business phrases for presentation

35 Best Business English Presentation Phrases

You know that feeling as your throat get tight and dry. You swallow... g ulp.

You begin to have those feelings that you know so well, as you feel...

Can you relate to that terrible feeling of having to give a presentation in English?

You are a business executive, and you know you are not supposed to feel this way as a leader of your company. But, just the thought of an upcoming presentation significantly raises your stress level.

Giving a great presentation in any language is difficult.

Giving a great presentation in English as a non-native English business executive is a more difficult task. The good news is that there are many SKILLS you can learn to become a very effective presenter.

Although there are a few key components of every good presentation, this article will focus on the importance of using the The 35 Most Effective Business Presentation Phrases.

Let’s first take a moment and look at what makes an effective presentation.

An Effective Presentation

There are a few essential components for an effective presentation. The first step is great preparation for your upcoming presentation.

Preparation

Preparation is the most important part of every presentation. Before you give any presentation, you must have a plan for success.

The first step is to Know Your Audience. Who are you presenting to?

What is the Message Your Audience Needs or wants to hear from you?

What Call to Action do you want to leave your audience with?

Only after you have planned your presentation, it is time to move on to the actual presentation, which will include the following three sections:

Introduction

As stated earlier, this article will focus on the 35 Most Effective Business Presentation Phrases . This list will create great transitions and allow your presentation to flow naturally so that your audience is engaged in each step of the process.

Beginning with your Introduction

Your goal for the beginning of your presentation is to connect and engage with your audience.

You have prepared by getting to know your audience and now you want to introduce your message to your audience in a way that your audience can RELATE to your message.

Please do not start your presentation with

“Hi, my name is ______”

As you are aware, I’m a believer in beginning your presentation in a way that will connect and engage with your audience. Let's look at three great ways to start your presentation.

An effective presentation will begin in one of these ways:

There are times when a more traditional greeting will be appropriate and in these situations, you can greet your audience and specifically address your audience.

1. It is a pleasure to be here with the _______ (group/team/association) this morning/afternoon/ evening...

Example Sentence: it is a please to be here with the Digital Marketing Association this morning.

2. A special welcome to the _________ (group/team/association)...

Example Sentence. A special welcome to the XYZ Manufacturing Association. 

After you have properly started your effective presentation with a question/story/statistic, you may say something like...

3. I'm ___________ and I'm so excited to be here with the ________________ (group/team/association).

Example Sentence: I'm John and I'm so excited to be here with the sales team today.

Remember, do not use the "I'm ____ and I'm going to talk about____" as your first words - you only can do this after you have made an engaging introduction!

After you have successfully introduced your presentation and engaged your audience, it is time to begin discussing the content of your presentation.

Transition from the Introduction to the Message

After you have given an engaging introduction and connected with your audience, you are ready to begin speaking about your topic.

Don't just read your slides to your audience. They will not be engaged. Instead, use your slides as a guide and the key is to move from one slide to the next in an interesting way . This is called a "transition" and most of the phrases in this section will help you transition like a pro.

After all, who wants to listen to a speaker continue to say:  Next... Next.... Next... Next???

Here are some effective ways to transition from the introduction to the content of your presentation.

Remember, an effective presentation includes you serving your audience with a message they need.

Tell your audience up front what the message of the presentation is.

4. As a member of ___________ (refer to the group/team/association) you can relate to today's message of _____________

Example sentence: As a member of the ABC Digital Marketing team, I'm confident you can relate to today's message of knowing your audience.

5. As you are aware...

Example Sentence: As you are aware, it is important to keep up with the latest trends in your industry.

6. Let me start by providing some background information...

Example sentence: Let me start by providing some background information on the newest technology tools available.

Each of these above phrases are useful ways to engage your audience by giving them information at the beginning that they can relate to.

Now, let's explore how you can use different phrases that help with your transitions, provide more details, link to additional topics, emphasize your points, refer to your important information/data/numbers, explain charts/tables/graphs and restate your points.

Transitioning to the Next Topic

Before you move on to your next point, be sure to make it clear to your audience that you’re now starting a new topic. Let them know exactly what that new topic will be. The two phrases below are very similar in meaning, and they can both be used for transitions.

These are SO much better than saying "next..."

7. Turning our attention now to...

Example sentence: Turning our attention now to the second main issue today... 

8. Let's move on to...

Example sentence: Let’s move on to our second sales initiative.

Providing More Details

One of the essential parts of your message is to give more detail to some sections of your content because it will be helpful to your audience.

Remember, the key is that you only go into more detail because you know your audience will be interested in this detail, and they can use this information.

9. To elaborate on...

Example sentence: Let me elaborate on this idea...

10. I'd like to expand on...

Example sentence: I’d like to expand on this point about expanding our sales team.

Linking to Another Topic

As mentioned above, use linking words to create flow with your presentations. Effective presentations have flow.

When you think of flow, think of looking at the water in a river at a specific spot. The water is moving. The water was somewhere before it came to this spot and it will flow to a different place after it passes this spot.

This is the same in a presentation. You keep your audience engaged using flow, by telling them about topics you discussed earlier, and also that you will discuss later in the presentation.

As you can see, I used a linking phrase "as mentioned above" in the first words of the first paragraph of this section above. This is the example of using linking words in written form.

Below (another written linking word), you will see how you can use a different linking phrase when you are speaking. 

11. As stated earlier.. .

Example sentence: As stated a few minutes earlier, our industry is changing rapidly.

12. As mentioned earlier...

Example sentence: As I mentioned earlier in my presentation, the key to effective communication is knowing your audience.

13. As referenced earlier...

Example sentence: As referenced at the beginning of my talk today, preparation is critically important.

Each of these three phrases are self-explanatory and the linking phrases remind your audience that you discussed something earlier.

Again, you can create nice flow for your audience when you discuss a point and then later in your presentation, while referencing that same point, you remind your audience that you did discuss this point earlier.  It can also be used to emphasize a point or theme.

14. As I mentioned at the beginning...

Example sentence: As I mentioned at the beginning of the presentation, we’ll see a decrease in expenses if we implement this strategy.

15. As you may recall, this relates to my earlier point that...

This phrase will help you connect points in your presentation. It shows the connection between two different ideas.

Example sentence: As you may recall, this point relates closely to the earlier point about the importance of accountability.

16. This ties in with...  

Example sentence: This ties in with the point I made earlier regarding the expansion of our manufacturing facility.

Explaining to your audience that you will be discussing something later in your presentation is a key aspect of using flow.

17. This point will be mentioned in a few minutes...

Example sentence: In a few minutes, it will go into more detail about emphasizing a point.

18. This important point will be discussed later in detail...

Example sentence: This important point about having a great conclusion will be discussed later in my talk today.

The two above mentioned phrases are very effective in guiding your audience to where you are going in your presentation.

19. In a few minutes, you will hear this from ________ (one of your team members)...

Example sentence: In a few minutes, you will hear from Susan Jones, our CFO, about the importance of financial forecasting.

This is a really nice way of creating flow when you are able to reference another presenter that will speak after you.

Emphasizing a Point

An essential part of all presentations is creating emphasis. Everything in your presentation is important, but you need to emphasize the most important parts for your audience. These phrases below are excellent. 

20. This is significant because...

Significant is one of my favorite words. It is another word for important. One of the keys of being an excellent communicator in English is using different words that have similar meanings.

Example sentence: This is significant because we are planning to grow our workforce 20% this year. 

21. This is meaningful for the following reason(s)..

Example sentence: This is meaningful because the implementation of this recommendation will have an impact on multiple departments in our organization.

22. To reinforce this point...

Example sentence: Showing the significance of a better hiring process reinforces this point I am making with this data. 

23. Please draw your attention to…..

Example sentence: Please draw your attention to the revenue growth projections on this page.

Referring to Information, Data and Numbers

Let's turn our attention now to referring to information and data. In a presentation, you will often use data, facts, and studies that help support your message. These meaningful terms and phrases will help you refer to this significant information.

24. According to the ___ study, ...

Example sentence: According to the XYZ study, 84% of workforce efficiency is tied to a meaningful benefit package.

25. Based on our recent findings, ...

Example sentence: Based on our recent findings, only 22% of our clients continue to use our services after six months. 

 26. This data shows …

Example sentence: This data shows that more than 92% of our clients continue to be highly satisfied with our customer service one year after they received our product. 

Before moving on the next section, you might find this article on How to Naturally Say Numbers and Dates in Business English helpful for your next presentation.

Explaining Charts, Tables and Graphs

Most presentations use charts, tables or graphs to help support your message. Knowing how to use phrases describing these will create an effective presentation. 

27. To illustrate this point... 

The word “illustrate” is very effective and it is a great word to use when you are describing a chart, table or graph. 

Example sentence: This chart illustrates my earlier point about how more meaningful benefits impact worker satisfaction. 

28. This table provides a breakdown of …

A “breakdown” refers to the details within specific figures or numbers.  A breakdown is helpful to provide a more detailed picture of the situation. .

Example sentence: This table provides a breakdown of the 10 most important client feedback messages.

Explaining charts, tables and graphs often involves complex information.  Below is a short video from the English Leadership Academy's Executive Video Blog, titled What if You Were Able to Explain Complex Ideas in a Simple Way? that gives tips and strategies to make complex information more easily understandable by your audience.

Restating Your Point

Sometimes in order to emphasize your point, you have to state it in a way that’s easier for your audience to understand and remember.

This process is commonly referred to as paraphrasing. Paraphrasing is an essential skill for non-native English speakers that allows them to say the same thing with different words to enhance communication effectiveness.

This often involves rephrasing, clarifying or simplifying the point you are trying to make.

29. In fact, …

Use this phrase to restate your point in another way.

Example sentence: In fact, it is necessary that we make a change to our current policy to attain this goal.

30. In other words...

Example sentence. In other words, we don't stack up well against our competitors in this area.

31. To put it simply, …

Explaining complex messages in a presentation can lead to confusion. Your audience will benefit when you simplify complex messages. 

Example sentence: To put it simply, if we follow these recommendations, we'll achieve our goals six months sooner.

To summarize, by this point in the presentation, you have given your audience the message they needed or wanted.

You have emphasized the points that are especially important to them.

You are now ready to finish your presentation in the best way!

Now we reach a crucial aspect of the presentation and let's finish strong.

Concluding Your Presentation

Most people spend a lot of time working on the introduction and content of their presentation, but they do not spend any time preparing for their conclusion.

As stated earlier, you are presenting for your audience because they have a need or a want.

To emphasize this point, it is a great idea to challenge your audience to THINK in a different way. It is even better to challenge your audience to DO something different in the future.

In other words, create a call to action!

Let's now look at how you can summarize your presentation in a professional way.

32. In the final analysis...  

Example sentence: In the final analysis, it is critical that the company needs to immediately enhance our sales strategy to achieve our quarterly targets.

33. In conclusion, let me reiterate my message...

As part of your conclusion, you might want to emphasize your main points to leave the audience with a clear message of what you discussed. This is very effective to restate your main message!

Example sentence: In conclusion, let me reiterate my earlier message that time is of the essence for our team to solve this issue in the next 10 days.

34. I want to challenge you to do/think ….

Example sentence: You've heard the compelling arguments for a new mindset shift, and now I challenge YOU to begin making the necessary changes in the next five days!

Finally, as you reach the end of your presentation, you'll need a transition from the completion of your presentation to the Question and Answer (Q&A) portion of your presentation.

35. Thank you for your attention today, and we’ve got time for a few questions. Who would like to ask the first question?

This is a nice phrase that let's your audience know you have concluded your formal remarks and you are open to answering a few questions.

I appreciate your attention to this topic today and now I'd like to leave you with a challenge below.

My Challenge to You

I challenge you to begin preparing your future presentations in a different and more effective way.

Can you use at least three of these above-mentioned phrases in your next presentation?

You can do this!

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52 Phrases for Better Flowing English Presentations

/ Steven Hobson / Business English , English Presentations , Vocabulary

Do you give English presentations at work, but feel that you could communicate your message in a more objective, fluid way?

Maybe you have an English presentation coming up and want to make sure that your speech is clear and structured so that your audience doesn’t lose concentration and stays with you all the way to the end.

A technique that can help you achieve objective, clear, and structured English presentations, is to use linking phrases that join the separate parts of your presentation together.

English presentations normally consist of an introduction, the main body, individual parts of the main body, and the ending or conclusion.

To help maintain your audience’s attention, you need to signal when you are going from one part to another.

In this article, I teach you 52 phrases that do exactly this – linking the different parts together, and therefore, making your presentation flow better. You’ll find that these phrases will act as ‘signposts’ for the audience when you finish one part and start another.

52 Phrases to Improve the Flow of Your English Presentations

The introduction.

All good presentations start with a strong introduction.

There are a number of different ways you can begin your English presentation. Here’s a simple, but effective introduction structure which works for most types of business presentations:

Introduce – Introduce yourself and greet your audience. Introduce the presentation topic – Explain the reasons for listening. Outline – Describe the main parts of the presentation. Question policy – Make it clear to your audience when they can ask questions: during or at the end?

Here are some phrases which you can use to structure the introduction in this way:

1. Good morning/afternoon (everyone) (ladies and gentlemen). 2. It’s a pleasure to welcome (the President) here. 3. I’m … (the Director of …)

Introduce the presentation topic

4. By the end of the talk/presentation/session, you’ll know how to… / …you will have learned about… / 5. I plan to say a few words about… 6. I’m going to talk about… 7. The subject of my talk is…

8. My talk will be in (three parts). 9. In the first part… 10. Then in the second part… 11. Finally, I’ll go on to talk about…

Question Policy

12. Please interrupt if you have any questions. 13. After my talk, there will be time for a discussion and any questions.

 Main Body

Now that you have finished the introduction, we now need to transition to the main body, and its individual parts in a smooth way.

There are three parts of the main body of a presentation where linking phrases can be used:

Beginning the Main Body Ending Parts within the Main Body Beginning a New Part

Here are some phrases which you can use for these parts:

Beginning the Main Body

14. Now let’s move to / turn to the first part of my talk which is about… 15. So, first… 16. To begin with…

Ending Parts within the Main Body

17. That completes/concludes… 18. That’s all (I want to say for now) on… 19. Ok, I’ve explained how…

Beginning a New Part

20. Let’s move to (the next part which is)… 21. So now we come to the next point, which is… 22. Now I want to describe… 23. Let’s turn to the next issue… 24. I’d now like to change direction and talk about…

Listing and Sequencing

If you need to talk about goals, challenges, and strategies in your English presentation, listing phrases can help link these together and improve the flow of your speech. If you have to explain processes, sequencing phrases are helpful:

25. There are three things to consider. First… Second… Third… 26. There are two kinds of… The first is… The second is… 27. We can see four advantages and two disadvantages. First, advantages… 28. One is… Another is… A third advantage is… Finally…

29. There are (four) different stages to the process. 30. First / then / next / after that / then (x) / after x there’s y. 31. There are two steps involved. The first step is… The second step is… 32. There are four stages to the project. 33. At the beginning, later, then, finally… 34. I’ll describe the development of the idea. First the background, then the present situation, and then the prospect for the future.

After you have presented the main body of your English presentation, you will want to end it smoothly.

Here are typical sections transitioning from the main body to the ending of the presentation, and then inviting the audience to ask questions:

Ending the Main Body Beginning the Summary and/or Conclusion Concluding An Ending Phrase Inviting Questions and/or Introducing Discussion Thanking the Audience

Ending the Main Body

35. Okay, that ends (the third part of) my talk. 36. That’s all I want to say for now on (the 2017 results).

Beginning the Summary and/or Conclusion

37. To sum up… 38. Ok, in brief, there are several advantages and disadvantages. 39. To conclude… 40. I’d like to end by emphasizing the main points. 41. I’d like to end with a summary of the main points.

42. I think we have seen that we should… 43. In my opinion, we should… 44. I recommend/suggest that we… 45. There are three reasons why I recommend this. First, … / Second, … / Finally,…

An Ending Phrase

46. Well, I’ve covered the points that I needed to present today. 47. That sums up (my description of the new model). 48. That concludes my talk for today.

Inviting Questions and/or Introducing Discussion

49. Now we have (half an hour) for questions and discussion. 50. So, now I’d be very interested to hear your comments.

Thanking the Audience

51. I’d like to thank you for listening to my presentation. 52. Thank you for listening / your attention. / Many thanks for coming.

Linking phrases are like the skeleton which holds your presentation together.

Not only do they improve the flow and help guide the audience, but by memorizing them they can also help you remember the general structure of your presentation, giving you increased confidence.

To help you memorize, I recommend saying the linking phrases on their own from the beginning to the end of your presentation while you practice.

I also suggest memorizing the introduction word for word. By doing this, you will get off to a great start, which will settle your nerves and transmit a positive first impression.

Whenever you’re ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

1. The Impactful English Academy : Join like-minded professionals from around the world in The Impactful English Academy. The comprehensive online courses will teach you the system and strategies I have used to help 100’s of professionals speak English more fluently, confidently and professionally. Click here to learn more.

2. One-to -one Coaching : Get access to my guidance and a customised program that has helped, managers, directors, CEO’s, doctors and Government officials worldwide transform into confident and articulate communicators in English. Click here to book a Discovery session with me.

3. Onsite and Online Company Training: Equip your team with the essential communication skills they need to thrive in today’s global marketplace. My tailored onsite and online training programs empower professionals to communicate effectively and confidently in English in international business environments. C lick here to schedule a meeting with me.

Author: Steven Hobson

Steven is a business English coach, a certified life coach, writer, and entrepreneur. He helps international professionals build confidence and improve fluency speaking English in a business environment.

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35 Best Business English Presentation Phrases [Executive English]

35 best business english presentation phrases.

Executive leaders do not give many presentations, but being confident in the 35 best business English presentation phrases will make each presentation memorable.

You know that feeling as your throat gets tight and dry. You swallow… g ulp.

And then you begin to have those feelings that you know so well, as you start to feel…

Can you relate to that terrible feeling of having to give a presentation in English?

You are a business executive, and you know you are not supposed to feel this way as a leader of your company. But, just the thought of an upcoming presentation significantly raises your stress level.

Giving a great presentation in any language is difficult.

Undoubtedly, giving a great presentation in English as a non-native English business executive is a more difficult task. The good news is that there are many SKILLS you can learn to become a very effective presenter.

Although there are a few key components of every good presentation, this article will focus on the importance of using  The 35 Most Effective Business Presentation Phrases.

Let’s first take a moment and look at what makes an effective presentation.

An Effective Presentation

It is important to realize that there are a few essential components for an effective presentation. The first step is great preparation for your upcoming presentation.

Preparation

Preparation is the most significant part of every presentation. Before you give any presentation, you must have a plan for success.

The first step is to Know Your Audience. Who are you presenting to?

What is the Message Your Audience Needs or wants to hear from you?

Finally, what Call to Action do you want to leave your audience with?

Only after you have planned your presentation, it is time to move on to the actual presentation, which will include the following three sections:

Introduction

As stated earlier, this article will focus on the 35 Most Effective Business Presentation Phrases . This list will create great transitions and allow your presentation to flow naturally so that your audience is engaged in each step of the process.

Beginning with your Introduction

Most important, your goal for the beginning of your presentation is to connect and engage with your audience.

At this point, you have prepared by getting to know your audience and now you want to introduce your message to your audience in a way that your audience can RELATE to your message.

Please do not start your presentation with

“Hi, my name is ______”

As you are aware, I’m a believer in beginning your presentation in a way that will connect and engage with your audience. Let’s look at three great ways to start your presentation.

An effective presentation will begin in one of these ways:

After you have started your presentation in this way, you can now greet your audience and introduce yourself, if necessary. 

1. It is a pleasure to be here with the _______ (group/team/association) this morning/afternoon/ evening…

Example Sentence: it is a pleasure to be here with the Digital Marketing Association this morning.

2. A special welcome to the _________ (group/team/association)…

Example Sentence. A special welcome to the XYZ Manufacturing Association. 

Following your good start of your effective presentation with a question/story/statistic, you will say something like…

3. I’m ___________ and I’m so excited to be here with the ________________ (group/team/association).

Example Sentence: I’m John and I’m so excited to be here with the sales team today.

Remember, do not use the “I’m ____ and I’m going to talk about____” as your first words – you only can do this after you have made an engaging introduction!

After you have successfully introduced your presentation and engaged your audience, it is time to begin discussing the content of your presentation.

Transition from the Introduction to the Message

After you have given an engaging introduction and connected with your audience, you are ready to begin speaking about your topic.

Don’t just read your slides to your audience. They will not be engaged. Instead, use your slides as a guide and the key is to move from one slide to the next in an interesting way . This is called a “transition” and most of the phrases in this section will help you transition like a pro.

After all, who wants to listen to a speaker continue to say:  Next… Next…. Next… Next, as they move from slide to slide???

Here are some effective ways to transition from the introduction to the content of your presentation.

Remember, an effective presentation includes you serving your audience with a message they need.

Tell your audience up front what the message of the presentation is.

4. As a member of ___________ (refer to the group/team/association) you can relate to today’s message of _____________

Example sentence: As a member of the ABC Digital Marketing team, I’m confident you can relate to today’s message of knowing your audience.

5. As you are aware…

Example Sentence: As you are aware, it is important to keep up with the latest trends in your industry.

6. Let me start by providing some background information…

Example sentence: Let me start by providing some background information on the newest technology tools available.

Each of these above phrases are useful ways to engage your audience by giving them information at the beginning that they can relate to.

Now, let’s explore how you can use different phrases that help with your transitions, provide more details, link to additional topics, emphasize your points, refer to your important information/data/numbers, explain charts/tables/graphs and restate your points.

Transitioning to the Next Topic

Before you move on to your next point, be sure to make it clear to your audience that you’re now starting a new topic. Let them know exactly what that new topic will be. The two phrases below are very similar in meaning, and they can both be used for transitions.

These are SO much better than saying “next…”

7. Turning our attention now to…

Example sentence: Turning our attention now to the second main issue today… 

8. Let’s move on to…

Example sentence: Let’s move on to our second sales initiative.

Providing More Details

In short, one of the essential parts of your message is to give more detail to some sections of your content because it will be helpful to your audience.

Remember, the key is that you only go into more detail because you know your audience will be interested in this detail, and they can use this information.

9. To elaborate on…

Example sentence: Let me elaborate on this idea…

10. I’d like to expand on…

Example sentence: I’d like to expand on this point about expanding our sales team.

Linking to Another Topic

As mentioned above, use linking words to create flow with your presentations. Effective presentations have flow.

Whenever you think of flow, think of looking at the water in a river at a specific spot. The water is moving. The water was somewhere before it came to this spot and it will flow to a different place after it passes this spot.

In the same manner, this is true in a presentation. You keep your audience engaged using flow, by telling them about topics you discussed earlier, and also that you will discuss later in the presentation.

As can be seen, I used a linking phrase “as mentioned above” in the first words of the first paragraph of this section above. This is the example of using linking words in written form.

Below (another written linking word), you will see how you can use a different linking phrase when you are speaking. 

11. As stated earlier.. .

Example sentence: As stated a few minutes earlier, our industry is changing rapidly.

12. As mentioned earlier…

Comparatively, here is an example sentence: As I mentioned earlier in my presentation, the key to effective communication is knowing your audience.

13. As referenced earlier…

Example sentence: As referenced at the beginning of my talk today, preparation is critically important.

Each of these three phrases are self-explanatory and the linking phrases remind your audience that you discussed something earlier.

Again, you can create nice flow for your audience when you discuss a point and then later in your presentation, while referencing that same point, you remind your audience that you did discuss this point earlier.  It can also be used to emphasize a point or theme.

14. As I mentioned at the beginning…

Example sentence: As mentioned at the beginning of the presentation, we’ll see a decrease in expenses if we implement this strategy.

15. As you may recall, this relates to my earlier point that…

This phrase will help you connect points in your presentation. Significantly, it shows the connection between two different ideas.

Example sentence: As you may recall, this point relates closely to the earlier point about the importance of accountability.

16. This ties in with…  

Example sentence: This ties in with the point I made earlier regarding the expansion of our manufacturing facility.

After all, explaining to your audience that you will be discussing something later in your presentation is a key aspect of using flow.

17. This point will be mentioned in a few minutes…

Example sentence: In a few minutes, I will go into more detail about emphasizing a point.

18. This important point will be discussed later in detail…

Example sentence: This important point about having a great conclusion will be discussed later in my talk today.

The two above mentioned phrases are very effective in guiding your audience to where you are going in your presentation.

19. In a few minutes, you will hear this from ________ (one of your team members)…

Example sentence: In a few minutes, you will hear from Susan Jones, our CFO, about the importance of financial forecasting.

The above sentence is a very effective way of creating flow when you are able to reference another presenter that will speak after you.

At this point, do you see how you might use some of these 35 best business English presentation phrases when you give your next talk?

Emphasizing a Point

An essential part of all presentations is creating emphasis. Everything in your presentation is important, but you need to emphasize the most significant parts for your audience. These phrases below are excellent. 

20. This is significant because…

Significant is one of my favorite words. It is another word for important. One of the keys of being an excellent communicator in English is using different words that have similar meanings.

Example sentence: This is significant because we are planning to grow our workforce 20% this year. 

21. This is meaningful for the following reason(s)..

In the same manner, here is an example sentence: This is meaningful because the implementation of this recommendation will have an impact on multiple departments in our organization.

22. To reinforce this point…

Example sentence: Showing the significance of a better hiring process reinforces this point I am making with this data. 

23. Please draw your attention to…..

Example sentence: Please draw your attention to the revenue growth projections on this page.

Referring to Information, Data and Numbers

Let’s turn our attention now to referring to information and data. In a presentation, you will often use data, facts, and studies that help support your message. These meaningful terms and phrases will help you refer to this significant information.

24. According to the ___ study, …

Example sentence: According to the XYZ study, 84% of workforce efficiency is tied to a meaningful benefit package.

25. Based on our recent findings, …

Example sentence: Based on our recent findings, only 22% of our clients continue to use our services after six months. 

 26. This data shows …

Example sentence: This data shows that more than 92% of our clients continue to be highly satisfied with our customer service one year after they received our product. 

Before moving on the next section, you might find this article on How to Naturally Say Numbers in Business English helpful for your next presentation.

Explaining Charts, Tables and Graphs

Of course, most presentations use charts, tables or graphs to help support your message. To clarify, knowing how to use phrases describing these will create an effective presentation. 

27. To illustrate this point… 

Also, the word “illustrate” is very effective and it is a great word to use when you are describing a chart, table or graph. 

Example sentence: This chart illustrates my earlier point about how more meaningful benefits impact worker satisfaction. 

28. This table provides a breakdown of …

A “breakdown” refers to the details within specific figures or numbers.  A breakdown is helpful to provide a more detailed picture of the situation. 

Example sentence: This table provides a breakdown of the 10 most important client feedback messages.

Another key point is that explaining charts, tables and graphs often involves complex information.  Below is a short video from the English Leadership Academy’s Executive Video Blog, titled What if You Were Able to Explain Complex Ideas in a Simple Way? that gives tips and strategies to make complex information more easily understandable by your audience.

Restating Your Point

Sometimes in order to emphasize your point, you have to state it in a way that’s easier for your audience to understand and remember.

Specifically this process is commonly referred to as paraphrasing. Paraphrasing is an essential skill for non-native English speakers that allows them to say the same thing with different words to enhance communication effectiveness.

This often involves rephrasing, clarifying or simplifying the point you are trying to make.

29. In fact, …

Use this phrase to restate your point in another way.

Example sentence: In fact, it is necessary that we make a change to our current policy to attain this goal.

30. In other words…

Example sentence. In other words, we don’t stack up well against our competitors in this area.

31. To put it simply, …

Explaining complex messages in a presentation can lead to confusion. Your audience will benefit when you simplify complex messages. 

Example sentence: To put it simply, if we follow these recommendations, we’ll achieve our goals six months sooner.

To summarize, by this point in the presentation, you have given your audience the message they needed or wanted.

You have emphasized the points that are especially important to them.

You are now ready to finish your presentation in the best way!

Now we reach a crucial aspect of the presentation and let’s finish strong.

Concluding Your Presentation

Most people spend a lot of time working on the introduction and content of their presentation, but they do not spend any time preparing for their conclusion.

As stated earlier, you are presenting for your audience because they have a need or a want.

To emphasize this point, it is a great idea to challenge your audience to THINK in a different way. It is even better to challenge your audience to DO something different in the future.

In other words, create a call to action!

Let’s now look at how you can summarize your presentation in a professional way.

32. In the final analysis…  

Example sentence: In the final analysis, it is critical that the company needs to immediately enhance our sales strategy to achieve our quarterly targets.

33. In conclusion, let me reiterate my message…

As part of your conclusion, you might want to emphasize your main points to leave the audience with a clear message of what you discussed. This is very effective to restate your main message!

Example sentence: In conclusion, let me reiterate my earlier message that time is of the essence for our team to solve this issue in the next 10 days.

34. I want to challenge you to do/think ….

Example sentence: You’ve heard the compelling arguments for a new mindset shift, and now I challenge YOU to begin making the necessary changes in the next five days!

Finally, as you reach the end of your presentation, you’ll need a transition from the completion of your presentation to the Question and Answer (Q&A) portion of your presentation.

35. Thank you for your attention today, and we’ve got time for a few questions. Who would like to ask the first question?

This is a nice phrase that let’s your audience know you have concluded your formal remarks and you are open to answering a few questions.

In addition to the above phrases, you might find this article helpful as well 25 Powerful English Presentation Phrases to Impress Your Audience.

I appreciate your attention to this topic today and now I’d like to leave you with a challenge below.

My Challenge to You

I challenge you to begin preparing your future presentations in a different and more effective way.

Above, you have been provided with 35 best business English presentation phrases.  Can you use at least three of these above-mentioned phrases in your next presentation?

You can do this!

Additional articles and videos related to 35 Best Business English Presentation Phrases:

Confidently Speak English As A CEO in 4 Steps

How To Improve Your Executive Business English in 12 Steps

How to Be the Same Highly Effective Leader in English That You are in You Native Language  [free ebook]

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200+ Essential Business English Phrases and Idioms

If you want to succeed in the connected world of business, English is a very important language to know.

That’s why it’s a good idea to know at least some important business English phrases and idioms. 

In this guide, you’ll learn many useful expressions and tips that you can use in any workplace that has English speakers.

Common Business English Phrases and Idioms

Phrases for business communication, expressions about teamwork, expressions about time management, expressions about money and finances, phrases when working on business projects, how to speak during conference calls, how to make an excellent presentation, how to make negotiations, how to politely suggest ideas and solutions, how to improve business english speaking skills, and one more thing....

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

1. Get a business off the ground

The business has been registered with its own name, the employees are hired and the product or service is ready to be offered to the public. In other words, the owner got his or her business off the ground.

• “After finding the right investors and securing enough capital (money to start with), we finally got our business off the ground and opened our first store in Toronto.”

2. From the ground up

Similar to the last one, if you build a business or project from zero or from the bottom, you’re starting from the ground up .

• “Have you read the news about the enterprising 12-year-old who’s building her business from the ground up ?”

3. Long shot

Imagine you’re throwing a dart at a target from a long distance. What are the chances of it hitting the bullseye (the exact center of the target)?

A long shot is an idiom that’s used to describe something that has a very small chance of happening or succeeding.

• “Landing such a high-paying job is a long shot but I’m still going to give it a try.”

4. Bring to the table

To  bring  [something]  to the table means to bring something of use or value (skills, experience, etc.) to a job or business activity (project, meeting, etc.).

• “We need someone on the team who can bring  project management experience  to the table .”

5. Learning the ropes

Imagine that you’re on a sailboat. The first thing you would learn is how to tie knots and work the sails. In other words, you would learn how all the ropes work!

To learn the ropes means to learn how to do your job or a particular task, especially if you have no previous experience. Because of this, it’s commonly used when referring to new employees in training.

If you instead say “to teach someone the ropes,” you can use it to describe a boss or more senior person helping a new employee understand their role and responsibilities.

• “Hey Paul, how’s your new job?” “It’s great but I’ve only been there for two weeks so I’m still learning the ropes .”
• “I’ve got a great manager who’s been teaching me the ropes, so I’m learning quickly!”

6. Learning curve

A  learning curve is used to describe the progress needed to gain experience or learn a new skill set. A steep learning curve indicates the task may be difficult and therefore take more effort.

You can imagine a chart showing a curving line—if it goes up quickly, then it looks like a big hill or mountain.

• “She is welcome to join our team, but there will be a steep learning curve .”

7. Go the extra mile

To  go the extra mile  means to give more effort or do more than what’s expected of you.

• “Anyone would be glad to have Pam on their team. She’s a great team player and is always willing to go the extra mile .”

8. A win-win situation

You might hear that something is a win-win situation, or that something is win-win in both business and regular English. It describes a situation where everybody involved in the event or deal “wins.” Each person gains benefits from the outcome.

In business, it’s often used during negotiations or trades, where both parties receive something that they need from the other.

• “The deal is simple, we give them office space and they give us the new equipment that we need.” “It sounds like a win-win situation to me!” 

9. Overplay your hand

Be careful that you don’t  overplay your hand . Being too confident about your work or showing off too much can lower your chance of success.

This saying comes from card games like poker, where players should always be careful not to show too many of their cards all at once.

• “My cousin overplayed his hand and ended up losing his job.”

10. Get down to business

Business meetings usually begin with some small talk while waiting for everyone to arrive. When it’s time to start seriously focusing on the actual work, it’s time to  get down to business .

• “We’ve got plenty of topics to cover in today’s meeting so let’s get down to business .”

11. Get down to brass tacks

Again: let’s get on with the business at hand. You might hear this at the start of a business meeting, after some brief introductions or socializing.

One possible reason for saying “brass tacks” is because long ago, brass-metal tacks were used as the most basic, required things to hold up furniture.

• “Now that everyone’s here, let’s get down to brass tacks .”

12. A ballpark number / figure / estimate

This phrase, like many other business expressions, is related to sports. The ballpark is the sports ground or stadium where baseball is played.

Giving a ballpark figure means giving an estimate of the value, time or number of something. It’s used when the specific amount or number is not yet known or agreed upon but an estimate is required.

A ballpark is very large! So, this expression is specifically used for giving a very rough estimate or a large range in value.

• “To give you a ballpark figure, the new project will take between one and three months to complete.”

13. The bottom line

You may know that the last or bottom line on a financial statement is the most important. It shows the total profit or loss. So the phrase the bottom line is used to refer to the final outcome or the most important point to consider.

• “It’s true that we’re very short-handed, but the bottom line is we must still deliver the project on time.”

14. Smooth sailing

Think of the business as a sailboat. The skies are blue and the water is calm. When everything is going well and without any problems, we call it smooth sailing . The opposite situation can be called rough waters .

• “Once the company overcame the country’s bureaucracy, it was  smooth sailing from then on.”

15. The big picture

The big picture means to look at the overall view of something, or the situation as a whole and not the smaller details.

• “I think his presentation was too long and detailed. He should’ve just given us the big picture .”

16. In a nutshell

Have you seen a nutshell? Think of how small it is and how little it can hold. So, in a nutshell  means in summary, or in as few words as possible.

• “This book is about successful businesspeople and how they reached the top. In a nutshell , it’s about how to grow a successful business.”

17. Gray area

When you say that something is black and white , it means that there’s a very clear right side and wrong side.

The color gray is between black and white. When something is in a gray area , it means the situation isn’t certain. In a gray area there are no clear rules and it’s hard to say if it’s right or wrong.

• “You have many good points in your proposal but there’s one gray area we need to discuss.”

18. Red tape

Red tape refers to strong regulations and rules that you need to follow before you can get your work done. They can make things extra challenging for any worker.

• “Our project is stalled because we ran into some red tape .”

19. The wrong end of the stick

The wrong end of the stick refers to a total misunderstanding of a situation, plan or idea.

• “Jackie’s not in charge of this project… Mark is. Seems like you got the wrong end of the stick .”

20. Walking papers

If you’re given your walking papers , it means you have received a notice that you’re being fired or laid off from your job.

• “Did you hear? The boss just gave Brett his walking papers !”

21. Back to square one

Back to square one means to start over, or to go back to the beginning.

• “I wish I’d saved my spreadsheet before the server crashed. Now I have to go back to square one .”

22. Call it a day

When your work has been completed for the day, or when you decide to stop working on an activity, you can call it a day .

• “Now that we’ve completed the outline for the new project, let’s call it a day .” 

1. Word of mouth

Word of mouth refers to the spread of information verbally (by speaking). In regards to business, it usually refers to people telling other people about your business, product or service.

Note that this expression is commonly used to talk positively about something.

If someone has a good experience with your product, then they may tell their friend about it, and that friend might tell another friend and so on—and before long, everyone is talking about your product! This is known as word-of-mouth marketing.

• “Hi, if you don’t mind me asking, how did you find out about our shop?” “I heard about it through word of mouth . Everybody kept telling me how great your products are!”

2. Touch base

This is another business phrase that comes from a sport. In baseball, the bases are where the batter runs to after striking the ball. In business English, to touch base means to briefly connect with or re-contact someone.

This contact is often short and just used to check in with somebody. For example, if you’re working with a colleague on a project, you can touch base with them about their progress or about a part of the project that you’re waiting for them to finish.

This expression is often used in emails.

• “Hi Sarah, I just wanted to touch base with you to see if we’re still scheduled to complete the first phase of the project by next Monday.”

3. On the same page

To be on the same page means to be in agreement or to hold the same views about something with others.

This is a very common English expression and is used in both everyday English and business English.

You might also hear this expression as a question: “Are we on the same page?” This is the same as asking, “Do we agree?”

• “Next month we need to cut spending by 20%. Are we all on the same page about this?”

4. Play hardball

Anyone who  plays hardball is tough, unchanging and will not take “no” for an answer. Negotiating with these types can be a real challenge!

• “Joe’s the nicest guy I know, but he can play hardball when he needs to.”

5. Generate buzz

When a company uses marketing strategies and gets people talking about a product, possibly even before it’s released, it’s called to generate buzz . 

When thousands of people talk about a company, they are buzzing and making noise like bees. When people talk, there’s a better chance that they will go check out what all the buzz is about.

• “Before its summer release, the movie was already generating a lot of buzz in the media.”

To meet up means to come together to talk. It usually means having a short, informal meeting with a small group of people.

It’s often used with prepositions such as “in,” “at” and “with” to tell where, at what time or with whom you will meet up.

• “Since we have a few problems to discuss, let’s  meet up  in my office.”

7. Schedule a meeting

A schedule is a plan of times and events, but it can also be used as a verb. To schedule means to plan a date and time for a certain event.

To schedule a meeting means to choose a date, time and place to meet with another person or a group of people.

• “Let’s schedule a meeting for this Tuesday to discuss any problems.”

1. There’s no “I” in team

There’s no “I” in team means that no one particular person takes all the credit for the achievements of a group effort. It’s kind of a cute phrase because the word “team” is truly not spelled using the letter “I.”

• “ There’s no “I” in team ; we failed at this project together.”

2. Team player

Lots of companies want to hire strong team players . They want someone who gets along well with others and supports a collaborative work environment.

• “I love doing projects with Kate because she’s such a great team player .”

3. Step up to the plate

Here’s another of those baseball-themed business English expressions! Imagine now a baseball player going up to the home plate to bat. It’s a very important moment that can be pretty scary.

If you  step up to the plate , you take on a role or responsibility—usually a difficult one that others don’t want. This is a quality that companies look for in strong leaders.

• “After the sales numbers dropped last quarter, David really stepped up to the plate and turned things around for the company.”

4. Pass the buck

When you  pass the buck , you make excuses and pass blame to someone else if things don’t go as planned. Someone who passes the buck probably isn’t a great team player, and they’re definitely not a good leader.

• “Josh lost us that client, but he tried to pass the buck to Samuel.”

5. Form a team

It means gathering a group of people to work on the project.

• “The first thing a project manager does is  form a team of staff who are best for the project.”

6. Team up with

Similarly to the above, it means joining together to work as a team.

• “Sometimes on a big project, you may need to  team up with other companies.”

7. Pitch in

To pitch in means to join in to help with a job or project.

• “Everyone will have to  pitch in their ideas. We need each team member to share five ideas at the meeting on Monday.”

1. From day one

This means “since the beginning.” You often hear the phrase  from day one  used in the workplace to talk about something that has been true since the very first day a project or business began.

• “We need to hire more people immediately. We’ve been short-handed from day one .”

2. The eleventh hour

The eleventh hour is used to describe something that’s done or happens very close to the end or deadline. Think of 11 p.m. being just one hour away from 12 a.m., the start of the next day.

• “The project manager won’t be pleased about them changing the design at the eleventh hour .”

3. Need it yesterday

If your manager says, “I need it yesterday,” they don’t expect you to make a time machine. What your manager really means, “This should have been done sooner. I need it right now.”

• “Where is that report? I need it yesterday . I’m going to be late for the meeting now.”

ASAP is an acronym for “as soon as possible.” Unsurprisingly, in business contexts, you’ll hear ASAP quite often—it’s as common in administrative vocabulary as in marketing and everywhere else!

• “Please tell Mr. Huang to call his client back ASAP .”

When under pressure, many employees say they are working 24/7: 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This doesn’t mean they are actually working all day, every day, of course.

The term  24/7 is used to express hard work and long hours, usually to avoid finishing projects at the eleventh hour.

• “This marketing project is killing me. I’ve been working 24/7 and it just won’t end!”

6. To pencil it in

This expression is used to talk about setting a date for an upcoming event—like a meeting, presentation or lunch—that might not actually happen on the scheduled time or date.

Since you’re only using a pencil (and not something more permanent like a pen), you’re leaving open the possibility of canceling or rescheduling the event.

• “Hi Maria, can we meet next Tuesday at 1 p.m. to chat about the upcoming campaign?” “I’m not too sure about my schedule. Let’s pencil it in  and see closer to the date, ok?”

7. Start from scratch

This term is used when you need to start something new from nothing. It can also be used when you redo something from the beginning.

• “Since we will be  starting from scratch  on this project, we will make the plan as we go along.”

8. Define the phases

This expression means to break down the project into smaller parts, or phases.

A phase is one part in a series of actions or events. For example, in a library project, the design phase comes before the building phase.

• “We must wait for the project team to define the phases before we can start work.”

9. Set deadlines

A deadline is a date or time when a completed job is due. So, to set a deadline means to mark the time when something should be done.

• “We have set deadlines for each phase except the design phase. Does anyone know how long the design will take?”

10. Meet the deadline

To meet a deadline  means that you finish the task by the deadline. For example, say you need to send in your job application by Friday at 3:00.

To meet the deadline, you send in your job application on Friday at noon. If you send in your job application on Friday at 4:00, you did not meet the deadline (because you were too late).

• “We may have to work longer hours to  meet the deadline .”

11. Behind schedule

It means that something is overdue or will be done later than planned.

If your project was due on Monday, but it’s now Thursday, you’re behind schedule . The project was supposed to be finished by now, but you’re still working on it.

• “When the project manager hears that the project is behind schedule , she will want to know the reason why.”

12. Ahead of schedule

To be completed earlier than planned. 

Imagine that today is Monday and your project is due on Friday. If you finish it tomorrow, on Tuesday, then you’ve finished it early and are ahead of schedule.

• “The project manager is happy that the project is ahead of schedule and thanked the team for their hard work.”

13. According to schedule

It means that everything is going as planned, with no delays or time-wasting.

• “If the project goes according to schedule , you can expect a nice bonus this year.”

14. On schedule

Related to the above, this phrase means that you’re finishing each task on time and not expecting any delays.

• “If we can solve all these problems quickly, we will still be on schedule to finish the project by the end of this month.”

15. Target date

It means to have a date to complete something by that time. It’s similar to a deadline, but it’s not as strict.

• “If we keep missing the  target dates , this project will not be completed on time.”

1. On a shoestring

When you do something  on a shoestring , you’re working on a tight budget or with very little money.

• “It’s going to be a challenge doing such a big project on a shoestring but we’ll try our best.”

2. Sleeping partner

This is a person closely connected to the company who may even be financing it, but there is no—I repeat, no —romance going on.

A  sleeping partner  gets this term because they’re not actively helping to manage the company, though they are invested in it.

Another term for this is  silent partner .

• “Oh, he doesn’t really have any say in the way we work. He’s just a sleeping partner .”

3. Cash cow

Cash cow is a term for a product or investment that provides a steady (or the most) income, usually an amount that is much more than the cost of startup.

For example, the Coca-Cola company sells a lot of products from juices to teas to energy drinks, but the original Coke is likely their cash cow.

• “These new products are just additional profit. The cash cow is our line of cameras.”

4. Deep pockets

Someone with deep pockets has a lot of money to spare. Big pockets have a lot of space for carrying money!

For a company, this can be help in the form of a wealthy investor or group of investors.

• “Let’s ask Mrs. Henderson for help. She has deep pockets .”

5. Go belly up

If a project or business goes  belly up , it has failed to generate profit. This could result in bankruptcy or  the company going into receivership . You can guess the meaning if you understand what it means when an animal (like a fish) has its stomach facing up.

• “That new restaurant closed down already because they went belly up .”

6. Take a bath

Taking a bath can be a refreshing, relaxing thing. But not in the business world.

If you  take a bath , it means you suffered a heavy financial loss.

• “The landlord is taking a bath on his property. He has no tenants!”

7. Tighten your belt

Just swap the word “belt” for “budget,” and this will be easy to remember. If you  tighten your belt , you’re cutting extra costs and trying to keep your budget lean (small; skinny).

If your company took a bath and losses are severe, it could lead to cuts being made. The company and employees will have to tighten their belts, or reduce how much money is spent.

• “We’re going to have to tighten our belts . Unfortunately, our sales last month weren’t as nearly as high as usual.”

8. A slice of the pie

When profits soar (go up), you can guarantee employees will be looking for a share of the wealth, or a slice of the pie . This business English expression simply refers to a portion of profits or benefits.

You can also say a slice of the cake .

• “She wants a bigger slice of the pie because she knows she’s the best employee.”

9. The lion’s share

The lion’s share  is the “bulk” or “majority” of something.

Many well-run businesses reward hard work and it’s only right that those employees who put in the most time, energy and effort should receive the lion’s share , or the bulk of the profits.

• “Paul has been here for 25 years and definitely gets the lion’s share around here.”

10. Golden handcuffs

These aren’t police tools. G olden handcuffs are financial incentives (bait, encouragement) given to employees in order to persuade them not to leave a company.

• “Unlocking your golden handcuffs will give you much greater peace of mind.”

11. Golden handshake

Many executives have golden handshake clauses in their contracts. A golden handshake is a financial package that the executive will receive if they lose their job.

• “Mr. Smith’s golden handshake served him well. He got $100,000 when he left the company last year.”

12. Kickbacks

The corporate world is tough. It may be tempting to beat out the competition by giving kickbacks , or payments for special favors (like winning a contract).

But kickbacks are often unethical (dishonest) or even illegal—especially if they could be classified as bribes !

• “The company is facing a government investigation because they think the executives are getting illegal kickbacks .”

13. Create a budget

To make a plan on the amount of money to spend and how to spend it.

• “We need to create a budget that includes the travel expenses of the project team.”

14. Stay on budget

To keep within the amount of money you plan to use, and refuse to spend more.

Here is yet another phrase where the noun,  budget , can’t be used in its plural form (budgets).

For example:

• “The project manager has reminded us that to stay on budget , we must remember to keep the costs as low as possible.”

15. Increase the budget

To add more money to the amount you planned to spend.

The opposite of this phrase is to decrease the budget,  which means to take away from the amount of money that you planned to spend.

• “Management has agreed to increase the budget to cover the cost of testing the new car.”

1. Back to the drawing board

To go back to the drawing board  means to start over, and look at a failed idea in a new way. You can also use this phrase when you need to rethink a decision.

This expression is commonly used to motivate a team of employees to rework a failure. You can imagine a group of employees removing a failed design from a whiteboard and drawing a new idea. They are starting again by literally going back to the drawing board!

• “We didn’t sell any units of our new product.” “OK, let’s go back to the drawing board and design a new one.” 

2. To brainstorm an idea

To brainstorm an idea is to openly discuss an idea with your colleagues in a relaxed and free environment.

This is commonly called a  brainstorming session or simply brainstorming. The purpose of brainstorming in business is to explore ideas in an open-minded and non-judgmental environment.

• “Hi everyone, in this meeting we’re going to brainstorm ideas for this year’s new product. Please feel free to share any ideas you have.”

3. Give the green light

When you’re driving and the traffic light turns from red to green, what do you do? You move ahead, because green means go.

To give the green light term means to give the signal to begin. You can go ahead and now begin the project.

• “We can’t start the project until management  gives the green light .”

4. Kick off

To kick off means to officially start the project. This phrase is also used in sports.

In football and soccer, the game will  kick off  (begin) when a player kicks the ball to start play.

• “As soon as we kick off the project, we will be very busy.”

5. To think outside the box

To think outside the box means to think in a creative way that is not typical or traditional. You can use this expression in business when you’re talking about ideas.

If someone tells you to think outside the box, then they’re telling you to think of a creative solution or idea that may be unexpected or not obvious.

You can imagine the “box” as a traditional and obvious solution and outside the box as a more creative or abstract solution.

• “For our new advertising campaign, we really had to think outside of the box to come up with something that hadn’t been done before.”

6. Fifty-fifty

Fifty-fifty  simply means dividing something into equal parts so that both parties get 50%.

• “Since I’m as busy as you are, let’s split the work for this project fifty-fifty .”

7. Get the ball rolling

This phrase means to start a new project or business activity. You can imagine the sports of bowling or soccer for this expression.

It can also be used to describe a small action that leads to the beginning of something. This usually starts with one person. For example, a person can get the ball rolling by doing a small task that will eventually become part of a bigger project.

• “For our meeting today, Allie will get the ball rolling by talking about our budget goals for this quarter.”

8. Hit the ground running

To hit the ground running is to begin a task or project with lots of energy and enthusiasm. The expression is commonly used when talking about a new project or idea that requires immediate, fast and lively action.

It’s also used when talking about taking advantage of an opportunity.

• “We really need to hit the ground running with this idea and get our product on the shelves before someone else does.”

10. Corner the market

When a company becomes more successful than their competitors in developing a product or service, we say they have cornered the market. It’s another way of saying they control the market.

Think of this business as a boxer in the ring. It’s got its opponent in the corner, who can’t move out of the way. Its opponent can only put their gloves up in defense.

• “In only a short time, the company has been able to corner the  high-definition television  market .”

11. Behind the scenes

The behind the scenes of a movie or show shows you the people, tools and directions that are used to make the set.

 In business, this phrase is used to describe something, usually work, that’s done or that happens away from public view.

• “Organizing a roadshow may look easy, but do you have any idea how much hard work we’ve put in behind the scenes ?”

12. Knuckle down

Your boss doesn’t want you to chit-chat and waste time! They want you to  knuckle down , or concentrate on your work and get it done.

• “All right, quit joking around. We need to knuckle down and finish this report.”

13. Run around in circles

To  run around in circles  means to keep doing something without achieving any real results. In other words, you’re doing a lot of unnecessary work but not getting anywhere.

• “The deadline is coming up, but we’ve been running around in circles because the client keeps changing their mind about the design.”

14. Get up to speed

Did you take some time off from work? Or, did you miss the last meeting?

Either way, you’ll have to get up to speed with everything that you need to know. This expression means to catch up on information, changes or updates that you have missed.

You can also say that the person who is teaching you the missing information is bringing you up to speed.

• “It didn’t take me long to get up to speed  with the new laws as my co-worker explained them to me perfectly.” 

15. To keep an eye on the ball

Imagine you have stepped into the stadium with the baseball bat in your hand. Thousands of people are cheering your name but, in your head, you’re thinking about one thing: You need to keep your eye on the ball.

To keep an eye on the ball means to focus on your task or goal closely. It can also be used to encourage someone to pay attention or to watch out.

• “When it comes to business negotiations, you really need to keep an eye on the ball .”

16. Hands are tied

If red tape  causes a delay in your project, you’ll have to tell your manager that your  hands are tied . There’s just nothing you can do about the unfortunate situation.

• “Sorry, we have to extend the deadline. The client hasn’t returned my call yet and my hands are tied .”

17. Go down the drain

A drain is a hole where liquids and waste are sent away. For example, there’s a drain in your sink, shower and toilet.

To  go down the drain  means that your effort, work or money is wasted or lost.

• “If this sales campaign doesn’t succeed, all our hard work will go down the drain .”

18. By the book

Doing something  by the book  means doing it strictly according to the rules, policies or the law.

• “I don’t think John will listen to your suggestion. He insists on doing everything by the book .”

19. Above board

You want to do things  above board (the ethical and honest way) in business.

• “We only do things above board here. If you want a job, you need to apply like everyone else.”

20. To cut corners

If you’re cutting corners, then you’re not giving your project everything that you should. It means skipping some steps to reach an outcome as quickly or as cheaply as possible.

It’s used in a negative way, because something that’s done by cutting corners might be missing an important part, use cheap materials or not be as good quality overall.

• “The company cut corners when making their camera, so it’s very cheap but it stops working after a few months of use.”

21. Put a plan into action

This phrase is used when you want to say that you’re starting to use a plan or idea. 

• “If we put this plan into action , we may need more time and more people.”

22. Plan ahead

To think carefully before taking action.

• “The project manager’s advice is to plan ahead so that the project will go smoothly.”

23. Make a plan

To create a way to do something.

• “How should we advertise this new product? Let’s make a plan now.”

24. Stick to the plan

To refuse to change from what you have decided, no matter what happens.

For example, you and your friend have decided to go to a movie Friday night. On Friday afternoon, your friend calls to say there is a sale at your favorite store.

She asks if you want to go shopping instead. You decide to  stick to the plan ,  meaning that you will still go watch the movie.

• “Changing the design now will take too much time. Let’s just stick to the plan .”

25. Review the plan

To inspect or look carefully again at the plan.

• “If we want to include all these new ideas, we will need to review the plan .”

26. Tasked with

The verb  to task  means to give a task (small job) to someone. However, this verb is almost always used in the passive form with the preposition “with,” which looks like this:  have/has been tasked with .

In that form, the whole phase means to be given a task.

For example, if I have been tasked with calling 20 clients today, that means someone else gave me the job of calling 20 clients.

• “Your team has been tasked with finding out why there are so many customer complaints.”

27. Outsource a task

The verb  to outsource  means to send out the company’s work to someone outside the company.

For example, if you own a small restaurant, you may cook the food yourself but  outsource  the desserts to be made by a local baker.

• “Since the project team is busy, it might be a good idea to outsource some tasks to another company.”

28. Target to complete

The phrase is used when you plan to finish something.

• “We must target to complete  phase 1 before the year-end holidays when most people will be on vacation.”

29. Achieve the target

To succeed in reaching a goal.

• “The project team can expect a free lunch if they achieve the target this month.”

29. Wrap up the project

To wrap it up is a common English expression that means to finish up something. So to wrap up the project means to finish the project.

• “Okay, everyone, let’s check all the paperwork and clean up the project room, then we’ll be ready to  wrap up the project .”

30. Sign off the project

To formally approve and accept the project as finished.

• “All that remains now is to  sign off the project and take the whole project team out to celebrate.”

In the workplace, meetings are all about listening and letting people know that you understand what is being talked about.

It’s a good idea in business meetings to speak as clearly as possible and to be firm (strong) but not rude or pushy.

It can be easy to seem pushy if you do not add the all-important “please” and “thank you” to your phrases. These polite terms go a long way in business English.

Beginning a conference call

You will either hear these phrases or need to use them yourself while talking to people on a conference call.

• “Let’s give everyone a few more minutes to join.”
• “Are we all on?”
• “Can I ask that we all state our names, please?”
• “I’m here. It’s [your name] in [your city].”
• “Can everybody hear me?”

These are useful phrases to check if everyone is present and has joined the conversation. When asked, just respond “yes” and give your name and position, or job at the company.

If you’re using a video conference program, like Google Hangouts or Zoom, it may not be needed to give your name since others can see your information through your video icon. However, it’s still good manners to say hello to everyone when you join.

You can use these phrases to get started:

• “Good morning / afternoon / evening, everyone.”
• “Hi everybody. Thanks for joining us today.”

It’s also common to hear a bit of small talk before the actual meeting begins. Some phrases you might use or hear spoken are:

• “How’s everyone doing today?”
• “How’s the weather where you are?”
• “Did everyone have a good weekend?”

Note that you may not receive actual answers to these questions. They are mostly rhetorical questions (questions that you do not have to actually answer). Most likely, you will get a few nods or a simple reply like “I’m doing fine, thanks.” Despite this, it’s polite to ask and can help fill the silence before the actual meeting begins.

When it’s time for the meeting to start, the person who is leading the meeting will signal that everybody should quiet down and listen up. Listen for these phrases:

• “Okay, everyone, let’s get started.”
• “It looks like we’re all here.”
• “Thank you all for being here. Let’s talk about today’s objective.”

Asking for clarification during a conference call

When talking on a conference call, there is a chance that your internet connection will be poor, or that the quality of the call will be bad. In these cases, you might miss out on something that someone said.

This happens to native speakers, as well! You should always ask for clarification when you’re not sure, or else you may become more confused or misunderstand completely. Here are some phrases that you can use to make sure you do not miss anything important:

• “Could you speak more slowly, please?”
• “Could you repeat that, please?”
• “Would you mind spelling that for me, please?”
• “Could you explain that in another way, please?”
• “I’m afraid I didn’t get that.”
• “I’m sorry, but could you speak up a little?”
• “I didn’t quite hear that, sorry. Can you say that again?”
• “I didn’t catch that last bit. Can you say it again, please?”

Taking a break from the conversation

You might need to step away from a conference call. Make sure that you’re polite and clear when you do it.

Try these phrases if you need a break:

• “[Your name] speaking. I need to leave for 10 minutes. Is that okay with everyone?”
• “I need a moment. I’ll be back in about 10 minutes.”
• “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I need to step away from the call for a few minutes.”

If you’re on an online call, you can leave a message in the chat to avoid interrupting the speaker.

When you return, let everybody know you’re back by saying:

• “[Your name] here. I’m back on the line again.”
• “This is [Your name], I’m back. Thanks for your patience / Thank you for waiting.”

Being an active participant in meetings

As the meeting goes on, you’ll want to be an active participant. That means speaking up if you have any questions, as well as giving your feedback and thoughts when others speak.

It’s okay if you accidentally speak over somebody or interrupt them. It happens to everyone. You can use these phrases if this happens:

• “Sorry, I interrupted you. You were saying…?”
• “I didn’t mean to interrupt you. Please, go on.”

Sometimes, you might want to interrupt to ask a question. In this case, you can politely signal that you have a question:

• “Am I to understand that…”
• “Sorry, but just to clarify…”
• “So, what we’re saying is…”
• “Sorry to interrupt, but…”

You can also participate in the conversation by agreeing and disagreeing with what others are saying.

Here are some useful phrases for agreeing:

• “That’s an excellent point , [person’s name], I agree with you on that.”
• “Okay, I think we’re all on the same page here…”
• “Yes, I see what you’re saying…”
• “I couldn’t agree more.”

You will not always agree with everyone else. Here are some phrases to disagree politely but firmly:

• “I’m sorry but I think you may have that slightly wrong…”
• “From my perspective, it’s a little different. Let me explain.”
• “I see your point, but…”
• “I’m not sure I agree with that.”

Planning for future meetings

When it’s time to end the meeting, you may want to set up the next meeting. Whether you’re talking with your co-workers, business partners or clients, here are some phrases to help you schedule future meetings:

• “I’d like to set up a meeting with you at your earliest convenience. When are you free?”
• “Are you free to talk again next week?”
• “When are you available for another meeting?”
• “How does 2:30 p.m. Thursday sound?”
• “Does Thursday at 2:30 p.m. suit you?”

After the person has agreed to the time, you should confirm one last time just to make sure the other person has really heard.

If you’re working with a global team where there could be confusion as to the time, add the “a.m.” or “p.m.” and the time zone if necessary, just to be sure you have been understood:

• “Great, let’s meet again on Thursday at 2:30 p.m., Eastern Standard Time then.”
• “Okay, I look forward to seeing you at 2:30 in the afternoon on Thursday.”
• “Thursday at 2:30 p.m., EST. Looking forward to it, see you then.”
• “See you on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. Bye for now.”

Check out this post for more phrases you’ll need for your next business meeting: 

To run a meeting effectively, you need a stash of business meeting phrases in English. Check out this post to find a list of over 200 business meeting phrases to use in…

Extra Tips When on a Conference Call

Besides using the right language, there are a few other things you can do to boost your professional look.

• Learn the software you will be using beforehand. Your conference call will go a lot smoother with just a little preparation before you start. Get on the software and learn where all the key features are. Try a test call to see how things go.
• Talk with a friend at work and look at the agenda together. The agenda is a document that will list the topics of the upcoming meeting. You will be able to ask your work friend about the words you do not understand and practice using them.
• Use the mute button if you’re not speaking while on an audio conference call. It’s more polite and business-like, and can give you time to really listen and think about what people are saying. Plus, it will make sure that any background noise from your end will not distract the meeting.
• Look interested and nod your head when appropriate. It can be a bit strange at first, but try to be as engaged (involved) as possible. Act natural and friendly.
• Try out idioms. Some native speakers may use complicated idioms during conference calls. However,  remember that a plain-spoken approach with fewer idioms will get your point across more clearly during a business call.

At some point, you may be called on to give a presentation. Business presentations are known for being dull (boring)—not many people enjoy sitting through many PowerPoint slides… do you?

Keep your presentation short, speak clearly and try to waste as little time as possible.

If you’re on a video call, remember that body language is still an important part of your presentation. As you talk, try to look up from your notes as often as possible to engage your audience. If you make a mistake, just stay calm and correct yourself.

Starting your presentation

Begin by introducing yourself. Even though this is a business presentation, it’s okay to be friendly and informal here, to get everyone to feel comfortable and interested in what you have to say. Here are some examples:

• “Hi everybody, my name is [your name] and I’m [your role in the company].”
• “Good morning / afternoon / evening ladies and gentlemen, I’m [your name].”
• “Hi everyone, I’m [your name]. I’ll keep this brief.”
• “Thanks for having me here today. I’m [your name].”

Note: remember to use the contraction “I’m” instead of “I am” to sound more friendly and less formal.

Introducing the topic of your presentation

After you have introduced yourself, it’s time to introduce your topic of presentation. Try to say the topic of your presentation in a sentence or two. 

This is a good time to practice your “elevator pitch.” Pretend that you and the people you’re speaking to are on an elevator going from the 10th floor to the 1st. You only have about a minute to express your point, and do it in such a way that everyone will understand.

You can start your topic introduction with these phrases:

• “Today, I’m here to talk to you about…”
• “I’d like to outline our plans for…”
• “In this presentation, I’ll discuss…”

After you introduce the topic, you can give the listeners a “map” of your presentation, to help them know what to expect.

• “This presentation will take about 20 minutes.”
• “First, I’ll start with some general information about…”
• “First, I’ll talk about…”
• “Then, I’ll look at…”
• “Then, we’ll go over…”
• “We’ll conclude with some information on…”
• “Finally, we’ll talk about how to move forward with…”
• “I’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have at the end of this presentation.”
• “To keep things moving, please hold your questions until the end of the presentation.”

Ending your presentation

You have made it to the end of your presentation! Now comes the easy part: ending it. Once you have given your presentation and are ready to finish, use these phrases:

• “Well, that brings me to the end of my presentation.”
• “Thanks so much for listening to my presentation.”
• “That’s it from me.”
• “It was a real pleasure being here today.”
• “I’ll be taking questions for the next 10 minutes.”
• “That concludes my presentation. Does anyone have any questions?”

When you’re taking part in a negotiation, you might or might not get what you want at first. Here are some phrases that will work for each situation. Remember: Be polite but be firm.

Sometimes in a negotiation, you know you’re not going to win. When you go into a negotiation, you should know what your “deal-breaker” is. A deal-breaker is something that will not be accepted no matter what.

For example, the lowest price you’re willing to accept for a product is $100 per piece. You will walk away if somebody demands a lower price. Perhaps you’re protecting your “bottom line.”

Try these phrases to get the negotiation “back on track” if it seems you’re “not on the same page.” In other words, get the negotiation going in your favor if you’re not in agreement:

• “I understand that we can’t do that, but can we discuss some other alternatives?”
• “I hear what you’re saying, but our bottom line is very clear on this one.”
• “This is a deal-breaker for us, we can’t budge.” (Budge means move, change or give up.)
• “Maybe we can find a compromise that works for both of us.”

One of the most powerful phrases you can use during a brainstorming session is one that includes a modal verb. These are special verbs that express ability (“could”), possibility (“might” or “should”) or request (“would”).

They are small but powerful words to use for  softening the effect of your tone in a discussion. They make you sound more polite and agreeable.

Making Suggestions

Beginning a sentence with the word “Let’s…” will make you sound positive about working together toward a common goal, for example:

• “Let’s hold the product launch here.”
• “Why don’t we use the convention center?”

Phrasing your suggestion in the form of a question is a great way to set a softer tone:

• “How about holding the launch at the convention center?”
• “What if we consider another venue for the launch?”

Beginning a sentence with “I think” or “Maybe,” even if you’re very certain about something, is a good practice:

• “I think we should decide on the venue now.”
• “Maybe we could decide on the venue now.”

Rejecting Suggestions

Saying “no” to an idea or suggestion comes with a risk of offending someone or hurting their feelings. So we should approach this very carefully. 

Starting a sentence on a positive note, even when we’re about to reject someone’s suggestion, is one great way to make it less upsetting:

• “That’s a good idea but we may not have the budget for it.”
• “Your suggestion sounds good but we’ll need to check the rental rates.”
• “I can see some problems with that.”
• “Let me think about this.”
• “I’m not too keen on using the concourse area for the product launch.”
• “I’m not too keen on the idea of the convention center.”
• “I’m not really convinced the concourse is a good venue.”
• “I’m not really sure we have the budget.”
• “I don’t think this would work.”
• “I don’t think this would be the best venue for the launch.”

Accepting suggestions

Accepting or agreeing with someone’s suggestion is easy. However, instead of a direct “Yes” or “I agree,” you may want to communicate different degrees (levels) of agreement.

If you’re very sure, you might say:

• “That’s a good idea. / That’s not a bad idea.”
• “This is just what we need.”
• “Let’s try that.”

If you’re not very sure, you might use these phrases:

• “This looks like it could work.”
• “That might be worth trying.”
• “It might work.”
• “Maybe. I’m not sure.”

Evaluating suggestions involves reviewing ideas and solutions, and selecting the best one to use. This usually involves discussing each idea or solution in detail and asking questions to generate feedback. Here are some good questions to ask during the evaluation:

• “What do you suggest?”
• “What are your thoughts?”
• “Do you think this will work?”

If an idea or suggestion sounds good but you need more time to think it through, you could use these phrases:

• “Let’s look at this again.”
• “I think this needs a lot more thought.”
• “This idea has potential (possibilities), but it’s not quite there yet.”
• “Let’s keep this in mind and come back to it later.”

If you only agree partially (partly) with a suggestion, or accept only certain aspects (parts) of an idea, you could use these phrases to lead into saying which parts you agree and disagree with:

• “I agree up to a point.”
• “Well, yes and no.”

Now you’re all set to shine at your next brainstorming session.

How can you work on your speaking skills and learn new business English phrases at the same time?

The key is to always keep practicing—and to find the perfect resources for your business purposes!

• Forbes and The Economist business sections are for more advanced business English learners. The articles are written for and by native speakers, so the language is very current and can sometimes be complex but well-written. 
• The Learning Network by the New York Times is specifically made for English learners. Some of the material is targeted toward teenage learners, but the lessons use real New York Times articles and are a perfect way to expand your vocabulary.
• Learning English by the BBC is another great source of English-learning material for a wide range of levels. It has grammar lessons, podcasts, vocabulary lists and news articles which can help you slowly make your way to the main BBC Business news website. 
• Focus on common phrases with multiple applications.  For example, short phrases such as “I’m sorry” can be used in a number of different business scenarios. For example: “I’m sorry I’m late to the meeting,” “I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that,” “I’m sorry, but I disagree” and so on.
• Listen to podcasts. There are many podcasts made for business English learners. This series of podcasts  from the British Council, for example, will help you to improve your English in your workplace. They are suitable (appropriate) for learners at an intermediate or advanced level.
• Listen to English speakers.  Pay attention to every native speaker you encounter. When answering a question they ask you, listen carefully to their choice of words and try to use those same words in your answer.
• Practice with interviews. Having pretend interviews or listening to them can be especially good for practicing professional business English.
• Watch authentic English videos.  You don’t need to have actual English-speaking individuals next to you to benefit from hearing native speech. Head online and watch videos made by English speakers for English speakers. These will be filled with the kind of language you would want to use in real-life.

If learning from authentic English content sounds a bit challenging, FluentU can make native videos easier to learn from.

FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.

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English is the universal language of business all over the world. The better your English gets, the more in demand you will be as an employee. Learn the business English phrases and expressions in this post to help you get started.

Keep listening and keep talking!

If you like learning English through movies and online media, you should also check out FluentU. FluentU lets you learn English from popular talk shows, catchy music videos and funny commercials , as you can see here:

If you want to watch it, the FluentU app has probably got it.

The FluentU app and website makes it really easy to watch English videos. There are captions that are interactive. That means you can tap on any word to see an image, definition, and useful examples.

FluentU lets you learn engaging content with world famous celebrities.

For example, when you tap on the word "searching," you see this:

FluentU lets you tap to look up any word.

Learn all the vocabulary in any video with quizzes. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you’re learning.

FluentU helps you learn fast with useful questions and multiple examples. Learn more.

The best part? FluentU remembers the vocabulary that you’re learning. It gives you extra practice with difficult words—and reminds you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You have a truly personalized experience.

Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

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The Magical Transitional Phrase Every Presentation Needs

Good transitional sentences and phrases are simple, elegant and clear.

They help your audience follow you from one point to the next one.

In today’s article, you will learn the “Summarize and Switch” transition phrase.

You will learn the same phrase I use in most of my presentations, keynotes and training. It’s by far the most efficient transition method I’ve ever used.

Here is how you can create a good transition phrase:

After you finish a section of your presentation, you quickly summarize that part in one or two sentences, then you switch your audience’s attention to the next point.

Here is an example:

“We just explored the impact of mobile technology on the future of education. And as you can tell, you have to embrace this technology to be able to stand out as a leading school.”

“Now, I want to give you a case study of XYZ school, and how they successfully mobilized their Ipad program in three phases before any other school in the district. And how that gave them an educational edge …”

Here is another example

“Now that you have seen the simplicity of the Summarize and Switch method.”

“Don’t let its simplicity fools you. This transitional phrase is simple yet powerful and is one of the most effective ways to transition…”

See how simple this is?

When doing a presentation at work, you want to be clear, educational and memorable. Summarizing your points will make them memorable due to the repetition, and the distinct switch will make them clear and easy to follow.

Summarize and switch, a powerful transition phase for your next presentation

Use the Summarize and Switch Transitional phrase in your next presentation. It will work like a charm every single time.

How To Copy The Public Speaking Masters

Take a Presentation From Good To Great By Setting Boundaries

Three things that erode your speaking confidence.

How to Run a Project Kickoff Meeting Successfully

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Updated for 2024 | 30 useful phrases for presentations in English

For non-native speakers giving a presentation in English can be quite a challenge. There are just so many aspects to consider.  

Firstly, the audience. Do you know them well? If so, more informal language can be used. Or are they unfamiliar to you? If this is the case, then more formal expressions should be adopted. Whether you use more formal or informal language, it is important to engage the audience through positive body language and a warm welcome. Your tone of voice and changes in intonation are additional useful tools and you might consider asking them relevant questions (real or  rhetorical ). 

The  audience  also needs to see a clear and logical structure to follow you effortlessly. Useful linking expressions, when delivered well, provide  effective  ‘bridges’ guiding the audience from one point to the next.

Here are 30 useful phrases for presentations in English for effective  structure and linking.  

Introduction

• Good morning/afternoon everyone and welcome to my presentation. First of all, let me thank you all for coming here today.
• Let me start by saying a few words about my own background.
• As you can see on the screen, our topic today is......
• My talk is particularly relevant to those of you who....
• This talk is designed to act as a springboard for discussion.
• This morning/ afternoon I’m going to take a look at the recent developments in.....

Presentation structure

• In my presentation I’ll focus on three major issues.
• This presentation is structured as follows....
• The subject can be looked at under the following headings.....
• We can break this area down into the following fields....
•  It will take about X minutes to cover these issues.
• Does everybody have a  handout  / copy of my report?
• I’ll be handing out copies of the slides at the end of my talk.
• I can email the PowerPoint presentation to anyone who would like it.  
• Don’t worry about taking notes, I’ve put all the relevant statistics on a  handout  for you
• If you have any questions, I am happy to answer them
• If you don’t mind, I'd like to leave questions until the end of my talk /there will be time for a  Q&A  session at the end...

Sequencing phrases

• My first point concerns...
• First of all, I’d like to give you an overview of....
• Next, I’ll focus on.....and then we’ll consider....
• Then I’ll go on to highlight what I see as the main points of....
• Finally, I’d like to address the problem of.....
• Finally, I’d like to raise briefly the issue of....

Highlighting information

• I’d like to put the situation into some kind of perspective
• I’d like to discuss in more depth the implications of....
• I’d like to make more detailed recommendations regarding....
• I’d like you to think about the significance of this figure here
• Whichever way you look at it, the underlying trend is clear
• I’d just like to finish with the words of a famous scientist/ politician/ author.......
• Now let’s go out and create opportunities for...! 

Improve your confidence in spoken English with our General English course or  Individual English training   in our centre in London or online.

Hopefully, these phrases help you to vary your vocabulary for clear, well-structured presentations with a logical joined-up flow. The most important thing, of course, is that you are comfortable and confident in your delivery, which helps the audience feels relaxed and ready to be engaged by your subject matter. Good luck! 

Glossary 

Rhetorical  -  (of a question) asked in order to produce an effect or to make a statement rather than to elicit information 

Audience  -  spectators or listeners at a public event such as a play, film, concert, or meeting 

Effectiv e -  successful in producing a desired or intended result 

Springboard -  springboard is also something that provides an opportunity to achieve something  

Handout - a document given to students or reporters that contains information about a particular subject 

Q&A  – an abbreviation for ‘question and answer’ 

Related blog posts 

• Business English Work and Careers: 50 words you need to know
• Email writing: how to start and end an email in English  
• 5 Tips for Polite and Diplomatic Language  

Recommended courses: 

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Posted: 13 February 2020

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How to Start a Presentation: 5 Templates and 90 Example Phrases

By Status.net Editorial Team on February 27, 2024 — 11 minutes to read

Starting a presentation effectively means capturing your audience’s attention from the very beginning. It’s important because it sets the tone for the entire presentation and establishes your credibility as a speaker.

Effective Openers: 5 Templates

Your presentation’s beginning sets the stage for everything that follows. So, it’s important to capture your audience’s attention right from the start. Here are some tried-and-true techniques to do just that.

1. Storytelling Approach

When you start with a story, you tap into the natural human love for narratives. It can be a personal experience, a historical event, or a fictional tale that ties back to your main point.

Example Introduction Template 1:

“Let me tell you a story about…”

Example : “Let me tell you a story about how a small idea in a garage blossomed into the global brand we know today.”

2. Quotation Strategy

Using a relevant quote can lend authority and thematic flavor to your presentation. Choose a quote that is provocative, enlightening, or humorous to resonate with your audience.

Example Introduction Template 2:

“As [Famous Person] once said…”

Example : “As Steve Jobs once said, ‘Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.'”

3. Questioning Technique

Engage your audience directly by opening with a thoughtful question. This encourages them to think and become active participants.

Example Introduction Template 3:

“Have you ever wondered…”

Example : “Have you ever wondered what it would take to reduce your carbon footprint to zero?”

4. Statistical Hook

Kick off with a startling statistic that presents a fresh perspective or underscores the importance of your topic.

Example Introduction Template 4:

“Did you know that…”

Example : “Did you know that 90% of the world’s data was generated in the last two years alone?”

5. Anecdotal Method

Share a brief, relatable incident that highlights the human aspect of your topic. It paves the way for empathy and connection.

Example Introduction Template 5:

“I want to share a quick anecdote…”

Example : “I want to share a quick anecdote about a time I experienced the customer service that went above and beyond what anyone would expect.”

How to Start a Powerpoint Presentation: 45 Example Phrases

Starting a PowerPoint presentation effectively can captivate your audience and set the tone for your message. The opening phrases you choose are important in establishing rapport and commanding attention. Whether you’re presenting to colleagues, at a conference, or in an academic setting, these phrases will help you begin with confidence and poise:

• 1. “Good morning/afternoon/evening, everyone. Thank you for joining me today.”
• 2. “Welcome, and thank you for being here. Let’s dive into our topic.”
• 3. “I’m excited to have the opportunity to present to you all about…”
• 4. “Thank you all for coming. Today, we’re going to explore…”
• 5. “Let’s begin by looking at the most important question: Why are we here today?”
• 6. “I appreciate your time today, and I promise it will be well spent as we discuss…”
• 7. “Before we get started, I want to express my gratitude for your presence here today.”
• 8. “It’s a pleasure to see so many familiar faces as we gather to talk about…”
• 9. “I’m thrilled to kick off today’s presentation on a topic that I am passionate about—…”
• 10. “Welcome to our session. I’m confident you’ll find the next few minutes informative as we cover…”
• 11. “Let’s embark on a journey through our discussion on…”
• 12. “I’m delighted to have the chance to share my insights on…”
• 13. “Thank you for the opportunity to present to such an esteemed audience on…”
• 14. “Let’s set the stage for an engaging discussion about…”
• 15. “As we begin, I’d like you to consider this:…”
• 16. “Today marks an important discussion on a subject that affects us all:…”
• 17. “Good day, and welcome to what promises to be an enlightening presentation on…”
• 18. “Hello and welcome! We’re here to delve into something truly exciting today…”
• 19. “I’m honored to present to you this comprehensive look into…”
• 20. “Without further ado, let’s get started on a journey through…”
• 21. “Thank you for carving time out of your day to join me for this presentation on…”
• 22. “It’s wonderful to see such an engaged audience ready to tackle the topic of…”
• 23. “I invite you to join me as we unpack the complexities of…”
• 24. “Today’s presentation will take us through some groundbreaking ideas about…”
• 25. “Welcome aboard! Prepare to set sail into the vast sea of knowledge on…”
• 26. “I’d like to extend a warm welcome to everyone as we focus our attention on…”
• 27. “Let’s ignite our curiosity as we begin to explore…”
• 28. “Thank you for your interest and attention as we dive into the heart of…”
• 29. “As we look ahead to the next hour, we’ll uncover the secrets of…”
• 30. “I’m eager to share with you some fascinating insights on…”
• 31. “Welcome to what I believe will be a transformative discussion on…”
• 32. “This morning/afternoon, we’ll be venturing into the world of…”
• 33. “Thank you for joining me on this exploration of…”
• 34. “I’m delighted by the turnout today as we embark on this exploration of…”
• 35. “Together, let’s navigate the intricacies of…”
• 36. “I’m looking forward to engaging with you all on the subject of…”
• 37. “Let’s kick things off with a critical look at…”
• 38. “Thank you for your presence today as we shine a light on…”
• 39. “Welcome to a comprehensive overview of…”
• 40. “It’s a privilege to discuss with you the impact of…”
• 41. “I’m glad you could join us for what promises to be a thought-provoking presentation on…”
• 42. “Today, we’re going to break down the concept of…”
• 43. “As we get started, let’s consider the significance of our topic:…”
• 44. “I’m thrilled to lead you through today’s discussion, which centers around…”
• 45. “Let’s launch into our session with an eye-opening look at…”

Starting a Presentation: 45 Examples

Connecting with the audience.

When starting a presentation, making a genuine connection with your audience sets the stage for a successful exchange of ideas. Examples:

• “I promise, by the end of this presentation, you’ll be as enthusiastic about this as I am because…”
• “The moment I learned about this, I knew it would be a game-changer and I’m thrilled to present it to you…”
• “There’s something special about this topic that I find incredibly invigorating, and I hope you will too…”
• “I get a rush every time I work on this, and I hope to transmit that energy to you today…”
• “I’m thrilled to discuss this breakthrough that could revolutionize…”
• “This project has been a labor of love, and I’m eager to walk you through…”
• “When I first encountered this challenge, I was captivated by the possibilities it presented…”
• “I can’t wait to dive into the details of this innovative approach with you today…”
• “It’s genuinely exhilarating to be at the edge of what’s possible in…”
• “My fascination with [topic] drove me to explore it further, and I’m excited to share…”
• “Nothing excites me more than talking about the future of…”
• “Seeing your faces, I know we’re going to have a lively discussion about…”
• “The potential here is incredible, and I’m looking forward to discussing it with you…”
• “Let’s embark on this journey together and explore why this is such a pivotal moment for…”
• “Your engagement in this discussion is going to make this even more exciting because…”

Building Credibility

You present with credibility when you establish your expertise and experience on the subject matter. Here’s what you can say to accomplish that:

• “With a decade of experience in this field, I’ve come to understand the intricacies of…”
• “Having led multiple successful projects, I’m excited to share my insights on…”
• “Over the years, working closely with industry experts, I’ve gleaned…”
• “I hold a degree in [your field], which has equipped me with a foundation for…”
• “I’m a certified professional in [your certification], which means I bring a certain level of expertise…”
• “Having published research on this topic, my perspective is grounded in…”
• “I’ve been a keynote speaker at several conferences, discussing…”
• “Throughout my career, I’ve contributed to groundbreaking work in…”
• “My experience as a [your previous role] has given me a unique outlook on…”
• “Endorsed by [an authority in your field], I’m here to share what we’ve achieved…”
• “The program I developed was recognized by [award], highlighting its impact in…”
• “I’ve trained professionals nationwide on this subject and witnessed…”
• “Collaborating with renowned teams, we’ve tackled challenges like…”
• “I’ve been at the forefront of this industry, navigating through…”
• “As a panelist, I’ve debated this topic with some of the brightest minds in…”

Projecting Confidence

• “I stand before you today with a deep understanding of…”
• “You can rely on the information I’m about to share, backed by thorough research and analysis…”
• “Rest assured, the strategies we’ll discuss have been tested and proven effective in…”
• “I’m certain you’ll find the data I’ll present both compelling and relevant because…”
• “I’m fully confident in the recommendations I’m providing today due to…”
• “The results speak for themselves, and I’m here to outline them clearly for you…”
• “I invite you to consider the evidence I’ll present; it’s both robust and persuasive…”
• “You’re in good hands today; I’ve navigated these waters many times and have the insights to prove it…”
• “I assure you, the journey we’ll take during this presentation will be enlightening because…”
• “Your success is important to me, which is why I’ve prepared diligently for our time together…”
• “Let’s look at the facts; they’ll show you why this approach is solid and dependable…”
• “Today, I present to you a clear path forward, grounded in solid experience and knowledge…”
• “I’m confident that what we’ll uncover today will not only inform but also inspire you because…”
• “You’ll leave here equipped with practical, proven solutions that you can trust because…”
• “The solution I’m proposing has been embraced industry-wide, and for good reason…”

Organizational Preview

Starting your presentation with a clear organizational preview can effectively guide your audience through the content. This section helps you prepare to communicate the roadmap of your presentation.

Outlining the Main Points

You should begin by briefly listing the main points you’ll cover. This lets your audience know what to expect and helps them follow along. For example, if you’re presenting on healthy eating, you might say, “Today, I’ll cover the benefits of healthy eating, essential nutrients in your diet, and simple strategies for making healthier choices.”

Setting the Tone

Your introduction sets the tone for the entire presentation. A way to do this is through a relevant story or anecdote that engages the audience. Suppose you’re talking about innovation; you might start with, “When I was a child, I was fascinated by how simple Legos could build complex structures, which is much like the innovation process.”

Explaining the Structure

Explain the structure of your presentation so that your audience can anticipate how you’ll transition from one section to the next. For instance, if your presentation includes an interactive portion, you might say, “I’ll begin with a 15-minute overview, followed by a hands-on demonstration, and we’ll wrap up with a Q&A session, where you can ask any questions.”

Practice and Preparation

Before you step onto the stage, it’s important that your preparation includes not just content research, but also rigorous practice and strategy for dealing with nerves. This approach ensures you present with confidence and clarity.

Rehearsing the Opening

Practicing your introduction aloud gives you the opportunity to refine your opening remarks. You might start by greeting the audience and sharing an interesting quote or a surprising statistic related to your topic. For example, if your presentation is about the importance of renewable energy, you could begin with a recent statistic about the growth in solar energy adoption. Record yourself and listen to the playback, focusing on your tone, pace, and clarity.

Memorizing Key Points

While you don’t need to memorize your entire presentation word for word, you should know the key points by heart. This includes main arguments, data, and any conclusions you’ll be drawing. You can use techniques such as mnemonics or the method of loci, which means associating each key point with a specific location in your mind, to help remember these details. Having them at your fingertips will make you feel more prepared and confident.

Managing Presentation Jitters

Feeling nervous before a presentation is natural, but you can manage these jitters with a few techniques. Practice deep breathing exercises or mindful meditation to calm your mind before going on stage. You can also perform a mock presentation to a group of friends or colleagues to simulate the experience and receive feedback. This will not only help you get used to speaking in front of others but also in adjusting your material based on their reactions.

Engagement Strategies

Starting a presentation on the right foot often depends on how engaged your audience is. Using certain strategies, you can grab their attention early and maintain their interest throughout your talk:

1. Encouraging Audience Participation

Opening your presentation with a question to your audience is a great way to encourage participation. This invites them to think actively about the subject matter. For instance, you might ask, “By a show of hands, how many of you have experienced…?” Additionally, integrating interactive elements like quick polls or requesting volunteers for a demonstration can make the experience more dynamic and memorable.

Using direct questions throughout your presentation ensures the audience stays alert, as they might be called upon to share their views. For example, after covering a key point, you might engage your audience with, “Does anyone have an experience to share related to this?”

2. Utilizing Pacing and Pauses

Mastering the pace of your speech helps keep your presentation lively. Quickening the pace when discussing exciting developments or slowing down when explaining complex ideas can help maintain interest. For example, when introducing a new concept, slow your pace to allow the audience to absorb the information.

Pauses are equally powerful. A well-timed pause after a key point gives the audience a moment to ponder the significance of what you’ve just said. It might feel like this: “The results of this study were groundbreaking. (pause) They completely shifted our understanding of…”. Pauses also give you a moment to collect your thoughts, adding to your overall composure and control of the room.

How should one introduce their group during a presentation?

You might say something like, “Let me introduce my amazing team: Alex, our researcher, Jamie, our designer, and Sam, the developer. Together, we’ve spent the last few months creating something truly special for you.”

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Elevate Your Presentations: Mastering English Presentation Words and Phrases

The art of delivering a compelling presentation lies in the finesse of your language skills. It’s about crafting resonating sentences, choosing captivating words, and initiating a dialogue that piques curiosity. One must know how to maneuver through this landscape, from setting the scene with a powerful introduction to concluding with a thought-provoking statement. That’s where this guide comes in. It will give you key presentation sentences, phrases, and words to help elevate your communication skills.

Presentation Starting Phrases

In the realm of presentations, first impressions matter tremendously. Your opening words set the stage for the rest of your discourse, establishing the tone and drawing in your audience. The right choice of phrases can create a compelling introduction that commands attention and sparks interest. Here, we will explore a selection of presentation-starting words and phrases to help you set a strong foundation:

• I’d like to start by…
• Today, I’m here to discuss…
• Let’s begin with a look at…
• Good morning/afternoon/evening, my name is…
• It’s a pleasure to be here today to talk about…
• Let’s dive straight into…
• I would like to kick off with…
• Firstly, let’s consider…
• Have you ever wondered about…
• Thank you for joining me as we explore…
• Today’s focus will be on…
• Let’s set the stage by discussing…
• The topic at hand today is…
• To start, let’s examine…
• I want to begin by highlighting…

Crafting an engaging opening with the presentation starting words, is akin to opening the first page of a riveting novel. These phrases serve as a doorway, inviting your audience into the fascinating narrative you are about to share.

Setting the Scene: Key Presentation Phrases

Now that you have your audience’s attention, the next crucial step is to set the scene. It involves using key phrases to keep your audience engaged, clarify, and effectively communicate your main points. A well-set scene guides the audience through your presentation, helping them understand your narrative and easily follow your arguments. Let’s look at some essential phrases that can help you accomplish it:

• Moving on to the next point, we see...
• Delving deeper into this topic, we find...
• An important aspect to consider is...
• It leads us to the question of...
• Another critical point to remember is...
• To illustrate this point, let me share...
• On the other hand, we also have...
• Furthermore, it’s critical to note that...
• Let’s take a moment to examine...
• As an example, let’s look at...
• The evidence suggests that...
• Contrary to popular belief...
• It’s also worth noting that...
• Digging into this further, we discover...
• Expanding on this idea, we can see...
• Turning our attention to...
• The data indicate that...
• To clarify, let’s consider...
• To highlight this, let’s review...
• Putting this into perspective, we can infer...

These phrases help establish your narrative, maintain audience interest, and structure your arguments. They serve as signposts, guiding your audience through the presentation and facilitating understanding and engagement.

Transitioning Gracefully: Phrases for Presentation Flow

Transitioning between points or sections in your presentation is like steering a ship through water. Smooth navigation keeps your audience aboard, maintaining their interest and comprehension. Seamless transitions contribute to a coherent and compelling narrative, preventing abrupt jumps or confusing shifts in your discourse. The following phrases are powerful tools that can ensure your transitions are smooth and effective:

• Moving forward, let’s consider...
• With that said, let’s turn our attention to...
• Now that we’ve discussed X, let’s explore Y...
• Building upon this idea, we can see that...
• Transitioning to our next point, we find...
• Shifting gears, let’s examine...
• Let’s now pivot to discussing...
• Following this line of thought...
• Linking back to our earlier point...
• Let’s segue into our next topic...
• It brings us neatly to our next point...
• To bridge this with our next topic...
• In the same vein, let’s look at...
• Drawing a parallel to our previous point...
• Expanding the scope of our discussion, let’s move to...
• Having established that, we can now consider...
• Correlating this with our next point...
• Let’s transition now to a related idea...
• With this in mind, let’s proceed to...
• Steering our discussion in a new direction, let’s delve into...

These phrases connect threads, linking your ideas and ensuring your presentation flows smoothly. They give your audience cues, signaling that you’re moving from one idea or point to the next, making your discourse easy to follow.

Concluding Your Presentation in English

The conclusion is your final opportunity to leave a lasting impression on your audience. It’s a chance to wrap up your arguments, restate your main points, and leave your audience with a clear and compelling message to ponder. Here are some phrases that can assist you in crafting a memorable conclusion:

• To sum up our discussion today...
• In conclusion, we can say that...
• Wrapping up, the key takeaways from our talk are...
• As we come to an end, let’s revisit the main points...
• Bringing our discussion to a close, we find...
• In the light of our discussion, we can infer...
• To synthesize the main points of our discourse...
• To recap the primary themes of our presentation...
• As we conclude, let’s reflect on...
• Drawing our discussion to a close, the principal conclusions are...
• As our dialogue comes to an end, the core insights are...
• In wrapping up, it’s essential to remember...
• Summarizing our journey today, we can say...
• As we bring this presentation to a close, let’s remember...
• Coming to an end, our central message is...

These phrases help you consolidate your arguments, summarize your main points, and end on a high note. A well-structured conclusion ensures your audience understands your presentation, its key messages, and its implications.

Polished Presentation Vocabulary

Apart from structured sentences and transitional phrases, the vocabulary you use can add a touch of sophistication. An expanded lexicon enriches your language and enhances your ability to express complex ideas with clarity and precision. Let’s explore a list of presentation words that can add depth and dimension:

• Elucidate  -   make something clear, explain.
• Pivotal  -   of crucial importance in relation to the development or success of something else.
• Insights  -   an accurate and deep understanding.
• Nuanced  -   characterized by subtle distinctions or variations.
• Leverage  -   use something to maximum advantage.
• Perspective  -   a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something.
• Synthesize  -   combine   into a coherent whole.
• Salient  -   most noticeable or important.
• Correlation  -   a mutual relationship or connection between two or more things.
• Framework  -   a basic structure underlying a system or concept.
• Paradigm  - a typical example or pattern of something.
• Repercussions  -   an unintended consequence of an event or action.
• Contemplate  -   look thoughtfully for a long time.
• Manifestation - an event, action, or object that embodies something.
• Escalate  -   increase rapidly.
• Inherent  -   existing in something as a permanent, essential, or characteristic attribute.
• Validate  -   check or prove the validity or accuracy of.
• Consolidate  -   make something physically more solid.
• Compelling  -   evoking interest, attention, or admiration in a powerfully irresistible way.
• Delineate  -   describe or portray something precisely.

These words add a layer of sophistication to your presentation, conveying your thoughts and ideas more precisely. They expand your expressive capacity and lend an authoritative and professional tone to your speech. By integrating these words into your presentation, you can deliver your message with clarity and depth, engaging your audience more effectively.

The Corporate Edge: Navigating the Nuances of Business English Presentations

In the corporate world, effective communication is the linchpin of success. It’s an art that lies at the heart of all business interactions, from high-stakes meetings to persuasive pitches. And when it comes to delivering such a presentation, the task becomes even more critical. The business English presentation phrases you use, how you present your points, and the overall language command play a significant role in conveying your message effectively.

Presenting in a business setting often involves explaining complex ideas, discussing financial matters, and persuading potential clients or stakeholders. Here, the language must be precise, the tone - professional, and the content - structured. Unlike informal or academic ones, business presentations carry a certain degree of formality and specific jargon that sets them apart. However,  business English idioms and expressions can help soften the formality, adding a touch of personality to your language. 

Navigating the labyrinth of  business English also involves acknowledging the importance of research and planning. A well-researched presentation reflects your dedication, expertise, and credibility. It shows you respect your audience’s time and are prepared to deliver value. It’s not just about memorizing facts and figures; it’s about understanding your topic thoroughly and answering queries convincingly.

Another characteristic of business presentations lies in their persuasive nature. Often, they are geared toward persuading clients, investors, or team members toward a particular course of action. Consequently, using persuasive techniques such as presenting benefits, sharing testimonials, or demonstrating success stories becomes prevalent. You’re not just providing information; you’re trying to influence decisions and drive action.

An essential but often overlooked aspect of business presentations is the importance of a strong opening and closing. The opening is your chance to grab the audience’s attention and make them invested in your talk, so knowing how to start a business presentation is essential. Conversely, the closing is your final shot at reinforcing your message and making a lasting impression.

Finally, business presentations often involve handling criticism or skepticism, especially when proposing new ideas or challenging existing norms. Here, your ability to accept feedback gracefully, address concerns effectively, and maintain your composure can significantly impact the outcome.

Learn Vocabulary for Presentations with Promova

Looking to expand your vocabulary for presentations and  improve your language skills online ? Promova is here to help! Our platform offers various resources and courses to help learners of all levels master new words and expressions quickly, effectively, and confidently.

With personalized lessons from  certified tutors , you can get one-on-one instruction that caters to your specific needs and learning style. Additionally, our app allows you to access interactive exercises, quizzes, and vocabulary lists anytime and anywhere for easy practice on the go. Whether you are a beginner or an advanced learner looking to fine-tune your language skills – we have got you covered.

Don’t let language barriers hold you back any longer – start your learning journey with Promova today and take the first step toward achieving your goals! Try it out now with a free lesson and see how easy and effective our approach is.

As we conclude, it’s clear that effective presentations in English rely on various linguistic elements. A strong beginning, transitions, and a powerful conclusion, all while using precise vocabulary, are critical. The ability to craft compelling sentences and phrases, set the scene effectively, and transition smoothly between ideas are essential for a successful presentation. And the correct vocabulary can add depth and dimension to your discourse while conveying professionalism.

What role does body language play in presentations?

Body language can significantly impact how your message is perceived. Effective use of gestures, eye contact, and facial expressions can amplify your points, show enthusiasm, and engage the audience. Conversely, negative body language can detract from your message.

How important is it to know your audience before a presentation?

Knowing your audience is crucial. It informs the level of detail you need to include, the words and phrases you use, the examples you choose, and even the humor you might incorporate. Tailoring your presentation to your audience’s knowledge and interests can significantly enhance its effectiveness.

What if I make a mistake during my presentation?

Everyone makes mistakes. If you stumble during your presentation, take a moment, compose yourself, and move on. Don’t let a minor error disrupt your flow. Remember, the audience is there to listen to your ideas, not critique your performance.

Are there some resources with more phrases for presentations?

Indeed, many resources are available if you’re seeking to delve deeper into the world of presentation phrases.  The Cambridge Dictionary and  Merriam-Webster Dictionary offer many valuable collocations, from simple expressions to sophisticated vocabulary.

Blog > English Presentation Structure (Introduction, Closing) & useful Phrases

English Presentation Structure (Introduction, Closing) & useful Phrases

02.21.20   •  #powerpoint #presentation #english.

When giving a presentation in english, there are certain guidelines you should follow. Maybe you haven't got a lot of experience presenting - or you would simply like to refresh your already existing knowledge - we're here to teach you the basics about presenting and provide you with a free list of useful phrases and the basic structure you can in your presentation!

1. Structure

The general structure of a presentation is the following:

• Introduction

It is up to you to design these three parts. Using videos or everyday-examples can be a great way to introduce the audience to the topic. The important thing is that you capture the audience's attention from the beginning by making an interesting introduction. The main part is where you present your topic, ideally divided into sections. You can be creative with it - incorporate images, videos, stories or interactive polls . We generally recommend using different kinds of elements, as that makes the presentation more lively. Make sure your main part is well structured, so your audience can follow. In the conclusion, you should give a short summary of the points you made without adding any new information. You can also make an appeal to your audience in the end.

2. Useful Phrases

Here you'll find several phrases that you'll need in every presentation. Of course, you should adapt them and use them in a context that is suitable for your setting. The phrases are divided into subcategories so you can find what you're looking for more easily.

Starting your Presentation

In your introduction, you should:

Welcome your audience

Good morning/afternoon/evening everyone!

Ladies and gentlemen, I welcome you to my presentation about...

Introduce yourself

I am ... (from company ...) and today I would like to introduce you to the topic of ...

My name is ... and I am going to talk about ... today.

Icebreakers (for audience engagement)

Icebreaker polls are an amazing way to engage your audience instantly. They function as a fun and playful element at the beginning, giving you the perfect start you need to give a successful presentation. Click here to read our detailed post about icebreaker polls!

Mention the presentation topic and the reason for giving the presentation

I am grateful to be here today and tell you you about...

I would like to take this opportunity to talk about ...

I am here today to talk to you about ...

The reason why I am here today to talk about ... is ...

The purpose of this presentation is to ...

My goal today is to ...

Hopefully, by the end of the presentation, you will all know more about ...

Give a short overview of the content

To make it as understandable as possible, I divided my presentation into ... parts. In the first part, I will concentrate on ..., the second part will be about ..., ...

First of all, I will give you a short introduction, then we will move on to ...

... and finally, I will give you some insights to ...

Here are a few phrases that you could use during the whole presentation, but especially in the main part.

Engage your audience

In order to raise the audience's attention and improve their engagement, it is extremely important to make contact with them. A great way to do so is by adding interactive elements such as polls. If you would like to know more about this topic, read our article on How To Boost Audience Engagement . You can also use a software like SlideLizard , which allows you to conduct live polls, do Q&A sessions with your audience, share your resources and many more benefits that take your presentation to the next level.

Please raise your hand if you ...

Have you ever thought about ... ?

I would like to do a poll about ...

Please ask any questions as soon as they arrive.

On one hand, … on the other hand…

Comparing … with …, we can see that…

Clearly, … makes more sense than …

Whereas Option A is …, Option B is …

Making new points

Firstly,… Secondly,…

What also has to be mentioned is…

Next, I would like to bring up the topic of…

That being said, now we are going to take a look at…

Let's move on to the next topic.

On the next slide,…

The last thing I would like to mention is…

We made a whole blog post about how to pose questions in your presentation: The Right Way to do a Question Slide .

Talking about images or videos

In this image you can clearly see that ...

We are now going to take a look at a picture/video of ...

I'm going to show you a video by ... about ... now.

I've prepared a video about ...

Talking about statistics and charts

I am now addressing this graph that refers to the results of study XY.

In the graph on this slide, you can see that ...

The average is at ...

This graph clearly shows that the majority ...

According to this graph, the focus should be on ...

What that study tells us for practice is that we should ...

Emphasizing

I would like to emphasize the importance of ...

Moreover, it has to be said that ...

I want to stress the importance of ...

We always have to remember that ...

This is of high significance because ...

That part is especially important because ...

When something goes wrong

I am sorry, but it seems like the projector isn't working.

Could someone please help me with ...?

Is anybody here who knows how to ...?

Could someone give me a hand with ...

I would like to apologize for ...

I apologize for the technical problems, we are going to continue in a minute.

I am sorry for the inconvenience.

End of Presentation

In the conclusion, you should...

Sum up the main points

In conclusion I can say that…

To sum up the main points,…

With all mentioned aspects taken into consideration, I can say that…

Make an appeal

So please, in the future, try to be conscious about...

Please take a moment to think about...

I would like to encourage you to...

Thank your audience and say goodbye

It was a pleasure being here today.

Thank you for listening and goodbye.

Thank you for being such a great, engaged audience. Goodbye.

Thank you so much for listening, see you next time.

What is the structure of a presentation?

Your presentations should always have an Introduction, a Main part and a Conclusion.

What is a good way to begin a presentation?

You can start by introducing yourself, giving an overview of your topic, telling a little story or showing the audience an introductory video or image.

What are good phrases to use in English presentations?

There are many phrases that will make your presentation a lot more professional. Our blog post gives you a detailed overview.

Related articles

About the author.

Pia Lehner-Mittermaier

Pia works in Marketing as a graphic designer and writer at SlideLizard. She uses her vivid imagination and creativity to produce good content.

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Business Presentation Phrases

In this article, you will find some of the key Business Presentation Phrases in English. Most common phrases for Starting and Introducing the Presentation, Asking for Questions, Closing a section, Moving Forward, Showing Visual Aids, Summarizing and Finishing the Presentation.

Table of Contents

Business Presentation Phrases and Vocabulary in English

Starting the presentation.

• Good morning (good afternoon) ladies and gentlemen.
• I’d like to thank you all for coming here today.
• My name is………and I work for………
• My talk is called…….
• The topic of my presentation today is …

Welcome participants to the Presentation

• Thank you for finding the time to come and join me for this presentation.
• Welcome to…
• It’s good to see you (all) here (today).
• First of all, I’d like to thank everyone for coming (to…)

Introducing your Presentation

• In today’s presentation I’m hoping to … give you an update on… .
• In today’s presentation I’m planning to … look at … .
• In today’s presentation I’d like to … show you … .

Business Presentation Phrases for the Main Points

• The main points I will be talking about are…..
• First, we’re going to …
• After that, we’ll be taking a look at …
• Finally, I’ll outline what …
• Next, finally… we’re going to look at …

Asking for Questions

• If you have any questions, I’ll be very happy to answer them at the end of session.
• Please feel free to interrupt me with any questions you may have during the presentation.
• Finally, I’ll be happy to answer your questions.
• Do you have any questions?

Business Presentation Phrases for Introducing the First Point

• Let’s start/begin with …
• To begin, let’s look at…..

Closing a Section of the Presentation

• So, that concludes /title of the section/ … .
• So, that’s an overview of … .

Beginning a New Section

• Now, let’s move on to … .
• Now I’d like to move on to … .
• Moving on to the next section, let’s take a look at … .

Business Presentation Phrases for Moving Forward

• Now let’s move on to …
• Let’s move on ….
• Let’s take a look at some of the implications of this.
• The main reason for these actions is …
• As a result of A, B will …

Showing Visual Aids during a Presentation

• I’d like to illustrate this by showing you…
• As you can see from this graph representing …
• Looking at A we can see that …

Handling Problems

• Unfortunately, this means that …
• This also causes …

Referring Back to an Earlier Part

• Let me go back to what I said earlier about …
• As I mentioned earlier …
• As we saw earlier …

Proposing a Solution

• I suggest we …
• The solution to A is …

Dealing with Difficult Questions during your Presentation

• I’ll look at that point in more detail later on.
• I’ll come back to that question later if I may.
• I’ll come back to that question later in my presentation.

Make a Concluding Recommendation:

• In conclusion, my recommendations are…
• There are two conclusions to be made from this, namely,…
• I think we have seen that we should…
• What we need to do is…

Business Presentation Phrases for Summarizing

• Let me sum up…. – Firstly…. / First I covered….. – Secondly…/ Then we talked about – Finally we looked at……..
• I’d like to recap the main points of my presentation.
• Before we end, let me briefly recap what we have discussed here today.

Finishing the Presentation

• In conclusion, let me… leave you with this thought…..
• That brings me to the end of my presentation
• I think that’s about it. I’d like to thank you all for coming in today.
• Thank you for listening.

Marin Valchev, PMP is an IT Project Manager with more than 10 years of experience. He implements cutting-edge technology in a wide-range of Financial and TELCO companies in Europe, Asia, and Africa. Marin shares his knowledge of software, analysis, project management and other business areas.

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Useful English phrases for a presentation

Presentations have the advantage that many standard phrases can be used at various points. Perhaps you wish to welcome the audience, introduce the speaker and the topic, outline the structure, offer a summary, or deal with questions. In all these situations, you can apply a number of useful expressions that will make your presentation a linguistic success.

At the beginning of each presentation, you should welcome your audience. Depending on who you are addressing, you should extend a more or less formal welcome.

Good morning/afternoon/evening, ladies and gentlemen/everyone.

On behalf of “Company X”, allow me to extend a warm welcome to you.

Hi, everyone. Welcome to “Name of the event”.

Introducing the speaker

The level of formality of your welcome address will also apply to how you introduce yourself. Customize it to match your audience.

Let me briefly introduce myself. My name is “John Miller” and I am delighted to be here today to talk to you about…

First, let me introduce myself. My name is “John Miller” and I am the “Position” of “Company X”.

I’m “John” from “Company Y” and today I’d like to talk to you about…

Introducing the topic

After the welcome address and the introduction of the speaker comes the presentation of the topic. Here are some useful introductory phrases.

Today I am here to talk to you about…

What I am going to talk about today is…

I would like to take this opportunity to talk to you about…

I am delighted to be here today to tell you about…

I want to make you a short presentation about…

I’d like to give you a brief breakdown of…

Explanation of goals

It is always recommended to present the goals of your presentation at the beginning. This will help the audience to understand your objectives.

The purpose of this presentation is…

My objective today is…

After presenting the topic and your objectives, give your listeners an overview of the presentation’s structure. Your audience will then know what to expect in detail.

My talk/presentation is divided into “x” parts.

I’ll start with…/First, I will talk about…/I’ll begin with…

…then I will look at…

and finally…

Starting point

After all this preparation, you can finally get started with the main part of the presentation. The following phrases will help you with that.

Let me start with some general information on…

Let me begin by explaining why/how…

I’d like to give you some background information about…

Before I start, does anyone know…

As you are all aware…

I think everybody has heard about…, but hardly anyone knows a lot about it.

End of a section

If you have completed a chapter or section of your presentation, inform your audience, so that they do not lose their train of thought.

That’s all I have to say about…

We’ve looked at…

So much for…

Interim conclusion

Drawing interim conclusions is of utmost importance in a presentation, particularly at the end of a chapter or section. Without interim conclusions, your audience will quickly forget everything you may have said earlier.

Let’s summarize briefly what we have looked at.

Here is a quick recap of the main points of this section.

I’d like to recap the main points.

Well, that’s about it for this part. We’ve covered…

Use one of the following phrases to move on from one chapter to the next.

I’d now like to move on to the next part…

This leads me to my next point, which is…

Turning our attention now to…

Let’s now turn to…

Frequently, you have to give examples in a presentation. The following phrases are useful in that respect.

For example,…

A good example of this is…

As an illustration,…

To give you an example,…

To illustrate this point…

In a presentation, you may often need to provide more details regarding a certain issue. These expressions will help you to do so.

I’d like to expand on this aspect/problem/point.

Let me elaborate further on…

If you want to link to another point in your presentation, the following phrases may come in handy.

As I said at the beginning,…

This relates to what I was saying earlier…

Let me go back to what I said earlier about…

This ties in with…

Reference to the starting point

In longer presentations, you run the risk that after a while the audience may forget your original topic and objective. Therefore, it makes sense to refer to the starting point from time to time.

I hope that you are a little clearer on how we can…

To return to the original question, we can…

Just to round the talk off, I want to go back to the beginning when I…

I hope that my presentation today will help with what I said at the beginning…

Reference to sources

In a presentation, you frequently have to refer to external sources, such as studies and surveys. Here are some useful phrases for marking these references.

Based on our findings,…

According to our study,…

Our data shows/indicates…

Graphs and images

Presentations are usually full of graphs and images. Use the following phrases to give your audience an understanding of your visuals.

Let me use a graphic to explain this.

I’d like to illustrate this point by showing you…

Let the pictures speak for themselves.

I think the graph perfectly shows how/that…

If you look at this table/bar chart/flow chart/line chart/graph, you can see that…

To ensure that your presentation does not sound monotonous, from time to time you should emphasize certain points. Here are some suggestions.

It should be emphasized that…

I would like to draw your attention to this point…

Another significant point is that…

The significance of this is…

This is important because…

We have to remember that…

At times it might happen that you expressed yourself unclearly and your audience did not understand your point. In such a case, you should paraphrase your argument using simpler language.

In other words,…

To put it more simply,…

What I mean to say is…

So, what I’m saying is….

To put it in another way….

Questions during the presentation

Questions are an integral part of a presentation. These phrases allow you to respond to questions during a presentation.

Does anyone have any questions or comments?

I am happy to answer your questions now.

Please feel free to interrupt me if you have questions.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Please stop me if you have any questions.

Do you have any questions before I move on?

If there are no further questions at this point, I’d like to…

Questions at the end of a presentation

To ensure that a presentation is not disrupted by questions, it is advisable to answer questions at the very end. Inform your audience about this by using these phrases.

There will be time for questions at the end of the presentation.

I’ll gladly answer any of your questions at the end.

I’d be grateful if you could ask your questions after the presentation.

After answering a question from the audience, check that the addressee has understood your answer and is satisfied with it.

Does this answer your question?

Did I make myself clear?

I hope this explains the situation for you.

Unknown answer

Occasionally, it may happen that you do not have an answer to a question. That is not necessarily a bad thing. Simply use one of the following phrases to address the fact.

That’s an interesting question. I don’t actually know off the top of my head, but I’ll try to get back to you later with an answer.

I’m afraid I’m unable to answer that at the moment. Perhaps, I can get back to you later.

Good question. I really don’t know! What do you think?

That’s a very good question. However, I don’t have any figures on that, so I can’t give you an accurate answer.

Unfortunately, I’m not the best person to answer that.

Summary and conclusion

At the end of the presentation, you should summarize the important facts once again.

I’d like to conclude by…

In conclusion, let me sum up my main points.

Weighing the pros and cons, I come to the conclusion that…

That brings me to the end of my presentation. Thank you for listening/your attention.

Thank you all for listening. It was a pleasure being here today.

Well, that’s it from me. Thanks very much.

That brings me to the end of my presentation. Thanks for your attention.

Handing over

If you are not the only speaker, you can hand over to somebody else by using one of these phrases.

Now I will pass you over to my colleague ‘Jerry’.

‘Jerry’, the floor is yours.

We hope that our article will help you in preparing and holding your next presentation. It goes without saying that our list is just a small extract from the huge world of expressions and phrases. As always, the Internet is an inexhaustible source of further information. Here are the links to two websites that we would recommend to you in this context.

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How to End a Presentation (+ Examples)

By admin on September 11, 2024

Concluding a presentation effectively is as important as delivering the main content . The ending sets the tone for how the audience remembers the message and the presenter. Equipping your team with effective presentation conclusion techniques can significantly impact your company’s communication and business outcomes. Let’s explore how to end a presentation with power, purpose, and lasting impact!

Summarize Key Points

The best way to end a presentation that leaves a lasting impression is to summarize key takeaways. Concluding a presentation with a strong ending reinforces the key points and seamlessly ties everything together, ensuring coherence and memorability.

Pro tip: Start the summary with a transition phrase . Use phrases like “To sum up,” “In conclusion,” or “Let’s recap” to signal you’re summarizing. 

Here’s an example of how to end a presentation with a summary:

Scenario: Presenting a marketing strategy for a retail brand.

“In summary, we will focus on enhancing brand visibility via social media, optimizing our e-commerce platform to improve conversion rates, and launching targeted ad campaigns to boost customer engagement.”

Strong Call-to-Action

A business presentation often aims to drive action. The presentation conclusion allows the presenter to clearly state what they want the audience members to do next. A powerful call-to-action (CTA) motivates listeners to take specific steps based on information shared, whether an in-person or an online presentation . Want to see how to conclude a presentation using a strong CTA? Take a look at this example:

Scenario: Completing a presentation on enhancing remote team collaboration using a new project management software.

“I challenge the team to implement this software over the next two weeks. Create your first project board this Monday. Use it exclusively for team communication, and document your experience daily. At our next meeting, I’d like a brief report on your experience and your opinion on whether we can use it company-wide.”

Image Source: Shutterstock

Offer a Resource

Another impactful conclusion to use to enhance audience engagement and reinforce the core message is to offer a resource. Think guides , webinars, white papers, free trials, templates, or tools . This presentation conclusion can help the audience apply what they’ve learned and stay engaged with the presenter’s message after the last presentation slides fade.

Learn how to end a presentation with a resource offer below:

Scenario: Finishing an informational presentation on effective team management strategies to a group of managers:

“For an in-depth analysis of successful team management practices, download our latest white paper from the final slide. It’s packed with research-backed strategies and case studies.”

Return to the Opening

Many presenters like to connect the closing statement with the opening statement —and for good reason. This technique, often called “bookending,” or “ The Loop ,” brings their presentations full circle, and leaves the audience with a satisfying and impactful ending. Think of it as the cherry on top of the presentation sundae, sweet and unforgettable.

Presenters can do this in a few ways:

• an inspirational quote
• an inspiring story
• a metaphor or analogy, a simple restatement of your thesis—make sure it ties back to your initial message

Review this example of how to conclude a presentation:

Opening Statement: How can we cut through the noise of a crowded market?

How many presentations have you attended where you wish the speaker had done more to captivate and engage the audience? Don’t let your team be the one that leaves your audience underwhelmed.

Closing Statement: With the strategies outlined today, we’re not just cutting through the noise—we’re making music. Let’s go out and turn up the volume.

Thank and Acknowledge

If your team members struggle with what to say at the end of a presentation, let them fall back on the classic: say thank you . It shows appreciation for the audience’s time and attention and helps create a positive and memorable impression. Plus, it lets them acknowledge the people who helped make the presentation possible.

Here’s how to end a presentation on a positive note:

Scenario: Presenting a pitch to a potential client or investor.

“Thank you for meeting with us today. We appreciate your interest and the chance to discuss collaboration. We’re eager to move forward and make our partnership successful.”

Offer a Preview of What’s Next

A glimpse into what’s next is a great way to keep the audience’s attention even after it’s over. This little teaser builds excitement and anticipation, making the audience hungry for more. Using this presentation ending will be most effective for business presentations where your team introduces new initiatives or products. Here’s how to end a PowerPoint presentation like a pro:

Scenario: Presenting a product demonstration . 

“Our next presentation will showcase advanced product features and real-world applications. Watch for the invitation and join us to see how these innovations can transform your operations!”

Upgrade Your Presentation Skills With Talaera

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With our live masterclasses, your employees or colleagues will learn how to end a presentation, boost their confidence in English, or even manage teams across cultures. Materials will be provided after, so they can revisit and review their learnings.

Elevate your organization’s presentation skills—enroll your team in our upcoming masterclass, “Deliver Impactful Presentations” on September 18!

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30 American Business Idioms to Use at Work

1. Cut to the Chase

2. Ballpark Figure

3. Touch Base

4. In the Loop

5. Hit the Ground Running

6. On the Same Page

7. Burning the Midnight Oil

8. Back to the Drawing Board

9. Put All Your Eggs in One Basket

10. The Ball is in Your Court

11. Bite the Bullet

12. In My Wheelhouse

13. Throw in the Towel

14. Get Your Foot in the Door

15. Go the Extra Mile

16. The Bottom Line

17. By the Book

18. Across the Board

19. Throw Someone Under the Bus

20. Learn the Ropes

21. Think Outside the Box

22. Under the Weather

21. Hit a Home Run

23. Grab the Bull by the Horns

25. Get Down to Brass Tacks

26. Level the Playing Field

27. Blow Off Steam

28. In the Driver’s Seat

29. Cut Corners

30. Give the Green Light

Learn Essential Business Idioms with BoldVoice

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Business Phrases: Useful English Phrases Used at a Business Meeting

Learn common business phrases used at a business meeting in English. Effective communication nurtures relationships with business partners, suppliers, staff, customers, and other stakeholders. This, consequently, has a direct impact on important factors like reputation and the bottom line (profit).

One of the best ways of communicating effectively in a meeting is ensuring you use the right phrases at different stages of business meetings. Here are some phrases used at a business meeting for congruence and better communication.

Phrases Used at a Business Meeting

Business Phrases: Greetings and Introductions

Every business meeting should begin with greetings . All participants also need to know each other briefly. The phrases below will help you kickstart the greetings and introductions .

• Hi everyone, it’s wonderful to see you all today.
• Before we start our meeting, I’d like to welcome you all and give you an update.
• Thank you for taking the time to attend this meeting, given your busy schedules.
• Good to see you all. Let’s get right into business and make the best use of our short time together.
• Let’s begin the meeting with brief introductions and a quick recap of the issues at hand.

Business Phrases: Setting the Agenda

Before a business meeting starts, there’s a need to set the agenda (direction) of the meeting. The phrases below will help you do just that;

• First on our agenda is (most pressing issue). Next in our agenda is (next pressing issues).
• We have (x) number of issues to discuss today, after which we shall have a short Q&A session .
• Let’s begin with a brief update from every head of the department.
• At the end of the meeting, we expect everyone to share their thoughts about our expansion plan.
• This meeting is about reviewing previous goals and setting new ones for 2023.

Business Phrases: Making a Presentation

If you are presenting in a business meeting, you must capture your audience’s attention, involve them in your presentation and answer any arising questions. Consider using the phrases below if you wish to have a good presentation.

• For those who don’t know me, I’m (X) from (X). My presentation is about (X).
• Here’s a quick summary of what my presentation will cover.
• Does anyone have a query before we continue?
• This is a visual representation of the concept we just discussed. There’s more in the next slide.
• In summary , we have covered (main points).
• Does anyone have a question or comment?

Business Phrases: Facilitating Discussions

Business meetings should be consultative. Your audiences need to be engaged. The phrases below are bound to facilitate discussions.

• We have a few minutes left. Let’s have a few people share their thoughts on what we’ve discussed today .
• Who is in agreement with the points that have been raised today?
• Are we all on the same page, or there is anyone with a different perspective?
• We can begin by agreeing that there is a problem with (x), right?
• Can we finish off by assigning the different tasks to several team members?
• What are the most critical challenges we should cover before we adjourn this meeting?

Business Phrases: Closing the Meeting

It’s good etiquette to conclude a business meeting by summarizing the discussion, thanking the participants, and allowing them time to make closing remarks. You also need a date, time, and agenda for the next meeting. Consider these phrases if you wish to close your business meeting properly.

• Let’s conclude by summarizing the main points we’ve discussed today.
• Can we set a date and time for a follow-up meeting?
• Let’s have the minutes of this meeting by the close of business today.
• Thank you, everyone, for taking the time to attend this meeting. Your presence and contribution is appreciated.
• If there is no other business, we can adjourn the meeting.

Conclusion:

There you go. The above sets of phrases used at a business meeting are enough to guide you from the start to the end of a meeting. Use these phrases as inspiration. They can be modified as you see fit depending on your industry, meeting stakeholders, agenda in question, etc.

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Master Business English: 30 Must-Know Expressions And Example Sentences

Learning business English can be particularly challenging, but mastering essential business English phrases is crucial if you want to communicate effectively in professional settings. Below, you’ll find 30 must-know business expressions , accompanied by definitions and example sentences to help you understand how to use these phrases in real-life situations. We’ve also included a free PDF and practice exercise to help you master business English vocabulary and phrases.

30 Essential Business English Phrases

Download pdf, business english example sentences.

Here are the same 30 phrases together with example sentences. This will help you to see how these business phrases are used in real-life.

Business English Exercise

Thanks for reading! By mastering these 30 expressions, you’ll be better equipped to communicate effectively in a wide range of business situations. Remember to practice using these phrases with the example sentences provided, download the PDF for easy reference, and test your knowledge with our practice exercise.

Learn the Phrases to Start your Presentation

In this Business English lesson, you will learn how to structure your Presentation’s start.

You’ll also learn common Business English Phrases on ‘Starting a Presentation. Watch the lesson and read the article for definitions and examples.

Don’t forget to like and follow us on YouTube and   LinkedIn .

How do I structure the start of my Presentation?

Firstly, you want to establish a rapport with your audience. So, you open proceedings by welcoming them.

You continue building rapport and momentum by introducing yourself.

You can then explain what subject matter/topic you will cover and why it is particularly relevant.

Finally, every Presentation has an objective which is the purpose of your Presentation. It’s at this point you bring this into play and relay this to your audience.

It’s good practice to follow a structure. It makes life easy for yourself, and it ensures your audience has direction and clarity.

It’s also useful to know the Phrases for starting your Presentation. I’m going to teach you these now.

Phrases to Welcome your Audience

“ Hi/Hello everyone.’

“Good morning/Good afternoon, everyone.”

“I’m delighted to welcome you all here today.”

“Thank you for attending today.”

“It’s great to see so many people in the room today.”

Phrases to Introduce Yourself

“ Allow me to introduce myself. My name’s [Rick Singleton.]”

“Some of you may already know me. I’m [Rick Singleton.]”

“I’m the [Head of Product Design.]”

“I’m here today in my role of [Head of Product Design.]”

Phrases to Introduce your Subject Matter

“Today, I’m going to be talking about [Subject Matter.]”

“The Subject/Topic today is …”

“This Presentation focuses on [Subject Matter.]”

“I’d like to present today on [Subject Matter.]

Phrases to Explain the Relevance of the Subject Matter

“It’s an important subject for you/us because…”

“Today’s subject is of special interest to those of you/us who…”

“By the end of this talk, you will be familiar with…”

Phrases to Explain your Objective

“The aim/purpose/objective of this presentation is to…”

“Today, I’d like to give you an overview of…”|

“During the next [25 minutes,] we’ll be….”

“This [morning] I’m going to be talking to you about…”

LESSON END.

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