This article presents some useful expressions for debate and discussion in English. Sometimes, you will need to engage in a formal discussion or in public speaking and you will have to debate and come up with convincing arguments.
Useful Expressions for Debating
The following are useful expressions for debating:
Welcoming the audience
- Ladies and Gentlemen welcome to this debate.
Stating the issue
- The motion for debate today is …
- People / Dr. Johnson… believe(s) / feel(s) / insist(s) / think(s)…that…
- Let’s first define some important concepts…
Phrases to present the most important point
- This argument/idea is of paramount importance.
- The most important argument for … is …
- The main idea/thing is …
- The most important idea is…
- Most importantly, I want to mention that…
- The primary argument for… is…
- Two/three… important arguments support my point of view…
Conceding an argument
- It’s true/obvious/evident that … However, …
- While you might say that …, it’s important to remember that …
- I agree with you that … On the other hand, …
- Although/even though it is true that… I believe that…
- I agree/admit/concede that… , but we must remember that…
- I can understand that… Nevertheless, …
Sequencing a list of arguments
- First of all, I’d like to state …
- Firstly, … Secondly, …Thirdly, …
- The second argument in favor of …
- To begin with, …
- I’d start by…
- For a start, …
- The next argument I’d like to state is…
Adding an argument to strengthen your point
- In addition to that,…
- You also have to consider…
- Furthermore,…
- Moreover,…
- What is more,…
- I might also add that…
- Perhaps / maybe I should also mention…
- Not to mention the fact that…
- Not only that but also…
Concluding
- Let me recap/recapitulate my point …
- As a final word, let me summarize my point of view …
- To reiterate my point of view, …
- My final thought is …
- It all boils down to …
- In a nutshell, what I am trying to say is …
- To sum up, …
- Finally, …
Rose
Sunday 23rd of April 2023
Very useful information.