SPEAKING , B2-C2 PART 1

SPEAKING , B2-C2

Accepting facts

It's common knowledge that...

It's a fact (that)..

Anyone will tell you..

Everybody knows that...

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...

It has been scientifically proven that..

Advice and Suggestions

I reckon you should stop now

Why don't you stop now?

How about stopping now?

If I were you, I'd stop now.

I suggest you stop now

You'd (really) better stop right now.

I would strongly advise you to stop

My advice would be to stop now

It might be a good idea to stop

You might try stopping

Agreeing With People

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.

You took the words right out of my mouth

Apologizing

Sorry.

I'm (so / very / terribly) sorry.

Ever so sorry.

How stupid / careless / thoughtless of me.

Pardon (me)

That's my fault.

Sorry. It was all my fault.

Please excuse my (ignorance)

Please don't be mad at me.

Please accept our (sincerest) apologies.

Asking about future plans

What are you doing tomorrow?

Got any plans for tomorrow?

What's your plan for tomorrow?

Are you doing anything tomorrow?

What's on the cards for tomorrow?

Busy tomorrow?

Have you got anything on tomorrow?

Have you got anything planned for tomorrow

What's happening tomorrow?

How's tomorrow looking?

Asking for approval

Do you think it's all right to do it?

What do you think about (me doing that)?

Do you think / reckon I ought to (do it)?

What would you say if I (did it)?

Would you approve of (doing something)?

What is your attitude to the idea of...

Are you in favour of (me doing something)?

You are in favour of ... aren't you?

Do you think anyone would mind if I...

Would it be really awful if I...

Asking for help

Can you give me a hand with this?

Could you help me for a second?

Can I ask a favour?

I wonder if you could help me with this?

I could do with some help, please.

I can't manage. Can you help?

Give me a hand with this, will you?

Lend me a hand with this, will you?

Could you spare a moment?

I need some help, please.

Asking people to wait

Hang on a moment / a mo.

Give us a second.

Half a moment / a mo.

I'll be right with you.

Sorry, I'm a bit tied up right now.

Wait and see.

You'll just have to be patient.

Give me a chance.

Don't be so impatient.

We wish to apologise for the delay to..

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...?

Are you aware of.....?

Attitude to the future

I'm (really / so) looking forward to..

I can't wait until...

I'm counting the days till...

Roll on...

I've set my heart on...

I'm saving up to...

Sooner or later I'll get round to...

One day, I'm going to have to...

I'm trying to put off... as long as I can

I'm (really) dreading...

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.

I'll tell you when you're older.

Bad people

A crook

A villain

A scum bag

An evil witch

A heartless bastard

A nasty piece of work

A psycho / psychopath

A totally ruthless (person)

A creep

A two-faced cow

Being An Expert in English

He knows all about photography.

He's a camera expert.

He's an expert on digital cameras.

There's nothing he doesn't know about X

He knows photography inside out.

You wouldn't believe what he knows about X

He's a walking encyclopaedia of X

Photography's his subject.

He knows it from A - Z.

He's an authority on digital cameras.

Being Lucky

t's a good thing (that)..

It's just as well...

Fortunately, / Luckily,

As luck would have it...

That was a stroke of luck.

It's lucky...

It's very/most fortunate (that)...

That was a close thing / near miss

It must be your lucky day!

You lucky thing! / You jammy bastard!

Being old

old and wise

over the hill

past it

pushing ninety

in her nineties

a pensioner / OAP / senior citizen

getting a bit long in the tooth

in my twilight years / second childhood

losing her marbles / going senile

an old codger / an old biddy

Being poor

He's short of cash / hard-up

She's got cash-flow problems

They were destitute

He's on the bread line

She's in debt / overdrawn / bankrupt

He's doing a minimum-wage job

Low-income families

She's on the dole

Below the poverty line

Those less fortunate than ourselves

Being relieved

Phew!

Thank God (for that)!

What a relief!

I'm so relieved to hear that.

You had me worried (there / for a moment).

That's a weight off my mind.

You've no idea what a relief it is to hear

That's one less thing to worry about.

What a stroke of luck!

(Oh well.) All's well that ends well!

Being rich

A wealthy person

A comfortably-off person

High-earning / Top-earning executives

She's well-off / well-heeled

I'm not short of a bob or two

He's rolling in it

They're filthy rich

They're a bit nouveau-riche

A millionaire friend of mine...

Fat cats

Being sure / certain

I'm quite sure...

I'm absolutely positive...

I'm fairly / quite certain...

It must be right.

I know...

It's definitely...

You can be sure...

I've no doubt at all that...

I'm a hundred percent certain that...

I'm (utterly) convinced...

Being worried

I'm (so) worried about..

I'm afraid...

I can't help thinking...

I can't stop thinking about it.

I've been worried sick about...

It's been keeping me awake at night.

I'm scared stiff / to death that...

I'm really nervous.

I've got butterflies in my stomach.

I'm absolutely dreading..

Boring!

How boring / tedious / dull !

What a bore!

It bores me to tears.

It leaves me cold.

It does nothing for me.

It's as dull as ditch-water.

I can't see what all the fuss is about.

It's as interesting as watching paint dry

I'm afraid I don't share your enthusiasm..

I can't say that I find it interesting.

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...

Cheering People Up

Cheer up! / Chin up!

Smile!

It's not the end of the world.

Worse things happen at sea.

Look on the bright side........

Every cloud (has a silver lining).

Practice makes perfect.

There are plenty more fish in the sea.

Lighten up!

There's no use crying over spilt milk.

Complaining about hypocrisy

Look who's talking!

You can talk!

That's rich, coming from you!

That's the pot calling the kettle black.

I seem to remember, not so long ago...

Yeah, and you're so much better

And you're so squeaky clean.

Take a look in the mirror sometime.

People in glass houses...

Says Mr. Perfect.

SPEAKING, B2- C2 PART 2

SPEAKING, B2- C2          PART 2

Criticising mistakes

That wasn't very clever.

What were you thinking of?

I bet you wish you hadn't done that.

Why on Earth did you go and do that?

You made a right mess of that.

I wouldn't do that again (in a hurry)

Oops

What a total disaster

You put your foot in it (there)

That was a bit uncalled for.

Delaying Answering

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...

Disagreeing with a prediction

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!

Disappointment

What a pity / shame!

How disappointing!

That's too bad.

What a bummer!

What a let-down!

That's (just) so disappointing!

I was so looking forward to..

We had high hopes for...

It did not live up to expectation.

What we had been led to expect was..

Disapproving of an action

I don't think much of that.

How appalling / dreadful!

I'm utterly appalled / disgusted.

I'm dead against people doing...

It shouldn't be allowed!

What a rotten / mean thing to do

I take a very dim view of people doing.

Who do they think they are?

How can people do things like that?

Whatever next?

Dislikes – advanced

I'm not too keen on English food.

I'm not a big a fan of English food.

I can't work up any enthusiasm for it.

I'm not particularly fond of English food.

I can't stand it / I really hate it.

English food: I can take it or leave it.

English food leaves me cold.

I can't see what all the fuss is about.

I'm afraid it doesn't appeal to me.

I would rather cut off my right arm than..

Encouraging

You're coming along well

Keep up the good work

That's a good effort

That's a real improvement

You're on the right lines

Keep going

Come on, you can do

Give it your best shot

What have you got to lose?

If at first you don't succeed...

Euphemisms

He's light-fingered

She's been doing time

She passed away / kicked the bucket

No longer with us / pushing up daisies

Public conveniences

I'm just going to powder my nose

Down and out / A down-and-out

She's in the family way

She had a baby

He made an honest woman of her

Excuses for being late

Sorry - I didn't hear the alarm clock.

The alarm didn't go off.

I slept right through the alarm.

I had to wait ages for a bus.

The bus was late.

The traffic was terrible.

I couldn't find a parking space.

The roads were chockablock.

I got lost coming here.

It's not an easy place to find.

Expressions With 'One'

One of these days...

That's one way of putting it.

It's one thing to say it...

One by one...

I'm not one to complain, but...

He's got a one-track mind.

A one-off payment

A one-hit wonder

The one and only (David Beckham)!

He's a right one!

Expressions with repeated words

Tut tut

Now now

Knock knock

Chop chop

Hear hear

Aye aye

There there

So-so

Fifty-fifty

Well well

Facial expressions

She had a broad smile on her face.

He was wearing a frown.

She gave a grimace. She winced.

She gave me a dirty look

He looked down his nose at her.

She raised her eyebrows when she saw me.

The children were beaming from ear to ear.

Why the long face?

He was purple with rage.

If looks could kill..

Forgetting things

(I'm afraid) I can't remember.

I've completely forgotten.

My mind's gone blank

(Sorry) I have no memory of...

(I'm afraid) it doesn't ring a bell.

I have no recollection of...

Sorry, I forgot.

I simply forgot to do it.

What was I thinking of?

Oh no, it completely slipped my mind.

Generalizing

Ninety percent of the time...

Nine times out of ten...

More often than not...

Usually...

As a rule (of thumb)...

What normally happens is...

In general...

Generally speaking...

On the whole...

By and large...

Get - short phrases

Get ready

Get out / get out of here

Get lost

Get going

Get a move on / Get moving

Get a life

Get well soon

Get real

Get out of my / the way

Get stuffed

Giving a choice

You choose.

It's up to you.

(You can) do what / as you like.

Do as you please.

The choice is yours.

Make up your own mind.

It's fine by me if you want to...

It's no skin off my nose.

It's your decision.

Don't mind me.

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.

Graphs - Rise and fall

A sharp increase

A steep drop

A massive reduction

A gradual rise

A slight decline

A peak

A slow-down

A spike

A steady recovery

Fluctuations

Habits

I spend a lot of time...

I (often) tend to...

You'll always find me...

___ is a big part of my life.

I always make a point of...

Whenever I get the chance, I...

I have a habit of..

I can't (seem to) stop...

I'm always...

I can't help...

Improbability

I don't expect they'll win.

It's (quite) unlikely they'll win.

They are not very likely to win.

I shouldn't think they'll win.

There's not much hope / chance.

I'd be (very) surprised if they won.

I wouldn't bet on them winning.

There's no chance of them winning.

There's little likelihood of them winning.

It'll never happen in a month of Sundays.

Kinds of Shops

Greengrocer's

Butcher's

Baker's

Chemist's

Stationer's / Stationery shop

Ironmonger's / Hardware shop

Florist's

Newsagent's

Off Licence

Corner shop

Likes – advanced

I'm a big fan of Indian food.

I'm (absolutely) crazy about it.

I'm quite partial to spicy things.

I'm really into it (in a big way).

You can't beat a good (Indian meal).

Give me Thai food any day.

I'm particularly fond of hot curries.

There's nothing I like more than...

Thai food is what I live for.

What I wouldn't give for a Thai curry!

Making small talk

You must be Susan's husband.

How's your wife / friend?

Nice weather, isn't it?

What's new?

I haven't seen you for ages.

What have you been up to?

Are you still working for the same firm?

Have you heard from Jenny recently?

What a coincidence!

Fancy meeting you here!

Making suggestions

Why don't we go to the cinema?

Let's go to the cinema. What do you think?

How about going to the cinema?

How do you feel about seeing a film?

Fancy seeing a film?

I'd like to see a film. How about you?

We could always see a film.

Why not go and see a film?

Seeing a film's one idea.

It would be nice to see a film.

Noises With Adjectives

A deafening roar

A high-pitched scream

A terrible din

A piercing shriek

A fading echo

A muffled reply

A booming voice

A creaking door

A low murmur

A bloody racket