Have you ever wanted to know how to sound polite when giving opinions and talking about mistakes? Learn how with Sian in this English In A Minute.
Sian
It’s okay to be direct with people you know, but sometimes in more formal situations, like at work, it’s important to be polite.
You can give your opinion in a direct way.
Your presentation is too long.
But to make your opinion less direct use verbs like reckon, feel, believe …
and also vague expressions like sort of, kind of, a little.
I reckon your presentation is a little long.
Or, turn it into a question to make it even less direct:
Don’t you think your presentation is kind of long?
You can tell someone they’ve made a mistake in a very direct way:
You’ve sent the wrong reports.
But to be less direct add softer verbs like seem to or appear to:
You seem to have sent the wrong reports.
You see, it’s easy to be polite.
Being polite: giving opinions and talking about mistakes
Giving opinions
1) To be less direct when giving your opinion use verbs like reckon, feel, or believe.
- I reckon you need to re-write the essay.
- I feel that presentation could have been better.
2) You can also vague expressions like sort of, kind of, or a little to be less direct.
- It was sort of OK, but maybe you need to re-write the essay.
- That presentation was kind of good, but it could have been better.
3) You can turn an opinion into a question to make it even less direct.
- Do you think you need to re-write the essay?
- Do you feel the presentation could have been better?
Talking about mistakes
To be less direct when talking about mistakes use softer verbs like seem to or appear to.
- You appear to have written about the wrong subject.
- You seem to have misunderstood the topic of the presentation.