Discussion Skills

For the 2nd semester

Discussion Skills 1

How to express opinionsagreement and disagreement

1. Express Opinions 2. Agree/ disagree3. Expand discussions

1.Express Opinions (Personally), I think …+[opinion] I feel that … My feeling is that … It seems to me … In my opinion,… From my point of view, … If you ask me, … No doubt about it, … As I see it, … If you ask me … It strikes that …

Agreement Absolutely I agree (completely). I quite agree. That’s exactly what I was thinking. That’s just how I see it. That’s a good point. That’s worth thinking about. Your are right. That may be.

Disagreement I disagree. I’m afraid I don’t agree./ I wouldn't agree. I’m sorry but I really can’t agree. I’m not sure I agree with you. I'm not so sure about that.

Disagreement Do you think so? I wouldn’t say that exactly. To be honest, not everybody… Not really. (I’m afraid) that’s not how I see it. That’s not the way I see it. You can’t be serious. I’m not convinced by your argument. I’m afraid I have a different opinion. Well, my opinion is… Well, yes, but …

Disagreement Come off it. Are you kidding? Don’t make me laugh. I disagree. I don’t think so. I can't agree at all. Nonsense! Rubbish! That’s ridiculous.

Expand discussions

A: [opinion expression] + [opinion] B: "Why?" A: "Because +

[reason] + [signal (e.g., How about you?)]" B: Agree (then say, "Let's go to the next one.") or Disagree (then return to Line 1)

Discussion Skills 2

How to ask for and give an opinion

How to ask for information (Formal-informal) I was wondering where you stood on the

question of …? What’s your opinion of…? What’s your opinion on …? What do you think of /about …? How do you find …? How do you feel about …? What do you reckon about …? What / How about …?

How to ask for information Could you please tell me your opinion on… Would you please comment on… Can you tell me your opinion on… I’m wondering what’s your opinion on… Can you say something on… Do you think… Do you agree that…

How to give an opinion(Formal—informal)

It would seem to me that… As far as I am able to judge… As far as I’m concerned… I’d like to point out … I’d just like to say… From my point of view, I think… If you want my opinion… Personally, I think… As I see it… Frankly, I think…

How to give an opinion I reckon… To tell you the truth, I think… Well, in my opinion… Believe it or not, I think… One thing I should mention is that…

Discussion Skills 3

1. How to ask for more detailed information2. How to ask for clarification3. How to give clarification

How to ask for more detailed information

I wonder if you could explain about …in more detail?

Could I ask you a little more about … in more detail?

I’m afraid I’m not quite clear about ... I’m afraid I’m not quite clear about how you

DO… I’m interested in knowing more about ... How exactly do you DO…?

How to ask for more information Could you fill me a bit on …? Can you put me in the picture about …? Can you give more details? Can you give me some examples? Can you explain it more clearly? Can you say something more about it? Please give me an example.

How to ask for clarification

I’m afraid I’m not quite clear what you mean by …

I’m sorry, I don’t understand what you mean by …

I’m sorry, but could you explain what you mean by …

What (exactly) do you mean by … What (exactly) are you trying to say? What are you getting at?

How to ask for clarification

What do you mean by …? Hold on, do you mean …?Just a second, do you mean …?Doesn't that mean the same as …?Sorry to interrupt, but what does … mean?When you say…,do you mean….?You said …, what do you mean?When you say…, are you thinking …?

How to give clarification Well, the point I’m trying to make is that… Well, what I’m trying to say is that… What I mean is that… All I’m trying to say is that… Well, what I’m getting at is that… Ah, I mean… Um, I think… Well, Let me see. ….

Discussion Skills 4

How to rephraseHow to generalize

How to rephrase your own statements That’s not quite what I meant… Let me put it in another way… Sorry, let me explain…

My understanding is that… I think you mean… If I’m right, you mean… …., Is that what you mean?

How to make generalizations I’m inclined (not) to DO… I tend not to Do… In the vast majority of cases, … In most cases, … In my opinion, … Generally speaking, … In general, … By and large, … On the whole, …

Discussion Skills 5

How to interruptOther tips

How to interrupt I’d like to add something here, if I may. … I have a point (to make) here. … May I say something here. … Can I interrupt (you) for a moment? … Sorry to interrupt, but… Excuse me, but… Wait a minute! … Hold on! … Hang on! …

How to express mild disbelief or surprise

Is it?”, “Can he?” repetition of part of what the other

speaker has said questions like “What do you mean?” or

“Really?” or “Is that so?” etc.

How to ease the tone

In spoken English comment clauses like “I think”, ‘I’m afraid”, “I suppose”, “You know”, “I believe”, “I dare say”, “I hope”, etc, are often used to make a

negative statement less abrupt.

How to show modesty A: Can you swim? B: I’m not a good swimmer, but I go

swimming sometimes. B’s answer is a good example of

expressing what one can do in a modest way.