Phrases and practice

Learn a useful phrase in context, listen to its pronunciation and practise saying it.

• I concede that the proposal addresses part of the problem, but it does not follow that it removes the underlying cause.C2 · #3676
• Agreement on the description of a situation does not yet amount to agreement on its interpretation.C2 · #3677
• I am not rejecting your conclusion; I am only questioning the move from the premises cited to such a categorical claim.C2 · #3678
• We can accept that argument for the sake of discussion without thereby treating it as decisive.C2 · #3679
• My reservation concerns the degree of certainty with which you state the thesis, not the possibility that it is correct.C2 · #3680
• A succession of rhetorical questions creates an impression of obviousness, although none of them supplies evidence in itself.C2 · #3681
• The reference to a supposed common interest blurs the distinction between one party's benefit and everyone's benefit.C2 · #3682
• If we contrast only two extremes, we may create the illusion of a choice where more possibilities exist.C2 · #3683
• An appeal to shared values can open a conversation, but it should not remove the need to justify a particular decision.C2 · #3684
• Repeating the same accusation in different words makes it more salient, not necessarily more credible.C2 · #3685
• The absence of any mention in the surviving letters does not establish whether the event never occurred or was simply not written about.C2 · #3686
• A later annotation may help organise the material, but it must not be treated as part of the original testimony without explanation.C2 · #3687
• The more detailed the reconstruction, the more clearly findings grounded in the sources must be distinguished from the interpreter's additions.C2 · #3688
• Two accounts do not constitute independent corroboration if both rely on the same earlier account.C2 · #3689
• We can identify the most likely sequence of events without turning that reconstruction into a certainty.C2 · #3690
• He was made the scapegoat, even though the decision he was blamed for had been taken without his involvement.C2 · #3691
• The victory proved Pyrrhic: we achieved our goal but lost the colleagues we needed for the work ahead.C2 · #3692
• Let us not cut this Gordian knot with a decision that simplifies matters by ignoring important commitments.C2 · #3693
• That seemingly minor remark triggered an avalanche of objections the participants had not voiced before.C2 · #3694
• Trying to please both sides left him between a rock and a hard place, with no solution acceptable to either.C2 · #3695
• As long as each of us understands the word “fairness” differently, apparent agreement on a shared principle may conceal a fundamental dispute.C2 · #3696
• Recognising someone's experience as significant does not require accepting every interpretation they draw from it.C2 · #3697
• Rather than seek a formula everyone will endorse for different reasons, let us identify the actual area of agreement.C2 · #3698
• Asking what would lead the other person to change their mind may reveal more than another attempt to refute their argument.C2 · #3699
• A conversation need not end in agreement to help both sides understand more clearly where they genuinely differ.C2 · #3700
• Our present understanding of that decision need not correspond to what those involved understood when making it.C2 · #3776
• The confidence with which we recount a memory does not establish the accuracy of every detail it contains.C2 · #3777
• We do not know whether the change in the account's tone stems from new information or a different assessment of the same events.C2 · #3778
• Retrospectively organising a story can give chance events a coherence that was not perceived at the time.C2 · #3779
• Let us distinguish what the narrator anticipated at the time from what, years later, they present as obvious.C2 · #3780
• Moving from quotation to paraphrase requires a signal that lets the reader recognise the shift in responsibility for the wording.C2 · #3781
• The verb “admitted” suggests more than the neutral “said”, so its use needs to be justified by the context.C2 · #3782
• In free indirect discourse, the narrator's voice can intertwine with a character's perspective without an explicit introduction to a quotation.C2 · #3783
• Placing two statements side by side can suggest a dispute even if they originally arose in different circumstances.C2 · #3784
• Not every change of grammatical person preserves the distance between the text's author and the position being reported.C2 · #3785
• Politely postponing an answer may allow time for reflection or avoid a refusal; without further context we cannot determine the intention.C2 · #3786
• An utterance that sounds like advice may be heard as an instruction if it comes from someone who decides whether cooperation continues.C2 · #3787
• Thanking someone for a proposal does not always mean accepting it; it may simply be a polite introduction to a reservation.C2 · #3788
• Correcting a fact and questioning the other person's competence are different actions, although an incautious tone may blur the distinction.C2 · #3789
• Holding back a comment can be a way of making room for others, not necessarily a sign of having no opinion.C2 · #3790
• The scaffolding metaphor emphasises the temporary nature of support but does not determine when it can safely be withdrawn.C2 · #3791
• Describing the criteria as a sieve suggests filtering, but we must still explain what is meant to pass through it.C2 · #3792
• Comparing the narrator to a lens helps describe the choice of perspective, but it does not imply a passive copying of reality.C2 · #3793
• The image of closed doors can express a sense of exclusion, although it does not itself explain who restricted access or on what grounds.C2 · #3794
• A metaphor gives a description vividness, but its evocative force does not excuse us from specifying where the comparison breaks down.C2 · #3795
• The Achilles heel of this plan is its dependence on one person whom no one can replace.C2 · #3796
• The threat of losing the room hangs over us like the sword of Damocles until we agree on the terms for continued use.C2 · #3797
• Putting these Augean stables in order requires not only moving files but also clarifying which versions remain valid.C2 · #3798
• Correcting the document became a Sisyphean task because each new version brought back errors removed from the previous one.C2 · #3799
• This project is a bottomless pit if every completed task leads to further demands with no agreed endpoint.C2 · #3800
• A translation's fluency can conceal a change of tone, so naturalness should not be the sole criterion for assessment.C2 · #3876
• Preserving an unusual word order makes sense if it serves an identifiable function in the original rather than being accidental.C2 · #3877
• A translation that spells out every allusion may aid comprehension at the cost of depriving the reader of interpretive work.C2 · #3878
• Let us not treat a difference in sentence length as an error before checking its effect on the rhythm and meaning of the passage.C2 · #3879
• Assessing an individual solution requires considering the translation strategy, although consistency of strategy alone does not justify a loss of meaning.C2 · #3880
• The punchline works through a sudden shift in expectations, so explaining it in advance would weaken the effect.C2 · #3881
• The humour of this scene arises from the mismatch between the solemn style and the trivial subject of the conversation.C2 · #3882
• A joke can present a character as comical without encouraging the audience to dismiss their suffering.C2 · #3883
• Without knowing the earlier scene, the repeated line sounds ordinary, although an attentive viewer recognises a return to an earlier misunderstanding.C2 · #3884
• Recognising the structure of a joke does not determine whether the audience finds it funny.C2 · #3885
• Switching to a more casual tone can reduce distance, but without mutual agreement it may be perceived as crossing boundaries.C2 · #3886
• A formal manner of speaking need not express coldness; it may signal care for the role held in that situation.C2 · #3887
• Using jargon can create a sense of belonging within a group while making participation harder for outsiders.C2 · #3888
• Let us not infer a patronising attitude solely from diminutives; their meaning depends on the relationship and context.C2 · #3889
• Maintaining a professional tone does not require removing every sign of warmth from one's speech.C2 · #3890
• An analogy is useful when the similarity concerns a feature relevant to the conclusion rather than merely an easily noticed detail.C2 · #3891
• A comparison may point to a possible problem, but it does not prove that its consequences will be identical in both situations.C2 · #3892
• If we reject the analogy, let us explain which difference undermines the reasoning rather than list arbitrary dissimilarities.C2 · #3893
• Familiarity with the example being compared may make the argument persuasive, although its validity requires separate assessment.C2 · #3894
• We can use an analogy to formulate a question without immediately treating it as a ready-made answer.C2 · #3895
• This edition is a rare gem: finding a complete copy takes patience and a little luck.C2 · #3896
• The seemingly harmless amendment proved to be a Trojan horse, introducing commitments that had not been discussed before.C2 · #3897
• We want to have our cake and eat it too, although with conflicting expectations we must eventually identify the necessary concessions.C2 · #3898
• Calling this recital a swan song suggests a farewell to the stage, not merely an exceptionally successful performance.C2 · #3899
• I do not want to assess this initiative from an ivory tower without talking to the people who will use it.C2 · #3900
• An omission can direct attention to what a character cannot say rather than simply remove information.C2 · #3976
• An open ending need not mean there is no resolution; it may leave its recognition to the reader.C2 · #3977
• Before treating a gap as a structural error, let us check whether the text deliberately signals it through other means.C2 · #3978
• The absence of a narrator's comment may leave judgement to the audience, but it does not prove indifference to the event described.C2 · #3979
• This recurring omission gains significance when set against what the character says without hesitation.C2 · #3980
• The absence of a one-word equivalent does not mean the experience cannot be described in another language.C2 · #3981
• Choosing a word with a broader meaning can ease reading but blur a distinction important to the whole passage.C2 · #3982
• Explaining a cultural reference should help the reader interpret the scene rather than replace it with a separate lecture.C2 · #3983
• Preserving the sound of a foreign word does not guarantee preserving the associations it evokes for readers of the original.C2 · #3984
• A descriptive paraphrase may preserve the intention of an utterance while losing the brevity and rhythm of a single expression.C2 · #3985
• A coherent account of causes may omit chance even though an unplanned event changed the course of the situation.C2 · #3986
• Let us not equate identifying a turning point with explaining every condition that made the change possible.C2 · #3987
• Presenting the outcome as inevitable may conceal choices that were genuinely still open at the time.C2 · #3988
• One decision can be a flashpoint without being the sole cause of a growing conflict.C2 · #3989
• Explaining why something happened need not also justify the way it came about.C2 · #3990
• Let us not judge an entire relationship from one unsuccessful meeting unless we can identify a recurring pattern.C2 · #3991
• Saying “you always do this” turns the description of one situation into a general accusation requiring broader justification.C2 · #3992
• We can describe the effect of someone's behaviour without claiming to know all their motives.C2 · #3993
• Separating observation from interpretation lets the other person challenge the conclusion without denying the event itself.C2 · #3994
• Softening the tone should not obscure the specific change we are asking for.C2 · #3995
• It is not worth locking horns over one adjective if the fundamental disagreement concerns the whole conclusion.C2 · #3996
• The character describes his deal as a pact with the devil because he achieved his goal at the cost of losing control over his own decisions.C2 · #3997
• Constant dripping wears away stone: repeated calm explanations may achieve more than one heated argument.C2 · #3998
• That promise sounds like building castles in the air until we know who will provide the resources needed.C2 · #3999
• It seems we are talking at cross-purposes: each of us is answering a different question.C2 · #4000