Almirante Gilberto José

Abdala Assumane
Ivo Julião
Marlene Bulacha

English Work

Language used for giving Opinion and for Agreeing and Disagreeing

English Course Year 3

Universidade Rovuma

Nampula

2023
 Almirante Gilberto José

Abdala Assumane

Ivo Julião

Marlene Bulacha

Work of English

English Course Year 3

Evaluative essay of English V to be submitted at the

Faculty of Arts and Social sciences, Department of
science of language and communication, English course
year 3 – 1st Semester

Lecturer: Valentim Chissulu

Universidade Rovuma

Nampula

2023
Content page
Introduction.......................................................................................................................4

1. Language used for expressing opinion.......................................................................5

1.1. Expression used to express opinion........................................................................5

1.2. Asking for opinion Formal Situation......................................................................6

1.3. Giving opinion Formal situation............................................................................6

1.4. Asking for opinion in informal situation................................................................6

1.5. Giving Opinion informal situation.........................................................................7

1.6. Starting an opinion.................................................................................................7

1.7. Giving opinions can be weak or strong..................................................................7

1.8. Other ways of expressing opinion..........................................................................8

2. Language used for expressing Agreement and disagreement....................................9

2.1. Types of disagreement..........................................................................................10

2.2. Expression for expressing agreement and disagreement......................................11

2.3. Expressing agreement...........................................................................................11

2.4. Disagreeing:..........................................................................................................12

2.5. Other expressions can be considered strong others weak....................................12

2.7. Agreeing/supporting other people’s opinion........................................................12

2.8. Disagreeing /contradicting other people’s opinions.............................................13

Conclusion.......................................................................................................................14

References.......................................................................................................................15
 4

Introduction

Being able to converse and interact in the target language is the key aim of many
language learners. In the wake of the communicative turn in language teaching, oral
proficiency has become prominent in the classroom, which increasingly is expected to
be an ‘oral space’. Opinion is including the words of opinion and argument/reason. In
expressing dialogue have two situations; formal and informal. Asking for and
expressing opinions is something we frequently do in every day English. An opinion is
simply how you feel or think about a certain issue. It’s usually a personal viewpoint
based on your experiences. An agreement is made when two parties agree to something.
So, for example, a mother might make an agreement with her son not to kiss him in
public because, after kindergarten, well, that's just not cool. If people's opinions are in
accord, or match one another, then they are in agreement.
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1. Language used for expressing opinion

Brown & Levinson (1987), ’opinion includes the words of opinion and argument or
reasons. Opinion dialogue is a dialog consists of two persons or more who have opinion
each other. It can use the expressions, such as in my opinion, in my view, I think etc.”

Opinion includes the words of opinion and argument/reason. In expressing dialogue

have two situations; formal and informal. Asking for and expressing opinions is
something we frequently do in every day English. We will need to ask and give
opinions in formal situations such as in business, in writing, both academic and informal
texts, and in informal speaking. An opinion is simply how you feel or think about a
certain issue. It’s usually a personal viewpoint based on your experiences.

According to Leech (1983), “an opinion is a person’s belief, feeling, or judgment about
something. It is a subjective or value judgment, and it cannot be proven”. A writer may
use factual statements to support his or her opinions. Opinion statements may occur
even in what seems to be strictly factual material. A reader should look for words that
are clues to statements of opinion.
Words such as perhaps, sometimes, probably, often indicate the possibility of opinions.
Being asked to express your opinion shouldn’t be scary, because we express opinions all
the time.
1.1. Expression used to express opinion

According to Swan (2005) “there are a lot ways to express opinion, no matter when is in
formal setting or informal setting”. However formal expressions are used in a situation
where you are talking in a formal situation, such as in the office or school between the
teacher and students. Informal expression is used in a situation where you are talking
between friends or close friends. The expressions usually respond to something that you
discuss in an informal situation. There are so many ways to express an opinion in
English and it’s important that you use them. The way you choose to express an opinion
can alter the way people think of you and look at you every day. When telling someone
our opinions (especially when using formal English), there’s a certain way we do it in
order to sound polite. It’s important to know how to clearly express your thoughts in an
organized way so that no one misunderstands you (or gets offended).
 6

1.2. Asking for opinion Formal Situation

 Have you got any comments on...?
 Do you have any idea?
 Do you have any opinion on...?
 Would you give me your opinion on...?
 What is your reaction to...?
 What is your opinion about...?
 What are you feeling about...?
 What are you views on...?
 Please give me your frank opinion?
1.3. Giving opinion Formal situation
 In my opinion
 In my humble opinion
 I personally think/feel ...
 I hold the opinion ...
 My own view of the matter is ...
 I (strongly) believe (that) …
 I (honestly) think (that) …
 Personally speaking, I believe …
 In my view…
 From my point of view …
1.4. Asking for opinion in informal situation
 What do you think of...?
 What do you think about...?
 What is your opinion?
 Why do they behave like that?
 Do you think it is going?
 How do you like?
 How was the...?
 How do you feel about this...?
 What's your idea?
 What are your thoughts on all of this?
 Do you have anything to say about this?
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1.5. Giving Opinion informal situation

 I think I like it.
 I think it’s good/nice/terrific.
 I don’t think I care for it.
 I don’t think much of it.
 I think that awful/notice/terrible...
 I think that…
 In my opinion, I would rather...
 What I have in my mind is...
1.6. Starting an opinion
 In my opinion...
 The way I see it...
 If you want my honest opinion....
 According to Lisa...
 As far as I'm concerned...
 If you ask me...
1.7. Giving opinions can be weak or strong
a) Weak
 I think….
 I don’t think…
 I’m fairly certain that….
 I’m quite certain that….
 I would have thought that….

b) Medium

 I believe….
 I don’t doubt that….
 I feel certain that…
 My impression is that….
 As I see it…
 It seems to me that…
 It strikes me that…
 I’m absolutely certain that….
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c) Strong

 I’m convinced that….

 I strongly believe that…

1.8. Other ways of expressing opinion

In my humble opinion: Saying in my humble opinion adds a bit of politeness to

expressing your opinion. To be humble means that you act in a very reserved and
careful manner so that you don’t offend people.

I reckon / I suppose: These are ways to express opinion with a slight sense of

uncertainty as well. Using I reckon in a sentence is primarily reserved for British
English and southern US English. It’s a very personal thing to say and because of that it
implies that the opinion is not an expert one. It is simply that person’s view. I reckon is
also slightly colloquial and probably best reserved for informal situations. Then we
have I suppose which is the formal counterpart of I reckon. It means the same thing but
is more commonly used due to its formality.

If I were you: This is a good phrase for giving advice as well as expressing your
opinion. It should only be used in an informal context. Here, you are putting yourself in
the shoes of the person to whom you are speaking. It’s very useful because you are not
directly telling them what to do, but simply saying what you would do if you were in
the same situation.

To be honest: This is a very common phrase in English and is a nice one to use in all
different types of conversation. Start using this in your speech today! The cool thing
about this phrase is that you can use it formally or informally in many situations. It is
also neither assuming nor direct. Just think about it logically, it means that you are
making an extra connection with your listener by at least saying you are going to speak
honestly. Maybe you are talking about a sensitive subject or a problem and this phrase
will be employed to cut through the unspoken information.

I could be wrong, but: This another phrase you can use to be humble. It’s also slightly
false in its construction. What you are doing here is inviting your listener to tell you that
 9

you are wrong and also admitting that it’s possible (perhaps likely) that you are wrong.
It takes pressure off of you in a conversation. Of course, normally, you don’t actually
think you are wrong but by admitting it’s possible you are making yourself more
humble.

Personally: This is a useful phrase to distinguish your opinion from a group of people
who might think differently than you. This is particularly good to use if you don’t agree
with a decision that your group has made. Politicians often use this phrase when their
party has made a collective decision which they are planning to oppose. In other
situations, you can use this to politely disagree with friends when they are making plans
or having a discussion about something. It’s a really good way to state a strong opinion
without being judged to harshly.

2. Language used for expressing Agreement and disagreement

According to Muntigl & Turnbull (1998), Agreement can be defined as a concurring
stance (verbal or nonverbal) to a preceding action or position taken by another speaker,
indicating that an addressee shares the speaker’s attitude to, or opinion of, that action or
position.
If people's opinions are in accord, or match one another, then they are in agreement. If a
teacher assigns a ten-page paper due the next day, the students would be in agreement
that the assignment was unfair.
As Pomerantz (1984) states that, an agreement is made when two parties agree to
something. So, for example, a mother might make an agreement with her son not to kiss
him in public because, after kindergarten, well, that's just not cool. . A written or verbal
contract can also be called an agreement. An agreement to deliver an article a month for
a publication could not be broken simply because you have writer's block.
According to Geogakopoulou & Patrona (2001), “disagreement is defined as an
oppositional stance to a preceding action/n or position taken by another speaker.
Disagreements are often considered “socially disruptive” and hence in need of some
form of mitigation”.
We may say that speaker S disagrees when s/he considers untrue, unfounded, or
objectionable some proposition P uttered or presumed to be espoused by an addressee
 10

A and reacts with an utterance the propositional content or implicate of which is not P.
A disagreement is a type of conflict, either between people or ideas. No it’s not! Yes it
is! It’s an argument. If your opinion contradicts the facts, there's a disagreement.

According to Muntigl & Turnbull, (1998), “when ideas conflict, there's disagreement. If
you want to go to an action movie, but your friend wants to go to a romantic comedy,
that's a disagreement”. Statements, opinions, and claims can also disagree. If I say my
grandmother was a sweet woman, and you say she was a horrible person, that's
disagreement. If the IRS finds a disagreement between your taxes and your real income,
you could be in trouble’
But disagreement may also emerge over an extended section of talk in the course of one
exchange, or even over a series of interactions. It may or may not be verbalized, and its
form may incorporate a variety of affective markers to signal an emotional association.
According to Angouri & Locher (2012) “the concept of ‘disagreement’ covers a range
of speech acts at the antipode of agreement” and shows overlap with related concepts,
such as argumentation, argument talk, conflict talk, dispute, oppositional talk/exchange,
verbal arguing”.
Disagreement or ‘doing disagreeing’ will be defined as any episode in talk-in-
interaction where opposition is expressed, starting sequentially from the statement that
is the source of the disagreement up until the resolution, often implicitly managed by
participants moving on to a new activity or topic.

2.1. Types of disagreement

Muntigl and Turnbull (1998) “Disagreements can be appraised in many ways from
supportive (e.g., disagreeing with a negative self-assessment) to highly oppositional,
and situational context is important in evaluating which function is being served”.
Situational context may encompass not only the talk’s referential content but also
factors such as interactants’ social and regional, ethnicity, and gender, which may
predispose them to realize and interpret disagreements in a particular way.
Some specific types of disagreement are: conflictual disagreement, sociable
disagreement, and workplace disagreement.
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 Conflictual disagreement
Conflictual disagreements are oppositional, face-attacking acts that arouse in the
addressee feelings of annoyance, irritation, anger, contempt, or disgust in varying
degrees. However this can include:
 Irrelevancy claims (the previous claim is not relevant to the discussion at hand,
e.g.)
 Challenges (a speaker questions an addressee’s prior claim and demands that the
addressee provides evidence for their claim while suggesting that the addressee
cannot do so.
 Contradictions (a speaker contradicts by uttering the negated proposition
expressed by the previous claim).
 Sociable disagreement
As well as signifying conflict, disagreement can also signal or intimacy and/or
sociability. Interlocutors who are in solidarity relationships share specific interactional
norms, allowing them to gauge which forms of disagreement are appropriate within
those relationships and which violate relational boundaries.
 Workplace disagreement
According to Holmes and Marra’s (2004), “in the workplace, failure to abide by norms
of politic behavior can have serious and tangible consequences for team cohesion and
employee relations, which is why workplace disagreement has traditionally been
characterized as dispreferred”.

2.2. Expression for expressing agreement and disagreement

We use different patterns to agree or disagree depending on how the opinion statement
begins. There are so many ways to agree and disagree in formal or informal setting.

2.3. Expressing agreement

 I agree with you 100 percent.
 I couldn't agree with you more.
 That's so true.
 That's for sure.
 You're absolutely right.
 Absolutely.
 That's exactly how I feel.
 12

 Exactly.
 I was just going to say that.
 I see what you mean.
 I (totally) agree with you / that.
 That’s a good point. / I see your point.

2.4. Disagreeing:
 I’m afraid I disagree.
 I don’t agree with you / that.
 I’d be inclined to disagree.
 That’s not the way I see it.
 I don’t think so. / I don’t feel the same
2.5. Other expressions can be considered strong others weak
Agreeing
 I guess so. (Weak)
 You could be right. (Weak)
 You may have a point there. (Weak)
 I don’t know if I agree with you. (Weak)
Disagreeing
 I completely disagree. (Strong)
 I totally disagree. (Strong)
 I disagree. (Strong)
2.6. Acknowledging someone’s argument and presenting yours
 I agree with you, but…
 That may be true, but…
 I see your point, but…
 I guess so, but…
 That’s not necessarily true because…
 Not necessarily because…
2.7. Agreeing/supporting other people’s opinion
 Of course.
 You're absolutely right.
 Yes, I agree.
 13

 I think so, too.

 That's a good point.
 That's just what I was thinking.
 I couldn't agree more.
 That’s what I feel, too
 I (fully) agree with you
2.8. Disagreeing /contradicting other people’s
opinions
 I don’t agree
 I’m sorry to disagree with you
 I don’t think so
 That’s no proof
 That’s not the point/the question
 I take a different view
 I don’t agree with what you’re saying
 I’m not so sure about that.
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Conclusion

Whenever we speak, we’re likely either agreeing or disagreeing with someone, or

telling them what we think about something. Using in my opinion is a great way of
telling people what you think and also making sure they know that it is
just your opinion. Some examples are: Do you have any idea...? Do you have any
opinion on...?. Would you give me your opinion on you could use this during a debate
or if you are with a group of people deciding what they should do.
Agreement has traditionally been characterized as the preferred response to a
proposition or assessment, disagreement as the dispreferred response. Yet recent
research into social interaction indicates that the use and evaluation of these two speech
acts is much more complex than previously thought. some examples are: I couldn't
agree with you more, That's so true, That's for sure, You're absolutely right.
 15

References

BROWN, P., & Levinson, S. Politeness: Some universals in language use. Cambridge,
UK: Cambridge University Press. 1987
GEORGAKOPOULOU, A. Arguing about the future: On indirect disagreements in
conversations. Journal of Pragmatics, 33: 1881–900. doi: 10.1016/S0378-
2166(00)00034-5. 2001.
HOLMES, J. & Marra, MLeadership and managing conflict in meetings. Pragmatics,
14, 439–462. . 2004.
LEECH, G. N. Principles of pragmatics. London, UK: Longman.
LOCHER, M., & Watts, R. J. Politeness theory and relational work. Journal of
Politeness Research, 1, 9-33. doi: 10.1515/jplr.2005.1.1.9. 1983. 2005.
MUNTIGL, P., & Turnbull, W. Conversational structure and face work in arguing.
Journal of Pragmatics, 29, 225–25610.1016/S0378-2166(97)00048-9. 1998.
POMERANTZ, A. Agreeing and disagreeing with assessments: Some features of
preferred / dispreferred turn shapes. In J. Maxwell Atkinson and J. Heritage (Eds.),
Structures of social action (pp. 57–101). Cambridge, UK: Maison des Sciences de
l’Homme and Cambridge University Press. 1984.
SWAN, M. practical English usage 3rd Oxford University Press 2005