Business English for Meetings

Effective communication in meetings requires a balance of assertion and diplomacy.

1. Starting the Conversation

• “Shall we get the ball rolling?”
• “What do we all think about…?”
• “Id like to kick this off by bringing up…”
• “Does anyone want to walk us through the first item?“

2. Giving Opinions

Confidence Level	Phrase
Tentative	”Correct me if I’m wrong, but I feel…” “As far as I know…”
Neutral	”From my perspective…” “It seems to me that…”
Strong	”I’m convinced that…” “There’s no doubt that…“

3. Agreement & Disagreement

• Agreeing: “I couldn’t agree more.” / “You’ve hit the nail on the head.”
• Partial Agreement: “I see your point, but…” / “To a certain extent, yes.”
• Polite Disagreement: “I’m afraid I have a different view.” / “I beg to differ.” / “That’s not necessarily the case.”

4. Steering the Discussion

• “Let’s not get sidetracked.”
• “Can we come back to that later?”
• “I think we’re veering off topic.”

5. Closing

• “Let’s wrap this up.”
• “Does anyone have any final thoughts?”
• “I’ll send out the meeting minutes later today.”