SPOKEN ENGLISH : useful phrases for meetings, presentations, and discussions

 

1. Opening a Meeting

• Starting the meeting:
  • “Let’s get started, shall we?”
  • “Good morning/afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining.”
  • “Let’s begin by going over today’s agenda.”
• Introducing the purpose of the meeting:
  • “The purpose of today’s meeting is to discuss...”
  • “We are here today to talk about…”
  • “In today’s meeting, we will focus on…”

2. During a Meeting or Discussion

• Asking for opinions:
  • “What are your thoughts on this?”
  • “How do you feel about this approach?”
  • “Could you share your insights on this matter?”
• Agreeing with someone:
  • “I completely agree with your point.”
  • “That’s a valid observation.”
  • “I think we are on the same page here.”
• Disagreeing politely:
  • “I see your point, but I’m not sure I agree.”
  • “I understand where you’re coming from, but have you considered…?”
  • “That’s an interesting perspective, but I’d like to offer an alternative view.”
• Asking for clarification:
  • “Could you elaborate on that?”
  • “I’m not sure I follow. Can you explain further?”
  • “What exactly do you mean by...?”
• Summarizing a point:
  • “To summarize, what we’ve discussed so far is...”
  • “In a nutshell, what we’re saying is...”
  • “So, the main takeaway is...”

3. Presenting Information

• Introducing your topic:

  • “Today, I’m going to talk about…”
  • “I’d like to start by discussing…”
  • “Let’s begin by looking at...”

• Presenting data or information:

  • “According to the latest report…”
  • “The data shows that...”
  • “If we look at the figures, we can see that…”

• Highlighting a key point:

  • “What’s important to note here is…”
  • “This brings me to the key point…”
  • “I’d like to draw your attention to…”

• Transitioning to the next point:

  • “Moving on to the next topic…”
  • “Let’s now turn to…”
  • “Now that we’ve covered that, let’s look at…”

• Concluding a presentation:

  • “In conclusion, I’d like to emphasize that…”
  • “To wrap things up, let’s review the main points.”
  • “That brings me to the end of my presentation. Any questions?”

4. Handling Questions and Discussions

• Inviting questions:

  • “I’d be happy to take any questions you may have.”
  • “If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask now.”
  • “Are there any points that need clarification?”

• Handling difficult questions:

  • “That’s a great question. Let me explain…”
  • “I’m glad you brought that up. Here’s how we plan to address it…”
  • “I’ll need to check that information and get back to you.”

• Closing a discussion:

  • “It seems we’ve covered everything. Shall we move on?”
  • “If there are no further questions, let’s proceed.”
  • “Thank you for your input. Let’s wrap up this point.”

5. General Communication in a Meeting

• Expressing agreement or understanding:

  • “That makes sense to me.”
  • “I’m with you on that.”
  • “I can see where you’re coming from.”

• Making suggestions:

  • “I’d suggest we consider...”
  • “Why don’t we try...?”
  • “What about exploring… as an option?”

• Proposing solutions:

  • “One way to approach this is…”
  • “What if we tried…?”
  • “I recommend we...”

• Bringing focus back to the topic:

  • “Let’s stay on topic.”
  • “We’re getting sidetracked. Let’s get back to the main point.”
  • “I think we need to focus on…”

• Closing remarks:

  • “Thanks, everyone, for your valuable input.”
  • “Let’s summarize the action items before we close.”
  • “It’s been a productive discussion. Let’s reconvene next week.”