Speaking: Monologue

ORAL EXAM
USEFUL PHRASES FOR YOUR MONOLOGUE

In the oral exam each candidate is asked to talk about issues related to the topic for about three minutes. The issues listed are in the form of a question or a statement:

The environmental impact of tourism.

The advantages and disadvantages of the job of a teacher.

In other cases the candidate is provided with questions:

Are video games dangerous for young people?

How have new technologies changed our daily life in the past ten years?



YOU SHOULD START YOUR MONOLOGUE MENTIONING THE ISSUES OR QUESTIONS YOU'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT

First... First and foremost,... In the first place... To begin with...First of all... I'd like to start by giving my opinion on the impact of tourism on the environment (it's a good idea to rephrase the issue)

To start with... let me express my view on the pros and cons of working as a teacher (use synonyms whenever possible)

Then.... In the second place... Besides, I'll move on to the issue of whether video games are dangerous... (Use an indirect question)

Last but not least, I'd also like to answer / deal with the question of how new technologies have changed our daily life in the past ten years.

 
EFFECTIVE OPENINGS

In order to grab the attention of the audience you may employ one or two of the following devices:

- Rhetorical questions:

Can crime really be prevented?

Has the role of teachers really changed in the past years?

- Interesting facts:

According to an article I read recently,...

Did you know that...?

I’d like to share an amazing fact / figure/ statistic with you.

Have you ever heard of...?

- Starting with an anecdote:

Let me tell you what happened to me.

- Problems to think about: (use conditional type 2 or 3)

Suppose / Supposing you wanted to...

Imagine you had to...

Have you ever wondered what would happen / would have happened if...?

- Quoting a well-known person

As Shakespeare once said,...

To quote a well-known writer,...

To put it in the words of...

INTRODUCING A POINT

When delivering a monologue on a particular subject it is important to introduce the key points first.

You may use one of the following phrases:

First of all I'd like to point out...

The main problem is...

The fact is that...

The question of...

Speaking of...

With regard to video games.

In regard to video games,...

As regards video games,...

Regarding video games,...

As to video games,...

As for video games,...

When it comes to video games,...

On the question of video games,...

As far as video games are concerned,...

Concerning video games,...

In relation to video games,...

In respect of video games,...

With reference to video games,...

In reference to video games,...

In the case of video games,...

 

OR YOU MAY BEGIN BY STATING SOMETHING AS A FACT

As everyone knows...

It is generally accepted that...

There can be no doubt that...

It is a fact that...

Nobody will deny that...

ENUMERATION OF POINTS

If you want to provide several reasons, factors or arguments in a row, you have to organize them in the logical way. In order to structure your answer properly enumerate the main points using one of the suggested phrases:

First of all... First and foremost... In the first place... To begin with...To start with... I'd like to say / to mention that...Let's start with...

Second... Secondly... A second area to consider is …In the second place... In addition to that... Apart from that... Besides...

Moreover,...

Furthermore,...

Another example of this is...

Finally,... Lastly... Finally, and perhaps most importantly,...

In conclusion... All in all... All things considered...

What is more, ...

If this were not enough, ....

On top of all this...




MOVING TO THE NEXT POINT

This leads directly to my next point.

This brings us to the next question.

Let’s now move on / turn to...

After examining this point, let’s turn to...

Let’s now take a look at...

GOING BACK

As I said / mentioned / pointed out earlier,...

Let me come back to what I said before...

Let’s go back to what we were discussing earlier...

As I’ve already explained...

GIVING YOUR OPINION

• I think / feel / believe that...

• As far as I'm concerned....

• As I see it...

• To my mind...

• In my view / opinion...

• From my point of view...

• I tend to think that...

• It seems to me that...

• To my knowledge,...

• I have the impression that...

• I reckon...(informal)

• For my part...

Note: We use from my point of view to express how we see something or how it affects us personally. When we are expressing our beliefs or opinions, we use in my opinion or in my view. E.g. From my point of view, driving is not a good option. I get very tired if I drive more than about two hours. I spent two months working in England. From my point of view, that was the easiest way to learn English. (How the speaker is personally affected by something) In my opinion/In my view, in 100 years’ time people will still be wearing jeans. In my view, everyone should stay in school until they are 18.

GIVING A STRONG OPINION

• I'm absolutely convinced that...

• I'm sure that...

• I strongly believe that...

• I have no doubt that...

• There's no doubt that...

• My own view is that...

• I'm absolutely certain that...

• If you want my honest opinion...

• To tell you the truth / to be honest / frank

EXPRESSING UNCERTAINTY

• I definitely doubt if that...

• I'm uncertain / not sure that...

• As far as I know...

• It is very doubtful whether...

• I don’t know about you, but I ...

GIVING OPINIONS USING IMPERSONAL LANGUAGE

It is vital that more is done to prevent the illegal trade in wild animals. ◇ (Compare: We have to do more to stop people trading wild animals illegally.)

Journalists play a vital/crucial/essential role in educating the public.

The ability to write well is essential for any journalist.

The Internet has become an indispensable /ˌɪndɪˈspensəbl/ tool for reporters.

In journalism, accuracy is paramount. / ...is of paramount importance.

It is imperative that journalists maintain the highest possible standards of reporting.

This case emphasizes/highlights the importance of honest communication between managers and employees.

It should be noted that / It is important to remember that / An important point to remember is that ...

I would like to draw attention to the role of listening in effective communication.

MAKING AN OPINION SOUND LESS DEFINITE

Most cybercrime involves traditional crimes, such as theft and fraud, being committed in new ways. Phishing is perhaps/possibly/probably the best-known example of this.

It seems/appears that the more personal data which organizations collect, the more opportunity there is for this data to be lost or stolen.

It seems clear that introducing national ID cards would do little to prevent identity theft.

It could be argued that the introduction of national ID cards might actually make identity theft easier.

It is possible that/It may be that the only way to protect ourselves against DNA identity theft is to avoid the creation of national DNA databases.

GIVING REASONS AND MAKING A POINT

There are several reasons why I think that...

The reason for this is that / why I say that is....

I base my argument on...

I tell you all this because...

What I'm basically saying is...

The point I'm trying to make is that...

Let me put it this way:...

..., which means that...

INDICATING THE END OF YOUR MONOLOGUE

Well, this brings me to the end of what I wanted to say about ....

That covers just about everything I wanted to say about...

As a final point I'd like to say / add that...

Finally, I'd like to highlight one final / key issue.

My final comments concern....

I would like to finish by mentioning...

DRAWING CONCLUSIONS AND SUMMING UP

The obvious conclusion is...

Last but not least...

The only possible solution / conclusion is....

In conclusion I can / would like to say that...

To cut a long story short...

All things considered...

Let me summarize by saying...

Briefly said,...

In short,...

To recap what I've said so far...

To sum up,..