREETING:
-What's up? -Good night!
-Hey, what's up? -What are you doing?

You want to know if a seat is free: -Is this seat taken?

-Do you mind if I sit here?
Your teacher asks if you can see the board:
-Response: Yes, I can. / No, I can't.
It's cold in the classroom:
-Could you turn up the AC, please?
You want to hear the audio/video again:
-Could you play the audio again, please?
-Can you show the video again, please?
You don't know what a word means:
-What does this word mean?
-What does _____ mean?
The classroom is dark:
-Can we turn on the lights, please?
You don't know how to spell a word:
-How do you spell ___?
You're late for class:
-Sorry, I'm late. [There was lots of traffic / The bus was
late. / My brother stole my keys.]
You want to go to the restroom:
-I'll be right back. I'm gonna use the restroom real quick.
-Can I go to the restroom, please?
The teacher asks you if you have finished
your work, but you need more time:
-Sorry, I/we need more time.
-Can we get some more time?
You don't know which page in the book to turn
to:
-What page are we on?
The teacher asks you for your homework, but
you haven't done it:
-Sorry, I forgot to do it.
-I don't have it.
-I didn't do it.
You don’t understand/missed something the
teacher has said:
-Sorry, I didn't understand that. Can you repeat that?
-Can you explain that again, please?
-Sorry, I missed that. Can you say that again?
You want to know when to hand the homework
in:
-When is the homework due?
 Useful questions for the classroom
(flip me over)

-Have a good one!

Farewells – not only -Thanks, you too!

‘bye’ and ‘see you’! -Have a good night!

-Thanks, you too!
-Have a good weekend! At a party or social gathering
-Thanks, you too!
(preparing to leave):
-Have a good rest of your day!
-Thanks, you too! -I should get going.
-I’m gonna head out. (“I’ma head out”)
-See you tomorrow! -I think it’s time for me to call it a night.
-See you! -It’s getting past my bedtime!

-See you around! Bonus phrases:

-See you!
-Take care!
-Drive safe!
-Text me when you make it home!

On the phone:
Not a (common) farewell:
-Alright, talk later. Bye bye.
-I gotta [finish cooking, go to the store,
-Good night!
etc]. I’ll talk to you/call you later.
Instead of “you’re welcome.” You can say….

-No problem / No worries

-Of course! (be sure to pronounce this one correctly!)
 -Sure thing! / Sure! / Yep!
-Thank YOU!

In Customer Service:
-My pleasure

Instead of saying ‘I’m good’ or ‘Fine’ when asked ‘How are you?’ You
can say….

-Not bad! (=good)

-Livin’ the life!
-I’m alright!
-I’m great!
-Not great. (=bad)
-*sigh* Eh…
-(any adjective: tired, excited, hungry, etc.)