1. There are many ways to say
the same thing
2. It is important to use the
right preposition
Remember a preposition is a word that
a) connects two nouns
b) a word that shows the position of
one noun in relation to another
1. During the day
Use: When the sun is up and most people are at work.
"I will be busy during the day tomorrow, but I will be free in the evening."
2. At night
Use: When the sun has gone down.
"At night there are more people
selling things on the street."
3. In the meantime
Use: The time between two events.
"In the meantime, I will watch TV."
4. In the next few + (time word)
Use: In a period of time
"In the next few days."
"In the next few years."
5. For the time being
Use: Similar to at the moment or for now.
"For the time being we will wait.
6. A remote chance
Use: There is only a small chance
"There is always a remote chance
of winning the lottery."
7. It’s not likely that …
Use: To explain why someone is wrong.
"It's not likely that, you need to
read this it will change your mind."
8. To quit a job …
Use: When you decide to leave your job.
"I have decided to quit my job."
9. To remember to do sth
Use: When you do something, that you might have forgotten.
"I will remember to meet you on Monday."
10. To forget to do sth
Use: When you don't do something,
that you should have done.
"I forget to meet you on Monday,
I am so sorry."
11. For the most part
Use: Generally, Mostly
"For the most part, Wallmart is
a better supermarket than the others."
12. Many years ago
Use: A long time ago, but probably
not more than 100 years ago.
"Many years ago England had a
good football team."
13. It’s been a long time since …
Use: When something hasn't happened for a long time.
"It's been a long time since I had a holiday."
14 In my opinion…
Use: I think
"In my opinion the BreExit vote
was a bad decision."
15. Under/given the circumstances …
Use: Because of the situation you are in
"Given the circumstances we are going
to have to make some changes."
16. I’m taken aback that …
Use: You are very surprised
about something
"I'm taken aback that you could think
I would do that."
17. To get the bill
Use: When you pay the bill for a meal.
"Put you wallet away,
I will get the bill."
18. At full speed
Use: As fast as possible
"He was running at full speed,
I could never catch him."
19. To take one’s time
Use: To do something at your own pace
"I'm going to take my time,
and finish this book later."
20. To take responsibility for …
Use: To be in control of something,
if it goes well you get the credit, but if
it goes badly then you get the blame.
"I will take responsibility for
the company's marketing from now on."
21. To get/be accustomed/used to …
Use: When you adjust to something
" It takes time to get used to
life in China."
22. For the sake of …
Use: When you consider someone else
"For the sake of my children,
I need to earn more money."
23. In order to …
Use: So you can do something
"In order to get my assignment
finished I am going to have to
work all night!"
24. To hurry up and do sth
Use: Get something done quickly
"Hurry up and get ready for school."
25. To speed up
Use: To go faster
"You need to go faster we are going
to be late."
26. To slow down
Use: To not go so quickly
"You need to slow down, there is
no rush."
27. To have money saved up
Use: To have kept your money for later.
"I have my money saved up,
because I want to buy a car soon."
28. To be bored out of one’s mind
Use: Extremely bored
"I was bored out of my mind in
Tom's class yesterday."
29. Out in the open
Use: Sth everyone knows.
"It's out in the open now, she
told everyone."
30. In secret
Use: Do sth so no one knows.
"We need to do this in secret, it's
too important for everyone to know."
31. To be sure/certain of…
Use: When you are very confident
about sth
"I was sure France will win Euro 2016."
32. Wide open
Use: Not decided yet
"The competition is still wide open,
anyone could win."
33. Shut tight
Use: Closed and hard to open
"The box is shut tight, no one can
open it."
34. The fact that …
Use: The reality is
"The fact that Portugal made it to
the final is very surprising."
35. To say the least
Use: Without emphasising something
"They were upset to say the least."
36. Watch out (for)!
Use: To look out for sth
"Watch out for the touts outside
the airport."
37. To be in trouble (with sb)
Use: When someone is angry with you
"I got really drunk last night, I am
in trouble with my wife."
38. Sorry to bother/trouble you,
but…Would you mind …?
Use: Excuse me
"Sorry to trouble you, but I'm
lost. Would you mind helping me out?"
39. To go wrong
Use: Make a mistake / sth bad happens
"I didn't want it to go wrong,
but it couldn't be helped."
40. Go away!
Use: Please leave
"Stop bothering me, go away."
41. Let’s get going
Use: We should leave soon
"Let's get going or we will be late."
42. To be short/missing a …
Use: When you don't have
everything/everyone
"We see to be short one student,
where is James?
43. Something is missing (from)
Use: When something is not there that
should be.
"Some beer is missing from the
fridge, who drank it?"
44. In the middle of the night
Use: Very late at night or
early in the morning
"I always get up in the middle of
the night to go to the bathroom."
45. To be mistaken about …
Use: When you are wrong about sth/sb
"I was mistaken about Paul, he
is actually a great guy."
46. Let’s check it out
Use: See what something is like
"Let's check the museum out"
47. To make sure that …
Use: To check you are right
"I need to make sure that they
are coming to the party."
48. To be taken by surprise
Use: Something is surprising
"I was taken by surprise when
they arrived 3 hours early."
49. To strongly disagree
Use: To disagree a lot
"I strongly disagree about the
BreExit vote."
50. To decide between (2 choices)
Use: When you have 2 options and must choose one.
"I can't decide between Apple or Samsung."
