Agreeing and Disagreeing in English

Kampung Inggris – Hello everyone! Now we are going to talk about words and phrases that we use when we agree or disagree with someone in English with a comprehensive list of expressions. When producing language, whether it be speaking or writing, one of the most important things in language function is that of agreeing and disagreeing. This language funciton is necessary because it allows us to negotiate meaning and reach agreements while we communicate with others.

Baca juga : 11 Tipe Kata Kerja, Bikin Bahasa Inggrismu Next Level !

Agreements with affirmative statements

• Spongebob ; She is a good girl.
  Patrick; Of course, she is.
• Spongebob ; He can speak English well.
  Patrick; Yes. He can.
• Spongebob ; She looks upset.
  Patrick; Yes, she does.’

Agreements with negative statements

• Spongebob; Salt is not sweet.
  Patrick; No, it isn’t.
• Spongebob; They don’t care.
  Patrick; No, they don’t
• Spongebob; Sandy can’t come
  Patrick;  No, she can’t.

Disagreements with affirmative statements

• Doraemon; I am a dog
  Nobita; No, you’re not
• Doraemon; I love banana
  Nobita; No, you don’t
• Doraemon; I can swim
  Nobita; No, you can’t
• Doraemon; Why did you beat him?
  Nobita; But, i didn’

Baca juga : Kapan Harus Pake Anybody, Everybody, Somebody, Nobody ?

Disagreements with negative statements

• Doraemon; I am not a cat
  Nobita; Yes, you are.
• Doraemon; You can’t do it
  Nobita; Yes, I can
• Doraemon; He won’t come.
  Nobita; But he will.
• Doraemon; They din’t see you
  Nobita; Yes, they did

Additions to remarks

Affirmative additions to affirmative remarks

• Upin; I like mangoes.
  Ipin; So do I
• Upin; I was late.
  Ipin; So was I.
• Upin; They have met her
  Ipin; So have we

Negative additions to negative remarks

• Upin; I can’t drive.
  Ipin; Neither can I
• Upin; She didn’t come.
  Ipin; Nor did he
• Upin; I don’t speak French.
  Ipin; Neither do I.

General Verbal Nods

• Yes
• Ok
• Right
• Exactly
• Perfect
• True
• So do I
• So am I
• So have I
• Same here
• Sure
• Definitely
• Absolutely
• Of course
• Me too
• Nor me

Baca juga : Affixiation (prefix and suffix), Begini Penjelasannya!

Formal Verbal Nods

• Agreed
• Certainly
• Of course
• Without doubt
• No question

Casual Verbal Nods

• ‘uhuh’
• Yep
• (For) sure
• Yeah
• Nice (one)
• Good (one)
• Me too
• You’re telling me

Stating an opinion

• In my opinion,
• The way I see it,
• If you ask me,
• If you want my honest opinion,
• As far as I’m concerned,
• According to…… (name of people)
• Asking for an opinion
• What do you think?
• Do you agree?
• What’s your idea?
• How do you feel about that?
• Do you have anything to say about this/that?

Here are some expressions that we can use to agree and disagree with what someone has said. we use these expressions in a discussion activity.

Expressing agreement

• You’re absolutely right.
• Absolutely.
• That’s exactly how I feel.
• Exactly.
• No doubt about it.
• I suppose so./I guess so.
• You have a point there.
• I was going to say that.
• I hold the same opinion.
• I see it that way, too.
• I couldn’t agree with you more.

Expressing disagreement

• I don’t think so.
• I don’t think you’re right.
• No way.
• I’m afraid I disagree.
• I totally disagree.
• I beg to differ.
• I’d say the exact opposite.
• Not necessarily.
• That’s not always the case.
• No, I’m not sure about that.
• You may be right, but…

Which of those phrases for agreeing and disagreeing mentioned above are your favourite?
Which do you use most often?
Which are new for you?

Remember! It is always a good idea to justify your opinions but it’s better to not just say ‘I agree’ or I diagree’, but say ‘I agree/disagree because I think that … (explain your reason)

Examples in sentences

Agreement

• A: The price is very expensive
  B: You’re absolutely right.
• A: Hey, I think that Pengabdi setan is a great movie.
  B: No doubt About it. I’m not regretting watching it at the cinema, eventhough i am not actually a fan of horror movies
• A: The new Harry Poter book was released last month, and I really love it.
  B: I hold the same opinion. I’ve read it and I can still remember the whole story.
• A: Our new teacher is good at explaining the lesson. She can explain difficult topic in an easy way that i can understand easily.
  B: i see it that way too
• A: I got this book from the library last week. It really helped me in emotion control
  B: I couldn’t agree with you moore. I rarely see you angry or sad.

Disagreement

• Patrick: The food we ordered is very spicy.
  Squidward: I’m not sure about that. My food is not spicy at all. Maybe the Spongebob served the wrong dish to you
• A: The sky is cloudy. It will rain. You should bring your umbrella.
  B: I´m not sure I agree with you. I think it will be cloudy for today because I’ve watched forecast weather predictions this morning.
  A: a new student in your classroom is diligent. She came in the morning and then cleaned the blackboard.
  B: I think otherwise. I saw Bobby come first and Puti cleaned the blackboard.
• A: Your t-shirt must be expensive. It matched your outfit.
  B: You may be right, but I got this shirt on sale. It was very cheap.

Closing

I hope all of these expressions about agreement and disagreement come in handy. Remember, that communication is fundamentally about interacting with others, so you should really make an effort to communicate accurately and appropriately with others. Make sure you are not going to offend anyone with the way you disagree, Or even the way you agree! Thanks for reading! (frs)