Hi everyone it's me, Kat and welcome back for another lesson today. Now last night,
we surprised my colleague for his birthday. He’s a co-worker and he's recently just
moved to Auckland from India. Well you know since that this was his first birthday without
his family and we didn't want him to be lonely, we thought, we'll just throw him a surprise.
So we went to his apartment with a nice big cake, lots of delicious food. Obviously, he
didn't know that some of us would be coming back to his apartment and boy was he surprised.
However, I have to say that being a non-native speaker, he was a bit lost for words at the
time and he really, he didn't know how to express his surprise. So I believe that that
can happen to everyone including me as a native English speaker. So what I've done for you
today is I have made a list of certain things that you could say when you want to respond
to a surprise. Stay tuned with me because it's surprising how many expressions you can
actually use.
Now the first expression we have today is wow! I can't believe it, this is great. Now,
this is a wonderful way of saying that you never expected someone to surprise you and
of course it also shows your appreciation for what was done, which is why you would
say, this is great. You can use it for a surprise that comes out of the blue. Now coming out
of the blue means you just really had no idea and you didn't expect it at all. Now a surprise
doesn't just have to be a birthday or any special occasion. You've been surprised just
by a friend that's turned up at your house. For example, maybe a friend has gifted you
a new sweater as a token of appreciation for no reason at all. That's when you're going
to be very happy and you could say, wow! I can't believe it, this is great.
The next expression that you might want to use is, wow! I must be dreaming. This is something
that you will use when the surprise actually seems unreal. You just cannot believe it and
that's why you use the word dreaming as if it's what's happening as part of a dream.
Now an example of this situation could be, if your parents come to visit you unexpectedly
after a year of living away, you could respond to this by saying, wow! I must be dreaming.
It was the last thing that you expected to happen, wow! I must be dreaming.
The next expression is fancy that. Now, this is more of an idiom or slang to express your
surprise. Something that you might want to do mainly around your friends and close ones.
It's another way of saying imagine that or it's hard to believe, imagine that, it's hard
to believe. Now, this expression is usually used when you are pleasantly surprised. You
like the surprise you have. An example of this could be, you haven't studied too much
but then you get straight-A for your English test. You're gonna be like, whoa! Fancy that.
It was a nice but unexpected surprise, fancy that.
Another expression you may use is, are you serious? You must be joking! This expression
is used with the surprise is something that you never thought possible. In fact, you use
it when you find something really hard to believe. If your husband tells you that you
need to pack your bags because you're going to Hawaii, you would be very pleasantly surprised
and you might say something like this. Maybe because he had such a busy schedule at work,
so it comes as a very, very nice surprise to you.
Another expression that you may want to use to show your surprise is, this is such a nice
surprise, thank you so much for this, a nice surprise. Now sometimes you can just say it
quite simply by expressing that you are indeed surprised and yes you might also want to thank
the person who has surprised you. So if a friend has bought you a book that you've always
wanted to read, you could say to your friend, this is such a nice surprise. Thanks so much
for this, a nice surprise.
And the next expression is the word, really? But asked as a question. Now sometimes you
don't have to say much at all. A simple question like really? Shows depth and emotion behind
how surprised you are. I remember that one time a really cute guy asked me out and he
told me that he thought that I was cute and he wanted to ask me out since a long time
ago. All I could say was, really? This is again an expression used when the unbelievable
comes your way, really?
The next expression that you may want to use when being surprised is, you guys are great,
thanks for all of this. Now, this is an expression that could be used when a group of people
have surprised you with something amazing. Now this expression has a thank you at the
end of it, again to show your appreciation. So you're thanking them for the nice and pleasant
surprise. An example of this could be if you're a teacher and your students gift you, maybe
a brand new watch for your birthday and you get a nice bouquet of flowers too. You're
obviously going to be pleasantly surprised and you love this gesture. So you're just
going to say, you guys are so great, thank you so much for this.
Up next is the expression, good heavens. Now good heavens is again more of a slang way
of saying, being surprised and you are startled with a surprise but it's a small one and you
obviously didn't expect it was going to happen. So let's suppose that you're walking down
the street and your friend sneaks up behind you and taps you on the shoulder, you would
be very startled if this happened and that's when you might say good heavens. So you're
slightly in shock but it is still a surprise and not a bad surprise either but you would
say good heavens, you scared me, good heavens.
The next expression is, you've got to be kidding me. Now this expression can be used when you
are pleasantly surprised or if the surprise has made you angry. For example, if someone
at work has taken your parking space, you might get a little miffed about that. Now
you never expected that someone was going to be so ignorant and especially at work and
that's when you might just exclaim, you've got to be kidding me. Sometimes this phrase
may even be muttered under your breath, you've got to be kidding me.
Up next is the expression, just when I thought. Now, this is not an expression itself, you
would use this to start a sentence with. Now just when I thought and then you go on to
describe what it is that you thought actually happened. Now, this could be a good or an
unpleasant surprise. An example of this could be perhaps you had just finished paying off
your credit card debt and you thought that you didn't have to worry about it any longer
and you were no longer going to have any money troubles. You thought that you could finally
save something to buy things that you've always wanted but all of a sudden your car breaks
down and you have some crazy expenses that come rushing in the door again. That's when
you would say, just when I thought I could save some money, just when I thought.
The next expression is unbelievable, I never expected it. Now this phrase is another way
of expressing a surprise that seems almost unreal. For example, maybe you won tickets
for an Ed Sheeran concert. Unbelievable, I never expected it. It's something that you
didn't think was going to happen.
Up next it's the phrase wow! This is great, I really appreciate this. Now you can also
appreciate the surprise by using this kind of expression. If someone perhaps they've
brought you some beautiful flowers when you're feeling unwell and you might be in the hospital,
you can thank them for the surprise. You could say, wow! This is great, I really appreciate
this.
Another expression could be, wow! How awesome is this? Now, this is very similar to the
previous expression but this one is used more informally with friends, co-workers or loved
ones.
So the next time that you're surprised, don't need to worry about saying the right or the
wrong thing. I dare you to just use one of these expressions from today's lessons and
you should be good to go. I hope that you've enjoyed this lesson and I will be back with
some more but before I go please don't hesitate to like the video, subscribe to our channel
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videos just like this one. Take care and I'll see you next time.