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Keeping a conversation going
Instructions
Do the preparation exercise first. Then watch the video and do the exercises to check your understanding and practise the language.
Transcript
Ana: Hi! I'm Ana. Welcome to What to Say!
Do you know what to say when you want to keep a conversation going? Listen out for useful language for keeping a conversation going. Then, we'll practise saying the new phrases – after this.
Noelia: Hi, Bob!
Bob: Oh, morning, Noelia.
Noelia: So, what's new?
Bob: New, hmm, let me think. Hmm … Nothing much. Oh, hang on. My dog Bertie had his 14th birthday on Monday!
Noelia: Oh, he's getting old then?
Bob: I guess so … but not as old as his owner.
Noelia: Haha … er, anyway …
Bob: How about you, Noelia? How's it going?
Noelia: Great, actually. Yeah … all good.
Bob: By the way, I wanted to ask you, where in Spain are you from?
Noelia: I'm from Santander.
Bob: Oh, lovely. Wonderful to grow up near the sea.
Noelia: Yeah, it was perfect. Ah, I miss the sea.
Bob: I know what you mean. I used to live in Spain and I absolutely loved it.
Noelia: Really? I didn't know that, Bob!
Bob: Yeah, I had a little bar on the Costa Brava.
Noelia: Wow! So do you speak Spanish then?
Bob: Oh, not much. Ah, those were the days! Excuse me. Perdona, Noelia. Tengo que irme. Me necesitan en el segundo piso. ¡Hasta pronto! [Excuse me, Noelia. I've got to go. They need me on the second floor. See you soon!]
Noelia: Wow!
Ana: Hello again! Wow! Bob is full of surprises. So, did you notice the useful phrases used for keeping a conversation going? Listen to me and then repeat.
So, what's new?
Let me think ...
Nothing much.
Anyway …
How about you, Noelia?
How's it going?
By the way, I wanted to ask you ...
I know what you mean.
Really? I didn't know that!
Ana: Try and use some of these phrases the next time you want to keep a conversation going in English. Bye for now!
Discussion
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I am from Myanmar. I used to live in Thailand. I can speak Thai but not much.
No, I am not living near the sea. i like to live near falls
let me think, actually i don't live near the sea although my province has sea boarder in north. i know what the question means. as a big city, Jakarta has not taken care its sea in a good way. Anyway, I love the sea. Last year, I got almost half a day by bus to find a lovely beach.
no ,actually i live in the mountains ,and i love it more than living near the sea .
hello community!
There is a phrase "That's a shame " in this video. I heard that this phrase is very old-fashioned and not really common nowadays.
Is that true?
thanks in advance
Hi alinchiko,
Actually, I think it is still quite commonly used. Here's a Google Ngram that shows its usage has actually increased over time: https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=that%27s+a+shame&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=26&smoothing=3
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team
No, I do not live near to the sea, but I really want
I want someday live by the sea, Now I live in Cairo, Egypt. I used to go to the sea every summer.
I used to live near by the sea when I was in Alexandria , now I am live in Cairo , EGYPT.
I have never lived near the sea, I am living in the country surrounded by mountains on all sides. I would love to spend some time with my loved ones near the sea and would enjoy the noise and waves of the sea.