USEFUL EXPRESSIONS
Need time to think about the question
Let me see…
I haven’t thought about this question before.
I’ve never really thought about that before.
Now, let me think how I can put this.
I’ve never thought about it, but I could say that…
Asking for repetition
Sorry, would you mind repeating the question?
Sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.
Could you repeat the question?
Asking for clarification
Could you please explain what …(word)… means?
Sorry, I don’t understand the question. Could you explain?
Sorry, I’m afraid I didn’t understand the question.
Sorry, can I just clarify what you mean. Are you asking me …(say what you believe you have been
asked)…
Saying something in another way
What I’m trying to say is…
In other words…
To put it another way…
What I mean is…
Perhaps I should make that clearer by saying…
Agreeing with an opinion That’s my view exactly.
I would tend to agree with that.
I couldn’t agree more.
Disagreeing with an opinion
I see things rather differently myself.
I wouldn’t say that is necessarily true.
I tend to disagree.
I’m not so sure about that.
Saying your opinion could vary according to the situation
That depends…
I think it really depends…
That depends on how you look at it.
Giving examples
For instance, ….
To illustrate my point, I would like to tell you about…
One example of …. could be….
Let us take the case of ….
There are many advantages of …., such as….