This material is free to re-use, but it would be nice if you mentioned where you got it from if you use it in your classes! :-)
Also, it would be nice to know where you are reading this from, leave a comment, please :-)
MAKING YOUR POINT/
EMPHASIZING THAT SOMETHING IS YOUR OWN OPINION
As far as I am concerned ...
As I see it,
For my part,
From my point of view ...
From where I stand,
I am (totally) convinced that ...
I'd say that ...
I feel that ...
If you ask me, ...
In my opinion, ...
In my view ...
I reckon ...
I suppose ...
It is my belief that ...
My feeling is that ...
Personally, I think that ...
Personally speaking,
The way I see it,
That's my personal opinion.
That's about it, I think.
That's how I see things.
That's basically where I am at on this.
To be honest,
What is even more important perhaps ...
AGREEING
Absolutely.
As a matter of fact, I think you are right about that.
I can't disagree.
I completely/totally agree ...
I'd go along with that.
I'll go along with that.
I quite agree ...
That's a good point.
That's exactly the point.
That's (just) what I think, too.
Yes, I see where you are coming from.
You are absolutely right.
You are right there.
You do have a point there, I must admit.
HALF-AGREEING
I see/ take your point, but ...
I see what you mean, but ...
I agree up to a point, but ...
You have got a point, but ...
I sort of agree.
I know what you mean, but isn't it also true that?
That may be the case, but ...
I see where you are coming from, but ...
There is some truth in that, of course, but ...
There is some truth in that, of course, but I am not sure I agree completely.
DISAGREEING
But that's not always the case.
I am afraid I don't really agree with that/you.
I am not going to agree with that.
I am not so sure about that.
I am not sure I agree with you.
I am not sure I'd agree with that.
I am sure I don't agree with that.
I completely disagree.
I can't see your point at all.
I don't agree at all.
I don't really think you are right.
I think there might be another way of looking at it.
Not necessarily.
No, you are missing the point.
That's not the point.
INTERRUPTING
Can I add something here?
Can I just add ...
I am sorry, but ...
If I could just come in here ...
If I could just come in here ...
If I might add something ...
Is it ok if I jump in for a second?
Sorry to interrupt but ...
Sorry to interrupt but ...
Sorry to stop you, but ...
Would you mind if I jumped in with an idea?
IF SOMEBODY INTERRUPTS YOU TOO MUCH
Actually, I'd just like to finish with ...
Do you mind if I just finish my point?
Sorry, I hadn't quite finished!
Sorry, just to come back to the point I was making ...
ASKING SB'S OPINION
Any ideas?
What are your thoughts on this?
What do you think?
What do you reckon?
Would you care to tell me what you think?
Any ideas?
What are your thoughts on this?
What do you think?
What do you reckon?
Would you care to tell me what you think?
… , don’t you agree?
UNCERTAINTY
I am undecided ...
I am unsure ...
I am ambivalent about ...
I am in two minds about ...
It is not something I have very strong views about,
ASKING FOR CLARIFICATION
You mean ...
Sorry, I don't really see what you are getting at
Sorry, I don't quite follow you
END OF AN ANSWER
… in my view, anyway.
That’s my opinion, anyway.
So, in short …
All in all …
And that’s about it, really.
STARTING/CLOSING A DISCUSSION
We could start by talking about ...
Let's talk about ... first.
I think we need to make a decision.
Shall we try to come to an agreement?
CONTRAST
But on the other hand …
But at the same time ...
Although I must admit that …
Having said that, …
PREDICTIONS about yourself
I guess I’ll …
I reckon I will …
I don’t think I’ll ever …
I don’t imagine I’ll …
SUPPOSING ABOUT OTHERS
They are probably …
They probably + verb
They must + verb
It looks as if they are + ing
I imagine they might + verb
PROPOSING
Let’s go to (this photography exhibition).
Well, why don’t we go to (this photography exhibition).
How does this sound?
Shall we go and see (this photography exhibition).?
How about going to (this photography exhibition).?
I have got an idea. We could go to (this photography exhibition).
Do you fancy going to see (this photography exhibition)?
Would you like to go to (this photography exhibition)?
EXPRESSING OPINIONS/ REACTING
Believe me, …
… seems like the best option to me.
I am really keen on the idea of …
If you ask me, I really think we should …
But just think of the …. !
Personally, I am in favour of … (+ gerund)
I am sure it will be worth it.
Let’s go for it.
Oh, come on!
REACTING in a negative way
I don’t find (modern art) very interesting.
I am not really into (modern art) In fact, I don’t really like(modern art) at all.
To be honest, (modern art) just makes me laugh.
(Modern art) isn’t really my thing.
I am not a big fan of (modern art)
REACTING TO STRANGE INFORMATION
How weird/ strange/ bizarre/ odd!
How spooky!
How awful!
EXCLAMATIONS
What a great/brilliant/fantastic idea!
What an amazing coincidence!
What a terrible experience!
What a pity!
What a waste of time!
What bad luck!
What a shame!
How interesting!
How annoying!
How embarrassing!
How awful!
ALLOWING YOURSELF TIME TO THINK
I need to think for a moment.
That’s an interesting question.
That's a tricky question, really.
Well, it’s difficult to say, really.
That's quite a difficult one.
Let me see ...
It depends …
I guess an honest answer would be …
I suppose the simplest answer to that question is …
If I think about it, I suppose …
On balance, I think …
The best example that comes to mind is ...
I have never given it a lot of thought ...
I must admit I haven't really thought about it much before ...
Well, how can I put it ...
GENERALISING
Broadly speaking ...
To a great extent ...
In general ...
On the whole
TALKING ABOUT MISUNDERSTANDINGS
I was under the impression that …
I thought that … but in fact …
Naturally I assumed that …
It turned out that …
It was so embarrassing.
I was horrified.
I felt awful.
I felt such a fool.
We had a good laugh about it.
COMPARING PHOTOS
The most obvious similarity is that both photos show …
You can see … in both photos.
The … in photo 1 is/are … . Similarly, the … in photo 2 is/are …
The … is the same in both photos.
In the first photo ... but in the second one ...
This picture ... while on the other hand this one ...
In comparison to the first photo, this one ...
The biggest difference between the photos is that photo 1 shows … whereas photo 2 shows …
While photo 1 shows ..., photo 2 on the other hand …
The … is completely different in the two photos.
TALKING ABOUT CONSEQUENCES AND EFFECTS
And as a consequence ...
It has (had) a rather negative effect.
It has had very little impact on ...
It has led to ...
It had resulted in ...
That has been a very positive step.
And you'll find many more here:
http://www.uefap.com/speaking/group/grouplan.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv281.shtml
UNCERTAINTY
I am undecided ...
I am unsure ...
I am ambivalent about ...
I am in two minds about ...
It is not something I have very strong views about,
ASKING FOR CLARIFICATION
You mean ...
Sorry, I don't really see what you are getting at
Sorry, I don't quite follow you
END OF AN ANSWER
… in my view, anyway.
That’s my opinion, anyway.
So, in short …
All in all …
And that’s about it, really.
STARTING/CLOSING A DISCUSSION
We could start by talking about ...
Let's talk about ... first.
I think we need to make a decision.
Shall we try to come to an agreement?
CONTRAST
But on the other hand …
But at the same time ...
Although I must admit that …
Having said that, …
PREDICTIONS about yourself
I guess I’ll …
I reckon I will …
I don’t think I’ll ever …
I don’t imagine I’ll …
SUPPOSING ABOUT OTHERS
They are probably …
They probably + verb
They must + verb
It looks as if they are + ing
I imagine they might + verb
PROPOSING
Let’s go to (this photography exhibition).
Well, why don’t we go to (this photography exhibition).
How does this sound?
Shall we go and see (this photography exhibition).?
How about going to (this photography exhibition).?
I have got an idea. We could go to (this photography exhibition).
Do you fancy going to see (this photography exhibition)?
Would you like to go to (this photography exhibition)?
EXPRESSING OPINIONS/ REACTING
Believe me, …
… seems like the best option to me.
I am really keen on the idea of …
If you ask me, I really think we should …
But just think of the …. !
Personally, I am in favour of … (+ gerund)
I am sure it will be worth it.
Let’s go for it.
Oh, come on!
REACTING in a negative way
I don’t find (modern art) very interesting.
I am not really into (modern art) In fact, I don’t really like(modern art) at all.
To be honest, (modern art) just makes me laugh.
(Modern art) isn’t really my thing.
I am not a big fan of (modern art)
REACTING TO STRANGE INFORMATION
How weird/ strange/ bizarre/ odd!
How spooky!
How awful!
EXCLAMATIONS
What a great/brilliant/fantastic idea!
What an amazing coincidence!
What a terrible experience!
What a pity!
What a waste of time!
What bad luck!
What a shame!
How interesting!
How annoying!
How embarrassing!
How awful!
ALLOWING YOURSELF TIME TO THINK
I need to think for a moment.
That’s an interesting question.
That's a tricky question, really.
Well, it’s difficult to say, really.
That's quite a difficult one.
Let me see ...
It depends …
I guess an honest answer would be …
I suppose the simplest answer to that question is …
If I think about it, I suppose …
On balance, I think …
The best example that comes to mind is ...
I have never given it a lot of thought ...
I must admit I haven't really thought about it much before ...
Well, how can I put it ...
GENERALISING
Broadly speaking ...
To a great extent ...
In general ...
On the whole
TALKING ABOUT MISUNDERSTANDINGS
I was under the impression that …
I thought that … but in fact …
Naturally I assumed that …
It turned out that …
It was so embarrassing.
I was horrified.
I felt awful.
I felt such a fool.
We had a good laugh about it.
COMPARING PHOTOS
The most obvious similarity is that both photos show …
You can see … in both photos.
The … in photo 1 is/are … . Similarly, the … in photo 2 is/are …
The … is the same in both photos.
In the first photo ... but in the second one ...
This picture ... while on the other hand this one ...
In comparison to the first photo, this one ...
The biggest difference between the photos is that photo 1 shows … whereas photo 2 shows …
While photo 1 shows ..., photo 2 on the other hand …
The … is completely different in the two photos.
TALKING ABOUT CONSEQUENCES AND EFFECTS
And as a consequence ...
It has (had) a rather negative effect.
It has had very little impact on ...
It has led to ...
It had resulted in ...
That has been a very positive step.
And you'll find many more here:
http://www.uefap.com/speaking/group/grouplan.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv281.shtml
