Diane Engelhardt - Perfect Phrases for ESL Conversation Skills: With 2,100 Phrases

PERFECT PHRASES

for

ESL

Conversation Skills

Hundreds of Ready-to-Use Phrases That Help You Express Your Thoughts, Ideas, and Feelings in English Conversations of All Types

Diane Engelhardt

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Copyright 2013 by Diane Engelhardt. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

ISBN: 978-0-07-177407-9
MHID: 0-07-177407-6

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Contents

Acknowledgments

I would first like to express my gratitude to McGraw-Hill Professional for the opportunity to publish this book and to my editor, Holly McGuire, for choosing me for this particular project.

I would also like to acknowledge the valuable insights my colleague and friend, Barb Donaldson, has provided along the way.

My thanks go out to as well to my students: Yuko, Joo-Weoun, Hye-Sin, Chae-Rin, Mayumi, and Satoko for their perceptive feedback.

Last but not least, my appreciation to my husband, Erich, for his support and encouragement.

Introduction

Who Can Benefit from Using This Book?

P erfect Phrases for ESL: Conversation Skills was written for ESL students and learners who want to improve their conversation skills inside and outside of the classroom. The content was selected to familiarize you with the kind of language native English speakers use regularly in everyday conversations and discussions at home, school, and work. Although it was written with intermediate-level speakers in mind, there is something for every motivated learner who aims to develop his or her ability to participate in conversations and discussions on a broad variety of topics.

How to Use This Book

The book consists of ten chapters divided into three parts: conversation, discussions, and special occasions. Beginning with small talk, the book progresses in depth and difficulty and concludes with an independent chapter on special occasions to round things off.

Objectives

These indicate the skills you can expect to gain from using the phrases in each chapter.

Phrases

Each chapter begins with typical conversation openers and contains a collection of topic-related phrases that will guide you through a natural conversation or discussion. Although the phrases are organized thematically, they are not exclusive to any one topic. Where appropriate, reference is made to phrases that appear in previous chapters and come in handy when you discuss different subjects.

Because language is closely tied to a countrys culture and customs, many phrases are organized from formal to informal, indirect to direct, strong to mild, and in degrees of politeness so that you can choose the phrases that are appropriate to use in different situations. The information symbol will also alert you to language or culture tips.

You will see that some phrases and parts of phrases appear in bold type. Bold type indicates phrases that are not complete in themselves and that offer different possibilities or variations according to the subject you are discussing. For example:

I hate / cant stand / cant stomach greasy food / waiting in long lines. ()

Why dont you try doing volunteer work? ()

Phrases that are not indicated in bold type are fixed expressions and can stand on their own. For example:

What a pity! ()

I couldnt agree with you more! ()