6. Conclusion

Conclusion is in many respects a variation of the introduction. Never repeat the same words and phrases. Summarise your position and the benefits of your solution. This repeating is in part done as a psychological maneuver intended to once again persuade your audience to confirm the validity of your opinion.

After you have finished talking, it is not only good manners to invite others to comment on what you have just said, but also a sign of your erudi­tion. In that way you show your interest in other opinions which may help you correct or complete your knowledge. Yet, probably the most beautiful aspect of this is that exchange of ideas often leads to the rise of new vistas.

7.3.1. Appropriate phrases for developing an argument

Here are some common phrases that may be useful to remember and that may ease the conversation. Their most important function is to signal the argument/question/suggestion you want to put forward.

Giving your opinion

In my opinion/ view,...

Generally speaking, I think ...

Personally, I haven't the faintest idea about/ weather ...

To my mind ...

I'd just like to say ...

As far as I am concerned ...

I'm quite convinced that ...

To be quite honest/ frank ...

If you ask me ...

Asking for opinion of others

What/ How about you?

Would you care to comment on?

Any comments?

Would you agree with that?

What are your views on?

What's your opinion? What do you think?

Disagreeing politely

There may be some truth in what you say but don't you think it's more a question of ...? I take your point but that's not the way I see it.

Yes, but don't you think that...?

I see what you mean but I am not at all convinced that...

True, but I am afraid I disagree (with) ...

Perhaps, but I can't help thinking that...

Admitting you might be mistaken

I hadn't thought of ... in that way.

Come to think of it you may be right.

I must admit it's true that ...

I suppose you are right.

You are quite right, of course.

Commenting on something you know nothing about

Actually, I don't have any first-hand experience of ... but...

Personally, I've had very little to do with ... but ...

I have a sneaking suspicion that ...

I haven't got a clue.

It's rather difficult to say but I would imagine...

Putting forward another point of view

Yes, but on the other hand, don't you think that ...

But to look at it from another point of view, it is clear that ...

Nobody in their right mind would think that ...

But wouldn't you agree that ...?

Arguing for

I can't see anything against ...

I'm all for/ in favour of ...

I'd certainly give ... my support.

It would make sense to ...

There's a lot to be said for ...

Arguing against

That's all very well, but...

You can't possibly say that ...

It's absolute nonsense to say that ...

I really couldn't condone...

Focus on important information

Especially, in particular, above all, the thing/question is...

Sequencing

First, first of all, secondly,...

As well as this,

Finally, in conclusion

Generalising

In general, on the whole, typically,...

Summarising

So, to sum up, in summary, in the end, at last,...