Introductory words English. Basic introductory words in English

How beautiful to start your thought? Unfortunately, many people misuse the phrase I think turning speech into an endless stream of "thinking". What can be done to avoid this catastrophe? Yes, just learn common introductory words in English language , choose a dozen of the most interesting for you and start using it during discussions in English! A well-chosen introductory phrase is already half of a successful conversation.

Introductory words in English. List of the most popular

Conventionally, I would divide all introductory words in English into several categories:

1. Phrases that can be a great start to a conversation or building a competent answer to a question.

To tell the truth- frankly speaking

First of all- first of all, in the first place

By the way- by the way, by the way

As far as I know- as far as I know

I'm convinced- I'm sure, I'm sure

I would like to stress - I would like to point out

I suppose\believe\consider\ guess- I suppose that…

if you ask me- if you ask me

To my way of thinking- in my opinion, it seems to me

As a matter of fact- in fact

It goes without saying - it goes without saying

To begin with- to start, at first; let's begin with that

2. Introductory words that make the transition from one thought to another smoother and help keep the interlocutor's attention.

In other words- in other words, in other words

As I have already mentioned- as I already said

On the one hand- one side

On the other hand- on the other hand

moreover- moreover, besides

In addition- Besides

As to- concerning

However- but

In this case- in this case

Although- although

Nevertheless- nevertheless, however

3. Phrases that lead you to a beautiful end to the conversation.

To make a long story short \ In a nutshell - in short, in a nutshell

That is why- that's why

Do you want to improve your spoken English? Learning colloquial phrases and expressions is just where to start!

This article contains everything you need in a conversation on absolutely any topic. You will make your speech richer and more varied, and communication with people more enjoyable and exciting!

Greetings and goodbyes

Of course, you can always get by with the words “Hello”, “How are you?” and “Goodbye”, but there are more diverse ways to say hello and goodbye, especially in a friendly setting (for example, in a group):

How is it going?	How are things going?
How's life?	What's up?
How are things?	How is it?
Long time no see!	Long time no see!
What are you up to?	What are you doing?
What have you been up to?	What have you been doing all this time?
See you soon!	See you later!
see you later!	See you later!
Till next time!	Until next time!
good luck!	Good luck!
Take care!	Take care!
Talk to you later!	We'll talk to you later!
until we meet again!	See you!
Have a nice day!	Have a good day!
have a good weekend	Good weekend
Have a safe trip	Have a good trip
Say hi to…	Give my regards to …
Send my love to…	Give a big hello to ... (if we are talking about relatives or close people)

Introductory words

They make sentences more coherent and help the other person follow your train of thought. They also give you time to pick up words without creating large pauses in speech.

In short / brief	in short
In a word	in a nutshell
as far / as to	concerning
Not to mention	not to mention
First of all/ above all	primarily
What's more	Moreover
By the way	by the way
After all	eventually; after all
Just for the record	for reference; so that you know
And so on and so forth	and so on
If I'm not mistaken	if I'm not mistaken
In other words	in other words
On the contrary	vice versa
The thing is	The fact is that
So as to / so that	so that
either way	anyway
As a rule	usually, as a rule
As well as	as well as
All the same	doesn't matter
On one hand	one side
On the other hand	on the other hand
Such as	for example
As I said before	as I already said
Believe it or not, but	believe it or not, but
If I remember right / If I recall correctly	If I remember it right

Ways to express agreement or disagreement

There are many shades between "yes", "no" and "maybe". Whether you want to evade a direct rejection or, on the contrary, express your enthusiasm, these expressions will help you:

Perhaps	Maybe maybe
Of course / sure	Of course
Definitely	Definitely, definitely
Absolutely	Undoubtedly
Naturally	Naturally
Probably	Probably
You are right	You're right
It can hardly be so	It's hardly true
very well	Very well
Most likely	Most likely
Most unlikely	Hardly
Not a bit	Not at all
I believe so / suppose so	I guess it is
I doubt it	I doubt
no way	No way, no way
Exactly so	Exactly
Quite so	Quite right
I agree with you	I agree with you
I am afraid you are wrong	I'm afraid you're wrong
I'm afraid so	I'm afraid so
I'm not sure	Not sure
I don't think so	I do not think so; hardly
In a way / to a certain extent	In a way
no doubt	Undoubtedly
I'm in / I'm game	I am “for” (in response to an offer to go somewhere or do something)
I think I'll pass	Better without me
Deal!	Goes!
It's a great idea!	Great idea!
Not a very good idea	Not the best idea
I'm looking forward to it	I'm looking forward to it

Polite phrases

Always nice in any language. Be sure your interlocutor will appreciate the knowledge of these phrases, whether it is gratitude, apology or just courtesy.

I'm so sorry!	I'm really sorry!
I run your sorry!	I apologize!
I'm sorry, I can't.	I'm sorry, I can't.
Sorry, I meant well.	Sorry, I wanted the best.
It's very kind of you!	It is very kind of you!
Thank you anyway!	In any case, thanks!
Thank you in advance!	Thanks in advance!
Don't mention it!	Do not mention it!
May I help you?	Can I help you?
No problem / that's ok!	Everything is fine!
Don't worry about it!	Don't worry about it!
This way, please!	Here please!
after you!	After you!

Ways to keep up the conversation and respond to what was said

Undoubtedly, the most popular conversational reaction is the word “Really?” Depending on intonation, it can express a variety of emotions, from sarcasm and irony to surprise and sincere delight. But, of course, there are other ways to show interest in what has been said:

What's the matter?	What's the matter?
What's going on? / What's happening?	What's happening?
What's the trouble?	What is the problem?
What's happened?	What happened?
How was it?	Well, how? (How did everything go?)
Did I get you right?	Did I understand you correctly?
Don't take it to heart.	Don't take it to heart.
I didn't catch the last word.	I didn't understand the last word.
Sorry, I wasn't listening.	Sorry, I listened.
It doesn't matter.	It does not matter.
It is new to me.	This is news to me.
Let us hope for the best.	Let's hope for the best.
May I ask you a question?	May I ask you a question?
Next time lucky!	Better luck next time!
Oh, that. That explains it.	That's it, that explains everything.
Say it again, please.	Could you repeat it, please.
So that's where the trouble lies!	So here's the thing!
things happen.	Anything happens.
What do you mean?	What do you have in mind?
Where were we?	Where did we leave off?
You were saying?	Did you say something?
I'm sorry, I didn't catch you.	I'm sorry, I didn't hear.
Lucky you!	You're lucky!
good for you!	The better for you! (In this phrase, a lot depends on intonation, often it implies sarcasm: "Well, well, I'm glad for you!")
I'm so happy for you!	I'm so happy for you! (But this is said absolutely sincerely)
What do you know!	Who would have thought!

Introductory words in English are separate group words with unique grammatical properties. In sentences, these words do not have syntactic role, they are neither major nor minor members. This means that they have no syntactic connection with the sentence in which they appear. You can verify this by trying to ask a question to these words, and when this fails, you will understand that this is the very introductory word.

And one more thing: Almost no conversation can do without introductory words
properties of English introductory words

Introductory words help to make the text connected, understandable to the listener. In other words, these are auxiliary means for connecting separate sentences into one semantic whole. They are often needed when writing essays, letters, essays and various literary texts. Introductory words and phrases help convey the sequence of events, express your attitude on any occasion, etc. Since some of them can also be at the end of a sentence, you can find the term “final” words in English grammar

Introductory words in English, as in any other language, are actively used not only in writing, but also in oral speech. That is why it is very useful to know them. For a more systematic study, I propose the following list of introductory words in English, in which the introductory phrases are divided into groups according to their purpose in the sentence.

What are introductory words used for?

1. 1. 1. To Express an Opinion
         

         I think	I think
         I suppose	I guess
         From my point of view/ In my view	from my point of view
         I reckon/I imagine	I believe / believe
         I presume	I guess
         I believe	I believe / believe
         In my opinion	in my opinion
         I guess	I believe
         It seems to me/ As I see it	I think
         I'm convinced	I am convinced)
         To my way of thinking/ To my mind	to my mind

         I am convinced, there are not people who can speak English, there are people who don't want. - I am convinced that there are no people who cannot speak English, there are people who do not want to.

      2. To indicate a positive attitude
         

         Definitely	definitely
         Indeed	really, actually
         Certainly	definitely, definitely
         In fact	in fact
         I agree	i agree
         Exactly so	exactly
         Most likely	very similar to that
         Yes, sure	yes, definitely
         Of course	certainly
         doubtless	no doubt
         Expressively	definitely
         I believe so	I believe it is
         Probably	Maybe

         Doubtless, you can take this exam. - Surely you can pass this exam

      3. To show disagreement
         

         Actually, it is not difficult to study 10 new English words every day. — In fact, it is not difficult to learn ten new words in English every day.

      4. To reflect emotion
         

         Unfortunately, I can't visit my sick friend today. — Unfortunately, I cannot visit my sick friend today.

      5. To structure thoughts
         

         To begin with	to start, let's start with
         Firstly/ ahead	firstly
         Secondly	Secondly
         The first/second reason for	first/second reason
         In the first place	primarily
         Primarily	primarily
         First and foremost/ first of all	first of all

         Firstly, I would like to discuss the problems related to reproductive health. - First, I would like to discuss issues related to reproductive health.

      6. To indicate the time
         

         At the present time	currently
         once	once
         Until	before
         Then	then
         shortly	soon
         All of a sudden	suddenly
         At this instant	in this moment
         In due time	on time
         After	after
         Later	later
         until now	still
         Since	since, ever since
         At the same time/ In the meantime	in the same time
         Before	before, before
         When	when
         Up to the present time	until now
         Now	now
         sooner or later	Sooner or later
         meanwhile	in the meantime, meanwhile
         By the time	by that time
         Occasionally	occasionally
         eventually	in the end

         Until now it was easy to do laboratory work, but the final stages are more difficult that I thought. — So far it has been easy to do the lab, but the final steps are more difficult than I thought.

      7. To indicate the condition and reason
         

         I will say you my secret, on the condition you should never say to someone about it. — I'll tell you my secret, on the condition that you don't tell anyone about it..

      8. For inference and conclusion
         

         Summing it up	Summarizing
         So, to sum it up	so to sum it up
         To crown it all	on top of everything
         With this in mind	subject to the above
         In conclusion/Finally	Finally
         As a result	as a result
         Accordingly	Based on this
         Hence	Consequently
         For this reason	for this reason
         In the final analysis/ in the long run	eventually
         All things considered	all things considered
         In summary	eventually
         After all	eventually

         All things considered, I can say that smoking should be banned in public places. — All things considered, I can say that smoking should be banned in public places.

The use of introductory words in life practice

Use of introductory words Read any letter, essay, and you can quickly see that it is important to know the introductory words in English. Here is a letter for you.

As you can see, quite often these words are required to indicate semantic connections. However, do not forget that everything needs a "golden mean". Avoiding introductory designs in every second sentence.

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Introductory words in English

Introductory words express the attitude to the message, display its character, emotional reaction, intonational underlining, etc.

The introductory words are not any members of the sentence, the introductory words are not related either to the basis of the sentence or to its secondary members. You can check them by trying to ask, by the way a question. If it does not work out, then with a high degree of probability this will be the introductory word.

Introductory words in English will help you make your speech more expressive and interesting.

Fortunately, the fire was discovered before it did much damage.
Luckily, the fire was discovered before it caused much damage.

Actually ... Actually ...
Always / at all - in general
also - also
An important point is that ...
after all - after all, nevertheless
all in all - in general
As for...
As far as I know - as far as I know
As a matter of fact ...
As far as I know - as far as I know
As a result of - as a result
As well as - as well
At a minimum - at least
At first - first
At the best - at best
At the moment - at the moment
By the way - by the way, by the way
Besides / moreover - in addition
Be aware - keep in mind
besides - besides, moreover
But other than that - but other than that
By this token - besides
during - during
Concerning... Concerning..
Frankly speaking / to tell the truth - to be honest / Frankly speaking
finally - in conclusion
first af all - first of all
firstly - firstly
from time to time - from time to time
On the one hand, ..., on the other hand, ...
It is not surprising that...
In conclusion... In conclusion...
It is important to note that ...
It is vital to note that ... It is worth noting that ...
It "s important to remember that ... It's important to remember that ...
It "s well known that ... It is known that ...
It goes without saying - goes without saying
It goes without saying that... It goes without saying that...
It turned out
It is no great surprise that...
Indeed - indeed
In a word...
In other words - in other words
In a nutshell ... In a word...
It "s self-evident that ... It goes without saying that ...
In short... In short...
In addition ... In addition ...
In any case / anyway - in any case
In fact - actually
In my opinion - in my opinion
In order to - in order to
In other words - in other words
In the first place - in the first place
Instead of - instead of (something)
It can mean - this can mean
It doesn't matter - it doesn't matter
It makes sense - makes sense
It may seem - it may seem
It seems - it seems
It takes me - I need
I advise you - I advise you
I am intended - I intend
I had better - I should have
I made a decision - I made a decision
I would like - I would like
I would rather - I would prefer
Luckily / Fortunately / Unfortunately... Fortunately / Fortunately / Unfortunately...
However - however / nevertheless
Moreover... Moreover...
Meanwhile - in the meantime
moreover - more than that
Most of all - most of all
Meanwhile / meantime - in the meantime, while
Nevertheless - however, nevertheless, nevertheless
Nothing special - nothing special
Nowadays - nowadays
Of course / certainly - of course
Obviously - obviously, undoubtedly
On the one hand - on the one hand
On the other hand - on the other side
Perhaps / probably - perhaps
Regarding... Regarding...
Recently - recently
Right now - right now
Speaking of... Speaking of...
To sum it up
Summing it up...
So to speak - so to speak
So, to sum it up... So, to sum it up...
Strictly speaking
So / well - so
well
So far as we know
Take the time - take the time
The trouble is ...
Therefore - for this reason
Though / although - although
The fact is ...
The thing is ...
The point is ...
To cut it short - in short
This plays a key / vital / prominent / important / major role in ... leading role in...
To crown it all...
To begin with
To put it mildly
To make a long story short... In short...
Telling the truth
Unlike - unlike
What's more ... Moreover ...
What's worse ... What's worse ...

If you follow everyday speech, you will surely be surprised at how many introductory words there are. In this sense, English differs little from Russian, and introductory words in English make speech lively and pleasant to human ears. In fact, these are the words that can be easily removed from the text without losing its meaning (and in this they differ from service words).

Without introductory words, the speech would be too dry, and it would be too difficult for the interlocutor to perceive the conversation. For example, in scientific texts the number of introductory words tends to a minimum, which is why they are so difficult for ordinary people to understand.

In addition, introductory words give speech an emotional coloring and liveliness, reflect the personal attitude of the narrator to the situation and perform an important communicative function.

What parts of speech can act as introductory words?

Any part of speech - verb, noun, and others - can act as an introductory word. Moreover, in English there are a huge number of set expressions, which are also introductory. Words, phrases, mini-sentences can be introductory in the main sentence and not carry a semantic load.

What introductory phrases are used to express a positive attitude?

If your English-speaking interlocutor enthusiastically proves his point of view to you or tells you about his breathtaking impressions of any event, then you, as in a dialogue with a compatriot, will probably have to cheer him up, agree on something, and object. To express your consent In relation to what has been said, you can use the following words and expressions:

• "You are right" - You are right
• "Yes, of course" - Yes, sure
• "very well" - very well
• "I believe so" - I believe so
• "I agree with you" - I agree with you
• "Naturally!" — Naturally
• "Perhaps" - Maybe
• "Very likely" - Most likely
• "Exactly!" — Exactly so

What introductory phrases to express your disagreement?

So, in any conversation, controversial issues arise, and you can no longer agree with the interlocutor “You are right”, but want to object something. Then introductory words in English will help express your doubt or disagreement:

• "I'm afraid, but it's not" - I'm afraid so
• "I doubt it" - I doubt it
• "It's unlikely to be so" - It can hardly be so
• "It doesn't look like it" - Most unlikely
• "In no case!" — Not a bit!
• "In no case!" — no way
• "Of course not!" — No go
• "Never in my life" - Not for a moment
• "Not even close" - Nowhere near
• "What nonsense!" — What's the idea of..!

Introductory phrases as a courtesy tribute

Introductory words perform another important role: they show your interlocutor that you are a well-mannered person and have an idea about the rules of decency. Below is a list of words that can be used everywhere from friendly conversation to business correspondence. And, of course, the words of greeting and farewell, without which not a single conversation can do.

• "I am writing to tell you .." - I am writing to say
• "I hope..." - I'm hoping
• "I am interested in .." - I am interested in
• "I am really looking forward to..." - I am really looking forward to
• "It does you credit" - It does you credit
• "I'm glad to see you" - I'm glad to see you
• "It's very kind of you" - It's very kind of you
• "I beg your pardon" - I beg your pardon
• "Not at all" - Not at all
• "I don't care about it" - I don`t care about
• "Very grateful for your help" - I really appreciated all your help
• "You're welcome!" — you are welcome
• "Thanks in advance!" — Thank you in advance
• "Only after you" - After you
• "I'm sorry, but I can't" - I'm sorry, I can't
• "Do not mention it!" — Don't mention it
• "It's okay" - no problem
• "How are you" - How are you today
• "This way, please" - This way, please
• "I'm sorry" - I'm so sorry
• “Sorry, I didn’t hear you” - I’m sorry, I didn’t catch you
• "I can help you?" — I help you?
• "Thank you anyway" - Thank you anyway
• See you later
• "Good Luck"
• "Until we meet again" - Until we meet again
• "Talk to you later" - Talk to you later
• "See you soon" - See you soon
• "Till next time" - Till next time
• "Take care!" — Take care
• "See ya chao" - See ya
• "Farewell!" Farewell
• "Bye" - Bye-bye

Introductory words in the repertoire of a good storyteller

If you want to learn English, then you can't do without speaking practice. Let's go back to the hypothetical interlocutor. So he talked a lot, and now he wants to listen to your story. What words do you need to describe the events that excite you? Your vocabulary, most likely rich enough for the task. And with introductory words, speech will become richer and faster, because behind the template phrases you will have enough time to remember the right word.

1. Introductory words that give emotional coloring to your statements, with their help you can give them personal assessment:
   • "To my surprise" - To my surprise
   • "Truth be told.." (with an intonation of doubt) - To tell you the truth
   • "Honestly" - honestly
   • "Unfortunately"
   • "Fortunately for us"
   • "I think that .." - In my opinion
2. Introductory linking words that structure your story
   • "Firstly" - Firstly
   • "Secondly"
   • "Let's start with .." - To begin with
   • "In the end..." - Finally
   • "The first thing that needs to be said is" - The first thing that needs to be said is
   • "In the first place" - First of all
   • "The second reason .." - The second reason for
3. filler words, filling gaps during conversation
   • "In short" - Briefly
   • "Actually..." - Actually
   • "In other words"
   • "In general .." - At all
   • "Nevertheless..." - Nevertheless
   • "For this reason..." - Therefore
   • "However.." - However
   • "Otherwise"
   • "Perhaps.." - Perhaps