• I like going to the cinema
• I like to see all the latest movies.

Often these two forms mean exactly the same thing but there can be a difference between them. When we use like to there is an ide that we think is is a good idea, even if not pleasant, and it is probably a regular action.

• I like to visit the dentist twice a year.
• I like my children to be in bed by nine.
• I like to keep fit.

We use would like to to make polite offers and requests.

• Would you like to have lunch one day next week?
• I’d like to have your opinion.

Used as a preposition, like often means ‘similar’ or ‘typical’..

• Like me, you probably are a bit shocked by his behaviour.
• What is Harry like? Is he conceited?
• You look like you need to sit down.
• I want to do something exciting – like bungee jumping.
• It is just like him to be late.

In informal American English, like is used to mean ‘as if’. (Some people think it is ‘incorrect’  but you will certainly hear it a lot.)

• I feel like I am a princess.
• It was like I was back in the sixties.

Don’t confuse that with feel like meaning ‘a desire to do someting’.

• I feel like going out for a meal.
• I don’t feel like driving any more today.

Unusually for a preposition, like can have the adverbs quite or rather in front of it.

• It is quite like old times.
• It is rather like it was before we had computers.

Here are some useful phrases using like.

Come when you like.

• You are always welcome. Come when you like.

Do as you like.

• It is entirely your choice. Do as you like.

If you like is used to make suggestions.

• We could go later, if you like.

Like this is used when you are demonstrating something.

• You put the paper in here like this.

Eat like a horse means to eat in large quantities.

• Kate eats like a horse but she never seems to put on any weight.

Feel like a million means that you feel really good.

• I have met a new girl. I feel like a million.

Go like clockwork means that it happens without problems.

• The launch of the new product went like clockwork.

Like a bat out of hell means very fast.

• He drove like a bat out of hell. I was scared.

Like a fish out of water means that the person does not fit in at all.

• He knows a lot about accounting but he is like a fish out of water in marketing.

If something sells like hot cakes, it sells really well.

• The new iphone is selling like hot cakes.

If you go out like a light, you fall asleep immediately.

• He was so tired that he went out like a light when he lay on the sofa.

If you sleep well, you sleep like a log.

• I slept really well.  I slept like a log.

If you watch like a hawk, you watch really closely.

• I didn’t trust him so I watched him like a hawk for the whole time he was here. He didn’t do anything wrong.

If news spreads like wildfire,  everybody hears it very quickly.

• Reports of their argument spread like wildfire through the company.

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• He is a just man.
• I think their punishment was just.

There is an expression just deserts which means that someone got the punishment they deserved.

• Twenty years in prison? I think he got his just deserts

There is also an adverb form justly

• He has been justly praised for all his work for charity. 

However, we are mainly concerned in this lesson with the adverb just.

Just can mean ‘exact’.

• You look just like your father,
• That is just what I was looking for.
• It’s just like Steve to be difficult.

Just can mean ‘nothing more than’.

• Just do what I say.
• Just a quick word.
• I have just met him a few times
• You will just have to be patient.

Just can be used for emphasis and then means ‘completely’.

• It’s just amazing what he has done.
• I just can’t believe it. 

Just can mean ‘a small amount’.

• I had just enough time to talk to her before I left.
• I just missed him. He had only gone a few minutes before I got there.
• It should take just over an hour to get there.

Just can also mean ‘a small distance’.

• My office is just down the corridor.
• There is a good restaurant just around the corner.
• The Spanish border is just south of Ceret.

Just with a past tense can mean ‘very recently’.

• I was just trying to phone you.
• I have just seen him. 

Notice that just is used with a Present Perfect in British English but frequently with the Past Simple in American English.

• She’s just arrived.
• She just arrived.
• We have just been talking about it.
• We were just talking about it.

With progressive forms, just can mean ‘in the immediate future’.

• I was just going to bed when you called.
• I am just coming.

With the present tense, just means ‘now’.

• I am busy just at the moment. Can you call me back later?
• I can’t do that just now.

Here are some useful expressions.

Just about means ‘almost’ or ‘nearly’.

• Henry seems to have just about finished his project.
• I have had just about all I can take from my boss. I am thinking of resigning.

Just a minute/second/moment is used to stop the movement or the speech of somebody.

• Just a moment. Where do you think you are going?
• Just a second. Say that again.

Just as has the idea of ‘same as’.

• He is just as unpleasant as his wife.
• Just as I anticipated, he left before finishing the work.

Just as well means that it is good that something has happened, even if it wasn’t expected.

• It is just as well that you found out now that he is unreliable.
• It is just as well that I didn’t take that job as the company has gone into liquidation.

Just like that means ‘suddenly’.

• A big thunderstorm started just like that. We all got soaked.
• He was here a moment ago. Then he vanished just like that.

Just the thing  means that something is perfect or the best.

• I have just the thing you need to help you sleep better.
• That rose is just the thing to put in your hair.

Not just yet is similar to ‘not yet’ but suggests that the action will be finished soon.

• I haven’t quite finished reading his report just yet.
• Lunch? Not just yet. Give me five minutes.  

Not just is similar to ‘not only’.

• She’s not just a colleague, she’s a good friend.
• It’s not just an ordinary birthday, it’s your 50th.

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If you are in the know you have been told confidential information.

For those of you not already in the know, Jane and I are getting married.

If you have know-how. you have expertise.

Does he have the technical know-how to work on this project?

But, more usually, know is a verb and can be followed by objects, that-clauses or wh-clauses.

I know John really well. We used to work together.

I know that you are unhappy. Can we talk about it?

I know why we are doing so badly. It’s our poor website.

You know can be used to emphasise a point.

You are not helping yourself, you know, by always arguing with your boss.

But, more frequently, you know is used as a way of pausing to give the speaker time to think. Many people find this very irritating and you should not try to do this yourself

I went to see him, you know, and he was, you know, very angry. So I said I was, you know, sorry to try to, you know, calm him. 

Before you know it means very quickly.

Two months seems like a long time but it will be over before you know it.

Don’t I know it is an informal way of agreeing with what has just been said.

Don’t I know it. You are quite right. 

For all I know means that you have no knowledge of something.

For all I know, they might not even be interested in the project.

I don’t know can be used to express doubt or disagreement.

I don’t know that I agree. I can see the other side of the argument.

I don’t know about John. I am not sure he is capable.

If you must know is used when you are giving information that is personally embarrassing.

If you must know, I am divorced. 

I know can be used to express agreement.

I know. You are quite right.

I know can be used to introduce a suggestion.

I know. Let’s go out for a meal. 

I wouldn’t know is used to say that you have no experience of something.

I wouldn’t know anything about it. I have never done that before.

If you know better/best, you know about something more than anybody else. It is often used in a sarcastic way.

He always thinks he knows best. He is very irritating.

If  you are sensible enough not to do something, you know better.

I know better than to believe a word he says.

If you know that something that somebody says is inaccurate, you know better.

She told me that John was certain to get the job but I knew better.

If you don’t know what hits you, you are taken completely by surprise.

When we brought out the new version, our competitors didn’t know what had hit them.

If you know what it is, you have experience of something.

I know what it is to live on a very low income.

If somebody knows what they are talking about, this person is an expert and deserves to be listened to.

He certainly knows what he is talking about. We should do what he says.

If you don’t know the first thing about something, you are completely ignorant about it.

I don’t know the first thing about networks. Could you explain this to me in simple terms?

You never know is used to say that we can never be totally sure about the future.

You never know what will happen.

When you don’t want to answer:

When someone interrupts you:

When you finally understand what they want to know:

When you realise they don’t understand what you said:

If you don’t want to tell everyone:

To close off the presentation:

Here are some ways of getting an answer when you are the QUESTIONER:

When the answer doesn’t give you the information you want:

When the answer is evasive:

If you are sceptical and want more detail:

If you don’t agree:

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• We moved to Australia and let our house in London.

A major use of let is for talking about ‘allowing’ and ‘permission’.

• My mother let me come.
• I let her leave early.

One pattern is let followed by an OBJECT followed by a BARE INFINITIVE

• She let me have the last one.
• You must let us know when you are coming to New York.
• I didn’t let my friend drive my car.
• Why did you let Jane do that?

Another pattern is let followed by an OBJECT followed by a COMPLEMENT

• Let me past.
• The police aren’t letting anybody out of the building.
• Don’t let him get away.
• Why did you let him in?

Notice that we can use reflexive pronouns to talk about what we allow ourselves to do.

• I let myself be influenced by her.
• She let herself out.
• I didn’t let myself be talked into it.
• Did you let yourself in?

Notice that we do not make a contraction out of let us when asking for permission.

• Let us help you.
• Let us pay for this.
• Let us buy that.
• Let us take the risk.

We use let’s when we are making a suggestion.

• Let’s go to the cinema.
• Let’s stay at home.
• Let’s not argue. (formal)
• Don’t let’s argue. (informal)

Compare these

• Let us watch TV, please. (asking for permission)
• Let’s watch TV. (a suggestion)

There are many fixed expressions, idioms and phrasal verbs using let.

Let alone means ‘much less’

• I’ve never been to Africa, let alone Ghana.
• I’ve never met any actor, let alone Brad Pitt.

Let go can mean to dismiss

• My company let 20 people go.
• I was let go three weeks ago.

Let your hair down means to lose your inhibitions.

• At the office party, everybody let their hair down and we had fun.

Don’t let it get you down means to stay cheerful although something bad has happened.

• Everybody makes mistakes. Don’t let it get you down.

Let you off/let you off the hook means that you are excused, even though you did something wrong or had something bad to do.

• I made a mess but the boss let me off.
• I was supposed to tidy up after the party but I was let off the hook as Sandra did it.

Letting off steam means to get rid of excess energy or frustration.

• After work I go to the gym and let off steam on the treadmill.
• We need to go out after the exams and let off steam.

Let me see and let me think are expressions used to give you time to think.

• You want a raise? Let me think. Can we discuss this later?
• A good place for lunch? Let me see. How about the Italian restaurant?

Let’s say and let’s suppose are used to talk about hypothetical situations.

• Let’s say that you were boss. What would you do?
• Let’s suppose that we don’t get the contract. What do we do?

Let’s hope is used to express a hope.

• Let’s hope he gets the job.
• Yes, let’s hope so.

Are there any questions?

That is all I have to say. Are there any questions? 

That’s a good question.  This is a good way of giving yourself time to think.

That’s a good question. Let me think about it for a moment.

As I said earlier, ..….

As I said earlier, we are looking at several different solutions.

I’m afraid I can’t answer that.

I’m afraid I can’t answer that. That information is still confidential.

I’m afraid I don’t know.

That’s a good question. I’m afraid I don’t know the answer. We are still investigating.

I’m not in a position to answer that.  This is a great way of ‘blocking’ questions.

I’m not in a position to answer that.  You will have to ask Peter about that.

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Here are some ways in which you can pause for thought or block questions..

That’s a very interesting question.

That’s a very interesting question. Let me think about it for a minute.

I’m glad you’ve asked that question.

I’m glad you have asked that question. This is what we know about that.

A good question.

A good question. We still have a lot of research to do.

I’m sorry but I don’t have that information to hand.

I’m sorry but I don’t have that information to hand. I will email you later.

Can I get back to you about that?

I’m afraid I don’t have that information to hand. Can I get back to you about that?

I’m afraid I can’t answer that.

I’m afraid I can’t answer that. I don’t know enough about it. You really need to speak to Steven about that.

I’m not in a position to comment on that.

I’m not in a position to comment on that. I’m afraid that information is still confidential. What I can say is that we will be holding a press conference next Tuesday.

As I said earlier, …

As I said earlier, we don’t know for sure what caused the leak. We are still investigating.

I think I answered that when I said …

I think I answered that when I said that we were still investigating the problem.

I did mention that.

I did mention that earlier. I said that we were still looking for a solution.

I don’t see the connection.

I don’t see the connection to what we are talking about. That seems to me to be a completely different issue.

I’m sorry, I don’t follow you.

I’m sorry, I don’t follow you. What exactly do you mean?

I think that is a very different issue.

I think that is a very different issue. Safety is one thing and protecting the environment is something else.

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First focus on the point you want to discuss

You talked about

You talked about the problems with the Glasgow office.

You told us about

You told us about the success of the new Singapore plant.

You dealt with

You dealt with the difficulties with the new system quite quickly.

You described

You described the reaction of the workers to the changes as ‘broadly positive’.

You commented on

You commented on the problems with the euro.

You referred to

You referred to the poor economic outlook.

You mentioned

You mentioned the drop in sales in Europe.

Then ask for clarification

Could you tell us

Could you tell us why you did that?

Could you tell us if you think that was the right thing to do?

Could you explain

Could you explain why you said that?

Could you explain the thinking behind that?

These set phrases can be very useful

Could you be a bit more specific?

Could you give us more details?

Could you elaborate on that?

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There are two useful techniques for dealing with this.

Firstly, we can simply ask them to repeat what they said.

• Could you say that again please?
• I didn’t follow that. Could you repeat it?

Secondly, we can ask them to say again a specific piece of information.

• What time did you say?
• Where exactly are we to meet?

So the explanation is very short but we are giving a lot of practice activities.

If you use a negative adjective, it can sound aggressive and insulting.

You are small.

It’s dirty.

He is stupid.

It is often much better to use not very plus a positive adjective.

You are not very big.

It is not very clean.

He is not very intelligent.

As I said, a simple idea that can make you sound much more professional.

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