Transcription
In today's lesson, I'm going to teach you 40 phrases that native English speakers use every single day. My name is Michael Anton. I'm the founder of English at the Ready. And if you're a beginner or intermediate student, make sure to watch this video because the phrases I'm going to teach you today are absolutely necessary if you want to become fluent in English.
Before we start, make sure to subscribe to English at the Ready here on YouTube and to turn on notifications so you don't miss any future English lessons from me. Let's get into the lesson and look at the first phrase on our list. You've probably heard this first one: "How have you been?"
"How have you been?" It's a question, and you ask it when you're asking somebody how they have been since the last time you saw them. For example, "Hey Mark, how have you been? I haven't seen you since last month." Or, "Alice, it's been ages! How have you been keeping?"
You could say "how have you been keeping?" or "how have you been?" It's like asking "how are you now?" Some people say "been," other people say "been." I personally say "been," but there's no right or wrong way of saying this word. "How have you been?" "How have you been?"
You could also say "What have you been up to?" "What have you been up to?" When you ask somebody what they've been doing recently, you would say "What have you been up to?" For example, "Hi Tom, long time no see! What have you been up to these days?" "What have you been doing recently?" "What's new, Sarah? I haven't heard from you in a while. What have you been up to lately?" "What have you been doing lately?" "What's new?" "What have you been up to?"
If somebody asks you "How are you?" you might respond, "I'm doing well, thanks. How about yourself?" "How about yourself?" So if you ask Jack, "How's it going?" he might say, "I'm doing well, thanks. How about yourself?" If you ask Emily, "How are you?" she might say, "I'm doing well, thanks for asking. How about yourself?" So it's another way of saying "I'm doing well." "How are you?" "How about yourself?" Very, very common.
When you first meet somebody, you will probably say, "Pleased to meet you." "Pleased to meet you." This is a very polite way of introducing yourself to somebody. "Hi there, I'm David. Pleased to meet you." "Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Johnson. I've heard so much about you. Pleased to meet you." "Pleased to meet you." You can also repeat after the phrases when I say them. "Pleased to meet you."
"Could you give me a hand?" "Could you give me a hand?" is used to ask for help. If you need somebody to help you, you could ask them, "Could you give me a hand?" For example, "John, could you give me a hand with these boxes? They're quite heavy." Or, "Hey Maria, could you give me a hand figuring out this problem? I'm a bit stuck." "Could you give me a hand?" means "Could you help me?"
"To give a hand." "I'm a bit confused." If you're not sure about something, you might say, "I'm a bit confused." For example, "Could you explain that again? I'm a bit confused." Or, if you ask somebody for directions and you don't understand, you could say, "The directions are unclear. I'm a bit confused about where to go next." "I'm a bit confused."
If you didn't understand what somebody said, you could say, "Can you say that again, please?" "Can you say that again, please?" For example, "I didn't catch that," which means "I didn't understand." "Can you say that again, please?" Or, "The connection is bad. Can you say that again, please?" You're asking somebody to repeat themselves.
"Pardon me." "Pardon me." This is a formal way of saying "excuse me." "Pardon me." For example, "Pardon me, could you please repeat what you just said?" Or, "Pardon me, I didn't mean to interrupt." "Pardon me."
"My apologies. I didn't catch that." "I didn't catch that" means "I didn't hear that" or "I didn't understand that." "I didn't catch that." For example, "My apologies, I'm sorry. My apologies, I didn't catch your name. Could you say it again?" Or, "My apologies, I didn't catch what you said. Could you please repeat it?" "I didn't catch that."
"Catch you later." "Catch you later." This is another very, very common phrase, and it's an informal way to say goodbye. For example, "I have to run now," which means "I have to go." "Catch you later." "See you later." "Catch you later." "Thanks for the chat." "Catch you later." "I'll see you later." "I'll catch you later." Very common.
Now, if you want to ask somebody their opinion, you could say, "What are your thoughts?" "What are your thoughts?" "What do you think?" or "What are your thoughts?" For example, "We've discussed the options. What are your thoughts on the matter?" "What are your thoughts?" "What do you think before we decide?" "What are your thoughts on this proposal?" "What do you think?" "What are your thoughts?"
When you agree with somebody, you could say, "I'm in agreement." "I'm in agreement." For example, "I think that's a good plan. I'm in agreement." "After considering the options, I'm in agreement with your suggestion." "I'm in agreement." Or just, "I agree." We share the same idea and opinion. We're in agreement.
Now, if you disagree with someone, if you don't agree with them, if you don't share the same opinion, you can use this. You can say, "I beg to differ." "I beg to differ." This means you don't agree with them, and it's a very polite way of saying it. For example, "I'm sorry, but I beg to differ with your opinion on this matter. I don't agree." "I beg to differ." Or, "Everyone seems to agree, but I beg to differ. I think we should reconsider." "I beg to differ." Very, very polite way of saying this, and it's perfect at work or in more formal contexts. "I beg to differ" means "I don't agree."
"That's fascinating." "Fascinating." When you're interested in something or you admire something, you might say, "That's fascinating." For example, "I didn't know that. That's fascinating." Or, "She told me about her travels, and it was truly fascinating." When you're really interested in something, you can use the word "fascinating." It's a synonym of interesting. "Fascinating." "That's fascinating."
Now, "How are you?" as we saw before, has several synonyms. There are lots of different ways of saying "How are you?" One of these ways is "How's everything going?" You're asking how things are. "What's up?" "How are you?" "How's everything going?" For example, "Hi Sarah, how's everything going with the new project?" Or, "I haven't seen you in a while. How's everything going?" "How are you doing?" "How's everything going?"
When you haven't seen somebody in a long time, you could say, "It's been a while." "It's been a while." For example, "Hi John, it's been a while since we last met. It's been a long time." Or, "I wanted to catch up with you. It's been a while." "It's been a long time." Again, you can say "been" or "been." "It's been a while" or "It's been a while." Both are correct.
Okay, next up, we have this one: "Anything new?" "Anything new?" It's a question. "Anything new?" And it means probably what you think it means. "Anything new?" can be used if you're asking somebody if there's news or there's something that's new in their life. "Anything new?" For example, "Hey Jane, anything new happening with you?" Or, "We haven't spoken in a bit. Anything new with you?" "Anything new?"
"How's your day going?" Okay, very simple. It could be "How's your day?" "How's your week?" "How's your holiday?" Right? Anything can replace "day," and it's very straightforward. It means you're asking somebody how their day is. For example, "Hey Mike, how's your day going so far?" Or, "She greeted me and asked how my day was going." "How's your day going?"
Now, to express sympathy when you hear bad news, you could say, "I'm sorry to hear that." "I'm sorry to hear that." For example, somebody tells you, "I failed the test," and you say, "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that." If somebody tells you, "My dog passed away yesterday" (means died), "passed away" means "died," you might say, "I'm so sorry to hear that." "I'm sorry to hear that." When you hear bad news and you're expressing sympathy, you would say this. "I'm sorry to hear that."
Now, the opposite of this is good news. And when you hear good news, you might say, "That sounds wonderful." "That sounds wonderful." For example, "We're going on vacation next week." "Oh, that sounds wonderful." You might say if somebody tells you, "She's getting married in Paris." You might say, "Wow, that sounds wonderful." "That sounds wonderful."
Before we continue the video, please let me know in the comments if you're finding this lesson useful. And make sure to subscribe to English at the Ready and turn on notifications so you don't miss any future lessons. If you're really serious about improving your English this year, then click the link in the video description to learn more about how I can help you become fluent. Now, let's get back into the lesson.
When you're not sure of something, you can say, "I'm not certain." "I'm not certain." "Are you coming to the party?" somebody asks. "I'm not certain yet," you say. "I'm not certain yet." "Should we go now?" somebody asks you. You might say, "I'm not certain about the weather." Maybe it's raining. You're not sure. You don't know. You're not certain.
If you want to give yourself some time to think, you can say, "Let me think about it." "Let me think about it." For example, "Would you like to join us for dinner?" "Let me think about it." "Can you lend me some money?" "Let me think about it and get back to you." You need time to think. "Let me think about it." You could say, "Let me think about it."
You could also say, "I'll get back to you on that." "I'll get back to you on that." When you promise to provide an answer or response later, you could say, "I'll get back to you on that." For example, "Can you let me know by tomorrow?" somebody asks. "Sure, I'll get back to you on that." Or, if somebody asks you, "What do you think about this proposal?" you might say, "Let me discuss it with my team, and I'll get back to you." "I'll get back to you." "I'll tell you later."
Again, "How was your day?" You could also say, "How was your weekend?" or "How was your week?" For example, "Hi Sarah, how was your weekend? Do anything fun?" "How was your weekend getaway?" A "getaway" is a short trip to another city or another place. "Getaway." "How was your weekend?" "How was your weekend getaway?"
Now, if you're at a cafe and you want to sound polite when you order a coffee, yes, you could say, "Can I get a coffee?" But it's much more polite to say, "May I have a coffee, please?" For example, "May I have a coffee, please? Black, with sugar." When you drink coffee black, it means you drink it with no milk. "Black." "I'd like to order a latte. May I have a coffee, please?" "May I have?" Very polite.
"Where are you originally from?" When you ask this question, you're asking somebody about the place they were born, their hometown. For example, "You have an interesting accent. Where are you originally from?" "You speak English fluently. Where are you originally from?" "Where were you born?" "Where is your hometown?" "Where are you originally from?"
Now, if you hear a word and you're not sure how to spell it, you don't know how to write it, you can say, "How do you spell that word?" "How do you spell that word?" For example, "I'm not sure how to spell this. How do you spell that word?" "Can you spell your last name for me, please?" "Can you spell your last name for me, please?"
"See you soon." This is an informal way to say goodbye. "I have to go now. See you soon." Or, "See you soon at the party." "See you soon." Goodbye.
"It was nice chatting with you." "It was nice chatting with you." "Let's do this again sometime." Or, "Thanks for your time." "It was nice chatting with you." This means "It was nice speaking with you." "It was nice talking with you." "Chatting" is informal. You chat with friends. You talk about informal topics. You speak with your boss or with your employer; it's more formal. But when you chat, it's much more informal and casual. "It was nice chatting with you."
You could also say, "Take care of yourself" or just "Take care." You're wishing somebody well, and you're advising them to stay healthy and to be careful. For example, "I'm heading out now. Take care of yourself." Or, "Take care. She's leaving for college tomorrow. Take care of yourself and call me often." "Take care."
"What's on your mind?" When you're asking what somebody is thinking, you might say, "What's on your mind?" "You seem distracted. What's on your mind?" "You look troubled. There's something going on. There's something wrong. What's on your mind?" "What are you thinking?" "What's on your mind?"
"Let's catch up soon." When you say this, you're making plans to meet or talk again in the future. "Let's catch up soon." For example, "It's been too long. Let's catch up soon." Or, "We should catch up soon. How about next weekend?"
"I'm looking forward to it." "I'm looking forward to it" means you are excited about it. "You are looking forward to it." For example, "We have a trip planned next month. I'm looking forward to it." "I'm excited about it." "The concert is tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it." "I'm excited about the concert." "I'm looking forward to it."
"I can't wait for that." Synonym. It means the same thing. Means you're excited for. For example, "The movie comes out next week. I can't wait." "She's visiting next month. I can't wait for that." "I'm so excited that it's difficult for me to wait." "I can't wait."
The next on our list is very common, especially if you're starting a conversation with someone that you don't know. You might talk about basic topics like the weather. "How's the weather today?" "How's the weather today?" "Nice day today, isn't it?" "How's the weather today?" "I heard it's going to rain." "How's the weather today?" You're asking about the weather. You'd say, "How's the weather?"
"Any plans for the weekend?" You're asking somebody if they have any plans for the weekend. You could say, "It's Friday. Any plans for the weekend?" Or, "What are your plans for the weekend?" "What are your plans for the weekend?"
"How was your day?" Very straightforward, very simple. You're asking about somebody's day. "Hi John, how was your day?" "She greeted me with a smile and asked how my day was."
"Could you pass me the salt, please?" "Could you pass me the salt?" Or maybe the pepper, or the cheese, or anything. The bread. "I forgot to grab the salt. Could you please pass it to me?" We would use the verb "to pass" in this situation.
Now, next up, we have the question, "What's your favorite cuisine?" "What's your favorite cuisine?" Cuisine means food. Food from a specific country or part of the world. You're asking them what type of food do they like to eat. Italian food, Spanish food, Mexican food, Chinese food, Indian food. Those are examples of cuisines. For example, "We're going out to eat. What's your favorite cuisine?" Or, "He loves cooking. What's your favorite cuisine to prepare?"
There we have it. We looked at 40 phrases that native English speakers use every day in conversation. And if you're a beginner or intermediate student learning English, you need to know these phrases if you want to become fluent. If you found this video useful, please leave a like and let me know down in the comments. Make sure to subscribe to English at the Ready here on YouTube and turn on notifications so you don't miss any future English lessons from me. And if you're serious about improving your English this year, click the link in the description below to learn more about how I can help you start speaking English confidently and fluently. I hope you found this lesson useful, and I'll see you in the next one.