Common English Phrases & Idioms for Beginners

10 Ways to Say Hello & Goodbye

1.Hello
2.Hi
3.(informal) Hey
4.Hi there
5.(informal) Howdy
6.Bye
7.Bye-bye
8.(informal) See ya later
9.Take care
10. Have a good one

10 Informal Ways to Say Yes and No

1.Yeah
2.Yup
3.Mm-hmm!
4.Uh-huh!
5.Sure!
6.Nope
7.Nah
8.Mm-mm
9.Uh-uh
10.No way

10 Ways to Ask How Someone Is

1.How are you?
2.How’s it going?
3.How ya doin’?
4.How are things?
5.How’s life?
6.How have you been?
7.How’s your family?
8.What’s up?
9.What’s new?
10. What have you been up to lately?

10 Ways to Say How You Are

1.I’m fine, thanks. How about you?
2.Pretty good.
3.Not bad.
4.Great!
5.Couldn’t be better!
6.Can’t complain.
7.I’ve been busy.
8.Same as always.
9.Not so great.
10. Could be better.

10 Ways to Say Thank You

1.Thanks.
2.Thanks a lot.
3.Thank you so much.
4.Thanks a million!
5.Thanks for your help. / Thanks for helping me.
6.I really appreciate it.
7.I’m really grateful.
8.That’s so kind of you.
9.I can’t thank you enough. (for extremely important things)
10. I owe you one.(this means you want/need to do a favor for the other person in the future)

10 Ways to Respond to “Thank You”

1.You’re welcome.
2.No problem.
3.No worries.
4.Don’t mention it.
5.My pleasure.
6.Anytime.
7.It was the least I could do.
8.Glad to help.
9.Sure!
10. Thank you. (use this when you ALSO have something to thank the other person for)

5 English Phrases for Apologizing

1. I’m sorry that… [ex. I was so rude yesterday]
2. It’s my fault. (= I am taking responsibility for the problem)
3. Oops, sorry. (for very small problems)
4.I should have… [ex. called you and told you I’d be late]
5.(formal) I apologize for… [ex. the delay]

5 Ways to Respond to an Apology

1.That’s OK.
2.It happens.
3.No problem.
4.Don’t worry about it.
5.I forgive you.(for serious problems)

10 Phrases for Introductions

1.I just wanted to introduce myself. I’m… [your name]
2.I don’t think we’ve met before. My name’s… [your name]
3.This is…
4.I’d like you to meet…
5.Have you met…?
6. I’d like to introduce you to…
7.Nice to meet you.
8.It’s a pleasure to meet you.
9.Likewise.
10. And you.
#1 and #2 are used to introduce yourself; #3-#6 are used to introduce someone else.
#9 and #10 can be used as a response to #7 and #8.

6 Ways to Show Interest

1.Really?
2.That’s interesting.
3.Uh-huh.
4.Right.
5.Gotcha.
6.Sure.
You can use these phrases to show the other person that you are listening.

5 Ways to End a Conversation Politely

1.It was nice chatting with you.
2.Well, it’s getting late.
3.Anyway, I should get going.
4.(formal) Sorry, but I’m afraid I need to…
5.I’m sorry to cut you off, but I actually gotta run. (cut you off = interrupt you)

10 English Phrases for Telephone Calls

1.Hi, this is Jane.
2.(formal) May I speak with John Smith?
3.(informal) Is John there?
4.I’m calling about…
5.I’m returning your call.
6.(formal) One moment, please.
7.(informal) Hang on a sec.
8.He’s not here. Would you like to leave a message?
9.Could you ask him to call me back?
10. Thanks for calling.

10 English Phrases for Asking for Information

1.Can you tell me…?
2.Could you tell me…?
3.I’d like to know…
4.Do you know…
5.Do you have any idea…?
6.Could anyone tell me…?
(use this phrase when asking a group of people)
7.Would you happen to know…?
8.I don’t suppose you (would) know…?
9.I was wondering…
10. I’m calling to find out…
(use this phrase on the telephone)
Use #4, #5, #7, and #8 when you’re not sure if the other person has the information.

5 Ways to Say “I don’t know”

1.I have no idea/clue.
2.I can’t help you there.
3.(informal) Beats me.
4.I’m not really sure.
5.I’ve been wondering that, too.

10 English Phrases for Asking for Someone’s Opinion & Giving Your Opinion

1.What do you think about…?
2.How do you feel about…?
3.What’s your opinion of…?
4.What are your views on…?
5.In my opinion…
6. I’d say…
7.Personally, I think/believe…
8.If you ask me…
9.The way I see it…
10. From my point of view…

5 English Phrases for Not Having an Opinion

1.I’ve never given it much thought.
2.I don’t have strong feelings either way.
3.It doesn’t make any difference to me.
4.I have no opinion on the matter.
5.(very informal) Whatever.

10 English Phrases for Agreeing

1.Exactly.
2.Absolutely.
3.That’s so true.
4.That’s for sure.
5.I agree 100%
6.I couldn’t agree with you more.
7.That’s exactly what I think. / That’s exactly how I feel.
8.(informal) Tell me about it! / You’re telling me!
9.(informal) I’ll say!
10. I suppose so. (use this phrase for weak agreement – you agree, but reluctantly)
Note: Avoid the common error of saying “I’m agree” – the correct phrase is “I agree” or “I’m in agreement” – the second one is more formal.

10 English Phrases for Disagreeing

1.I don’t think so.
2.I beg to differ.
3.I’m afraid I don’t agree.
4.I’m not so sure about that.
5.That’s not how I see it.
6.Not necessarily.
7.Yes, but… [say your opinion]
8.On the contrary.
9.(very informal) No way!
10. (very strong) I totally disagree.

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5 English Phrases for Responding to Good News

1.Congratulations!
2.That’s great!
3.How wonderful!
4.Awesome!
5.I’m so happy for you!

5 English Phrases for Responding to Bad News

1.Oh no…
2.That’s terrible.
3.Poor you. (Use this to respond to bad situations that are not too serious)
4.I’m so sorry to hear that.
5.I’m sorry for your loss. (Use this only if someone has died)

10 English Phrases for Invitations

1.Are you free… [Saturday night?]
2.Are you doing anything… [Saturday night?]
3.Let me check my calendar.
4.(informal) Do you wanna… [see a movie?]
5.(formal) Would you like to… [join me for dinner?]
6.I’d love to!
7.Sounds great!
8.I’d love to, but I have another commitment.
9.I don’t think I can.
10. Maybe another time.

5 Ways to Make & Respond to an Offer

1.(more formal) Would you like a drink?
2.(informal) Do you want some water?
3.Can I get you something to eat?
4.That’d be great, thanks. (= yes)
5.No, thanks. I’m OK. (= no)

6 English Phrases for Talking About Future Plans

1.I’m going to…
2.I’m planning to…
3.I hope to…
4.I’d like to…
5.I might… / I may…
6.I’m thinking about…

10 Ways to Talk about Likes & Dislikes

1.I love… [soccer]
2.I’m really into… [soccer]
3.I live for… [soccer]
4.[soccer] is my thing.
5.I’m crazy about… [soccer]
6.I’m not a huge fan of… [modern art]
7.[Modern art] isn’t my cup of tea.
8.I don’t really care for… [modern art]
9.I’m not into… [modern art]
10. I can’t stand… [modern art]

(this phrase expresses strong dislike)

5 Ways to Make a Suggestion

1.How about… [ex. trying something new]?
2.Why don’t you… [ex. talk to your boss]?
3.Maybe we should… [ex. do more research].
4.I’d recommend… [ex. going to the doctor].
5.Have you thought about… [ex. buying a new computer]?

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10 English Phrases for Asking/Talking about Jobs

1.Where do you work?
2.What do you do? / What do you do for a living?
3.I work at… [Microsoft].
4.I’m a/an… [accountant].
5.I’m unemployed. / I’m between jobs at the moment.
6.I’m looking for work.
7.I’m a stay-at-home mom/dad.
8.I run my own business.
9.I’m a freelance… [writer/designer/etc.]
10. I’m retired.

10 English Phrases for Describing Relationships

1.I’m single.
2.I have a boyfriend/girlfriend.
3.We’re engaged. (= going to get married)
4.We’re getting married in June.
5.I’m married.
6.I’ve been married for… [10 years].
7.I’m divorced.
8.I’m widowed.
(= my husband/wife has died)
9.I’m not looking for anything serious.
10. I’m not quite over my ex. (= I still have feelings for my ex-boyfriend/girlfriend or ex-husband/wife)

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Basic English Phrases

Last but not least.
Little by little.
Let me go.
Let me be.
Long time no see.
Make yourself at home.
Make yourself comfortable.
My pleasure.
out of question
More recently,…
Make best use of
Nothing
Nothing at all
No choice
No hard feeling
Not a chance
Now or never
No way out/dead end
No more
Never say never
none of your business
No way
No problem
Not long ago
out of order
out of luck
One way or another
One thing lead to another
Piece of cake
Poor thing
out of the blue
out of touch
So?
So so
Stay in touch
So what?
Step by step
See?
Sooner or later
Shut up!
That’s all
Too good to be true
Too bad
The sooner the better
Take it or leave it
There is no denial that…
Viewed from different angles…
What is mentioning is that…
What is more dangerous,…
Well?
Well then
Who knows
Way to go
Why not ?
You see
No more, no less
No kidding?

Conclusion

Above is a summary of 200+ Common English Phrases & Idioms. Hopefully, we have contributed to help you learn English in general, become more accessible and more interesting. Good luck with your studies and soon!

In addition, you can refer to many other basic English test preparation materials, such as English stories, words, grammar, sentences, … are constantly update on Englishtivi.com.

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