Speech or Talk

 Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something. – Plato

Greeting:

It is normal to begin by greeting your audience. Thus one might begin:

• Good morning, boys and girls.

• Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

  

  Public speaking

Introduction to the subject:

• I am happy to have this opportunity to say a few words about ……….

• It gives me great pleasure to be with you taday.

• You will have heard about ………… but there are some important points that (are easily forgotten) (I would like to stress / emphasise / draw your attention to).

• I am not used to speaking in public so perhaps you will forgive me if I come straight to the point. First i would like to say how happy I am to have been invited here to talk about …………

• My subject needs no introduction. You all know that ……….

Style:

Use first and second person and polite forms.

• I believe………….

• In my opinion………….

• I would like to suggest…………….

• You will, of course, be wondering……………

• All of you………….

• Most of you…………

• You will agree, I’m sure, that………….

Exhortations and Commands:

• Just consider for a moment……………

• Take for example……………

• Don’t forget…………… So please remember………….

• Let me remind……………..

Rhetorical Questions:

(answered by the speaker himself, or, so obvious, that they don’t need answering.)

• -Who doesn’t know………

• -Who hasn’t heard of…………

• -Who hasn’t seen………..

• -What can one do in such a situation? I’l tell you………

• -And who pays the cost of all this? You and I, of course.

• -What is one to do in such cases? The best thing to do is nothing.

• -Is it fair?

  Rhetorical Expressions:

• I am convinced…………

• Indeed……………

• I’m quite sure………

• I claim……………..

• No doubt there will be some who………..

• Generally speaking………….

• As a rule…………..

• No one can surely deny……………….

Exclamations for Emphasis:

• How strange…………

• What a pity it would be if…………..

• What an excellent opportunity this is for………….

 Conclusions:

• In conclusion, let me say…………

• To conclude I would like to ask you………….

• The most important thing to remember, then, is………

• Thank you for listening so attentively…………….

• Thank you for your kind attention, Goodbye.