You're learning with 925 English
Business English for the workplace
hi Tim here with another 925 English
lesson. In today's lesson we're going to
learn how to talk about things you don't like
I'm a pretty positive person but
there are lots of things I just don't like:
getting stuck in traffic,
bad customer service, long meetings.
I really don't like long meetings. And you're
probably the same way. There are things
you just don't like and things you hate.
So how do we talk about these things?
How do we say we don't really like
something?
Well you can say exactly that: I don't
like getting stuck in traffic, for
example. To say you dislike something you
can just change a positive sentence into
a negative one. In the same way you can
say you're not all that fond of
something because being fond of
something means liking it. There are even
more ways to talk about dislikes.
You can say that something isn't really your
thing that's a useful expression if
you're talking about a preference so if
you're having the conversation about
where to go for lunch
you might say Greek food isn't really my
thing
you could also say i don't care for
greek food that's not really about
taking care of something rather to not
care for just means to not like
now how about practicing some of these
ideas
we're going to present some examples
after you hear each example try
repeating it yourself ready let's give
it a go
I don't really like living in a small
town
I'm not all that fond of long meetings
sales isn't really my thing
I don't care for the new TV ads
so those expressions are useful for
talking about basic dislikes and we
often use them when we're being polite
or trying not to make someone feel bad i
mean sometimes we don't want to sound
too negative right but then again
sometimes we really don't like something
and we want people to know it if someone
suggest something that you just can't
accept or if you need to really make it
clear how you feel
you might need a stronger expression in
this case you might say you really hate
something
hate is certainly a strong word
in fact you should be a bit careful with
it
nobody minds if you say you hate getting
stuck in traffic but if you say you hate
someone's idea they might get upset
in that case it's best to use a softer
expression other expressions you can use
our can't stand or more simply really
don't like so you might say I can't
stand waiting around in airports or I
really don't like waiting around in
airports those are both pretty strong
there's also another word that is
similar to hate but even stronger and
that word is to test if you say you
detest something then you really hated
and for an even stronger statement you
can say you absolutely detest something
for example I absolutely detest exams
that's about as strong as you can
express a dislike without cursing now
it's your turn to try using these
expressions
once again you'll hear some examples
after each example repeat what you hear
ready let's begin
I really hate websites that are slow
I can't stand this new software
I absolutely detest powerpoint
I really don't like public speaking at
all
ok so we've done some practice on
talking about things you don't like
but there are some things that you don't
really think positively or negatively
about for me that's how i feel about
where to go eat lunch
I don't really care and that's exactly
what you can say i don't really care
you could also say it's all the same to
me that's useful if a group is trying to
make a decision and it's not important
to you what they choose one more useful
expression is I don't mind if you don't
mind something it means it doesn't
bother you if you ask me whether I hate
android i'll say i don't mind it
and by that i mean i don't like or
dislike it
it's just ok let's practice using some
of these expressions for when you need
there like or dislike something once
again repeat the examples after you hear
them
I don't really care one way or the other
it's all the same to me
I don't mind taking the bus to work
alright we've been doing some great
practice but how does this sound in the
conversation we're going to hear a short
dialogue between two co-workers they are
talking about where to go for lunch
John suggested we meet at the new cafe
on the corner
hmm well I don't really care for that
cafe
alright so what about the deli across
the street
yeah okay I don't mind that place
how did that sound
one possibility is a new cafe on the
corner but the lady doesn't really care
for that cafe
however she doesn't mind the deli across
the street now it's your turn to
practice will repeat the dialogue but
this time we're going to be about the
woman's words you will have to say those
parts yourself remember to start by
saying you don't care for the cafe then
you'll say that you don't mind the deli
here we go John suggested we meet at the
new cafe on the corner
alright so what about the deli across
the street
alright so we've learned some great ways
to talk about things you don't like as
well as things you hate and things you
don't really care about in our next
lesson we'll move on to look at how to
talk about your ideas and make
suggestions
until then so long and happy learning