Quoted and reported statements and questions

Use quoted speech inside quotation marks ("or'')  to report exactly what someone said or asked. The verb tense of the quoted speech does not change.

• He said, 'Let's watch the game.'
• He asked, 'Could you pay the bill?'
• I told him, 'No way.'

Use reported speech to paraphrase what someone said. You can keep the verb tense in the present or change it to the past.

• She said she hated sports.
• she told me she´s a feminist.

Also use reported speech to paraphrase what someone asked. In the reported question, change the word order to subject + verb and drop the auxiliary verb.

• 'Why do you like roses?'
• She asked why I like roses.
• 'Where do you live?'
• He asked me where I live.

You can use the narrative present for quoted and reported speech to make a story more current or more dramatic.

• He says, 'Let's fly to the Bahamas.'
• So I tell him we need to get to know each other better.
• She asks me, 'When should we get married?'
• And I ask her why she's in such a hurry.

  

RHETORICAL QUESTIONS

Use a rhetorical question to draw dramatic attention to your point. When a rhetorical question is asked, an answer is not expected; often the answer is obvious. Use the same structure for a rhetorical question as for a genuine question. Notice the exaggerated intonation used in these rhetorical questions.

• Who knows? Maybe someday we'll have gender equality.
• Shouldn't women get equal pay for equal work?
• Who created these rigid male and female roles?
• With all their problems, why do men and women bother dating?

Statements with 'What'

 The word what is often used to begin a question.

• What's so great about their computers?

However, you can begin a statement with what to add emphasis. Look at the two statements below. The what statement is more emphatic.

• Their computers are powerful and dependable.
• What's so great about their computers is that they're powerful and dependable.

 

Notice that the what clause, which contains the subject of the sentence, is followed by the verb be.

• What we need to do is upgrade our software.
• What you should try is outsourcing the work to a vendor.

Collocations with 'make,' 'do' and 'take'

Collocations are two or more words that are commonly used together.

A good understanding of collocations will help improve your oral fluency, as well as your reading and listening skills.

Here are some collocations with the verb make:

• Do you think we're making headway in the negotiations?
• We really need to make a decision today.
• I think we finally made a breakthrough in the negotiations.

   

Here are some collocations with the verb do:

• It's important to do research before negotiations begin.
• It's been a pleasure doing business with you.
• You did very well. Congratulations!
• I want you to do your homework before the meeting tomorrow.

Here are some collocations with the verb take:

• They're trying to take advantage of us!
• Our vendor takes good care of us.
• There's no need to rush. Take your time.
• I want you to take the lead in the negotiations.

Stating your position

At the start of a negotiation, it's important to state clearly your opening position. Use expressions like these:

• Let me begin by saying we need 75 machines over the next six months.  
• To begin with, you have to understand we have tough budget limitations.    
• I'm confident that we can work something out.
• We were expecting a better offer from you.
• We have certain limitations, but we'll try to be flexible.

Clarifying

Your goal in a negotiation is to get what you want. During the negotiation, clarify your position as many times as necessary in pursuit of your goal.

Use these questions to get clarification:

• Could you clarify a point for me?
• I'm not sure I fully understand your point.
• What exactly do you mean by discount?
• Could you be more specific?
• So what you're saying is, there's no way you can deliver immediately?

Use these statements to give clarification:

• So, just to clarify, we cannot go that low.
• So, to put it another way, the more you buy, the less you pay.
• What I'm saying is, we can offer you a small discount.
• To be more specific, we can discount the price by 10%.
• What we mean is, that won't be possible.

NEGOTIATING 🤝

 There is a lot of back and forth in negotiations. Use these expressions to talk about offers and proposals:

- Your preliminary offer was much higher than we expected. 

- I propose that you buy a different model. 

What do you propose that we do? What do you propose that we do?

- My offer is 300 units at $250 each.

Use these expressions to reject an offer or proposal: 

- I'm afraid that price is out of the question. 

- I'm sorry, but we can't offer that kind of discount. 

-There's just no way we can accept your offer. 

     

Use these expressions to make a counteroffer:

- I have a counteroffer for you. How about 20%? 

- What would you say if I offered $500? 

- Would you consider increasing the quantity?