Today I've got some key expressions to make you sound fluent in English. What we are looking
at are those moments when you introduce yourself, when you want to show surprise or agreement
and and at those times when you're interacting with other people.Now if you've ever learnt
a foreign language you'll know that It's the small reflex words that are sometimes the
most difficult even for advanced speakers. And it can make the difference between sounding
like a robot who has learnt English from a book and a native English speaker. So use
these phrases in order to speak fluent British English right now. And if you want to know
more then stay tuned!
Hello and welcome to LetThemTalk the channel that goes deeper into everything about the
English language. So the story is that some that some time ago I got this call from a
guy who was some kind of businessman and he wanted to come to our language school in Paris
for some intensive private English lessons in order prepare himself for a business trip
to London. However he was a complete beginner and he said to me "Can you teach me English
in one week?" No, I can't ... But I thought maybe I could do something. I could teach
him some expressions, some small talk, some key phrases. Anyway the whole process got
me thinking. What would you teach someone who only had one week to learn English? What
about one day? What about one hour? What about 10 minutes? This idea captured my imagination
and this video is the result. So the challenge is to sound like a native speaker (of British
English) right now with just a few key phrases and expressions. Of course, teaching someone
to give a lecture on quantum physics will take more time But a few good phrases can
make a big difference. Now, I've chosen phrases which are useful for if you have a low level
of English or if you are advanced because I've divided it into six categories and in
each category there will be something for everybody some common phrases and some more
formal terms or some slang expressions. And we've also got a bonus tip for you at the
end so stay tuned for that.
Ok let's get straight into it with some greetings
HI, HELLO (I hope you know those words) If you want to be more formal say NICE TO
MEET YOU - the reply is NICE TO MEET YOU TOO If you want to be a bit more informal you
could say HOW ARE YOU DOING?.... (notice the use of
the weak forms here) HOW-ER-YE-DOING? The reply is I'M DOING FINE
HOW'S IT GOING the response is: IT'S GOING FINE
Now how about something much more informal? I'm from London and you might say if you are
in London ALRIGHT.
ALRIGHT. - is a shortened form of "Are you all right?" We just use the words "All right"
and even that is shortened to ALRIGHT
And notice the glottal stop at the end which means you don't finish pronouncing the T instead
you make the sound from your throat.
So you say ALRIGHT and the reply is the same ALRIGHT
Now secondly, when somebody is speaking to you you need to show agreement or at least
acknowledge that you are listening.
Firstly you could use REALLY
"Star Wars was so boring that I fell asleep." "Really "
You can also use RIGHT
"They didn't have any doughnuts so I bought a blueberry muffin. "
"Right,
"I'm thinking of getting a haircut this afternoon." "Right."
If you want to be more formal use I SEE
"I can't come to the meeting because I missed the train. "
"I see"
You could also use IS THAT SO? "I've been living in this same apartment for
10 years and I still don't know the neighbours. "
"Is that so?"
"My father is 68 years old" "is that so?"
Next you are going to need an expression that expresses surprise
And for that you could use NO WAY.
For example: "You know that painting I bought for £9.99
at the flea market that everybody said was a fake I just sold it for 100 million pounds.
" "No way"
"When the car broke down they made us ride a donkey into town. "
"No way, "
You could also use YOU'RE KIDDING "I've been married 12 times. "
"You're kidding. " "She threw me out the house when she found
out I was a Sagittarius. "You're kidding"
You could also use YOU'RE JOKING "You know I'm wanted by the Scotland Yard?"
"You're joking. "
To say that you're leaving use one of the following expressions:
I'M OFF
"I'm off". "I'm late I'm off".
or you could say I'M HEADING OFF. "I'm heading off now", "I've got to meet someone
I'm heading off" I'VE GOT TO GO listen to the pronunciation
I'VE GOTTA GO!
"The meeting starts soon I've got to go" or I'M GOING NOW
"I've got to catch my train I'm going now"
Next you want to show gratitude and of course you could say THANK YOU or THANKS
If you want to be more informal in British English just say CHEERS
"Here's your matcha latte" "Cheers"
"You can share my umbrella" "Cheers"
You can also say TA
"Here is an insignificant piece of paper."
"Ta. "
To say goodbye say GOODBYE, TA-RA, CHEERIO. You could say FAREWELL
Actually not many people say FAREWELL these days it's a bit old fashioned but it's not
incorrect and sometimes it's nice to be playful with the language and be a bit different so
by all means, you could say that FAREWELL. If you want to sound like you are from the
19th century you could say FARE THEE WELL.. I'm now joined
by my assistant this is Google Mini Home.
Hey google goodbye.
bla-bla-bla - right - bla bla bla - right - bla bla bla - right -
bla-bla-bla - no way! - bla bla bla - no way! - bla bla bla - no way! -
What do you think?
I'm off, cheers, bye
Ok here's that bonus tip I promised you. If you want to ask someone if they will do something
with you just use the word FANCY followed + a noun or a verb + ing for example.
"Fancy a coffee?" what that means is "Do you fancy a coffee?" but usually most native English
speakers will leave out the "Do you" and just use the word "fancy". "Fancy getting some sushi?
"Fancy, going to the cinema?".
"Fancy a weekend in Kuala Lumpur?".
Well, there you are I hope you found that useful I'm sure I've forgotten something but
if you know of any key phrases and expressions that I have forgotten that's ok you can leave
them in the comments. Stay mellow and I'll see you next time