10 Important English Phrases, That You Need to Know

Learning English can be difficult so we’ve put together all the phrases that you might need when you are beginning your learning process at one of our Twin English schools.

And remember that the British enjoy good manners, so saying please and thank you will get you far!


If you didn’t hear what someone said, or need them to say it again, you can ask them this: “Please could you repeat that?”

“Can you speak slowly please?” You can use this phrase if you need someone to speak slower and more clearly for you, which will help you to understand what they are saying better.

If you don’t understand what someone is saying to you, you can say: “I’m sorry, I don’t understand.” And they will try to communicate what they are saying to you in a different way. There is also another way you could express this: “What do you mean?”

“How do you pronounce that?” There may be some words that are difficult for you to pronounce so you can ask this question and your teacher will break the word down into syllables so that you can learn how to say the word.

Being able to speak the language and pronounce words are just as important as being able to spell and write the language, which is why if you aren’t sure how to write something, you can ask: “Please could you spell that for me?”

“What does *word* mean?” If you aren’t sure what a specific word means, you can ask this question, to find out the definition of the word, which will help you broaden your knowledge and widen your vocabulary.

You can express your gratitude by thanking someone who has helped you by saying: “Thank you that really helped me!”


These two phrases might also be useful:

If for any reason you are late for your class, you would say this to your teacher: “I’m sorry for being late.”

“Excuse me, could you tell me how to get to *location*?” This one will prove particularly helpful if you get lost and need to ask someone how to get to where you are going.