Strong, Neutral, Uncertain
The same speaker, three different levels of certainty.
Click to zoom
All three are correct answers. The third one is the one candidates forget they are allowed to give.
Different ways to give your opinion when you speak, so you don't start every answer with I think.
Preview · progress not saved — Chapter 1 is free
Tick the ones you actually say. Most people tick one.
Two or three phrases across an answer sounds natural. One per sentence sounds rehearsed.
Opening eight answers in a row with I think is the thing to fix. But there is a wrong way to fix it:
In my opinion, buses are cheaper. From my point of view, they are also slower. As far as I'm concerned, most people drive. To my mind, that is a problem.
That is worse. Every sentence now announces that an opinion is coming, and none of them needed to.
Not every sentence needs a phrase. Once you have said in my opinion, the next two sentences are still your opinion. The listener has not forgotten.
The same speaker, three different levels of certainty.
All three are correct answers. The third one is the one candidates forget they are allowed to give.
Sort twelve phrases by where each one actually belongs.
Sort each item into the correct category
Three situations, including one where the formal phrase is the wrong answer.
Chain 1
The task: Speaking Part 1. The examiner asks whether you prefer tea or coffee.
Candidates: From my point of view / Personally
The phrase that fits:
Because:
Chain 2
The task: Speaking Part 3. The examiner asks whether governments should fund museums. You genuinely have no idea.
Candidates: As far as I'm concerned / I'm not sure, but
The phrase that fits:
Because:
Chain 3
The task: Writing Task 2. You are stating your position in the introduction.
Candidates: If you ask me / In my opinion
The phrase that fits:
Because:
A Part 3 answer with the opinion phrases removed — and two places where no phrase is needed.
Examiner: Do you think public transport should be free?
, it should at least be much cheaper than it is now. The cost is what stops people using it, not the service itself.
Where I live a monthly pass costs about the same as running a small car, so most families simply drive. If the pass were half the price, I am fairly sure the roads would be quieter within a year.
making it completely free might cause its own problems. Someone still has to pay for the drivers and the maintenance, and that money would have to come from taxes.
, though — I have never seen the figures for a city that actually tried it. What I do know is that the current price is too high for the people who need it most.