Download BEP 34 INT – Meetings: Clarifying What Was Said

This is the first in a two-part Business English Podcast series on clarifying. To clarify means to make clear.

Today we’ll look at phrases and skills for clarifying what was said. For example, “I didn’t quite catch that. Could you say that again?” This is useful when you don’t hear clearly or when someone speaks too fast.

Then, in the second podcast, we’ll be looking at language for clarifying what was meant, for instance “What exactly do you mean by that?”

The listening today is from a shipping company. You’ll hear Wim Zeldenhuis and Andre De Vries in Rotterdam call their American colleague Benny McClenahan in Boston.

BEP 34: Study Notes.

This Business English podcast is the second part of a two-part series on making, rejecting and accepting suggestions. In the first episode BEP 30 ), we looked at how to make suggestions. In this episode, we’ll cover appropriate ways to reject and accept suggestions. Accept means to agree to a suggestion and reject means to disagree.

As you’ll remember, the listening takes place at a sports shoe company called Stratos. You’ll be listening to Karen, a marketing manager, meet with three members of her team, Charles, Sven and Miguel. They are choosing a celebrity spokesperson for a new product.

Transcript & Study Notes.

Today’s intermediate Business English Podcast is part of a two-part series on making, rejecting and accepting suggestions (see BEP 31 ). In this ESL podcast, we’re focused on the language used to introduce your ideas and make suggestions.

The dialog takes place at a sports shoe company called Stratos. You’ll be listening to Karen, a marketing manager, meet with three members of her team, Charles, Sven and Miguel. They are choosing a celebrity spokesperson for a new product. Celebrity means a famous person and spokesperson is someone who gets paid to be in an advertisement for a product.

Transcript & Study Notes.

In the previous episode ( BEP 28 ) of this 2 part business English podcast series, we looked at expressing agreement. We practiced four ways of agreeing: Using standard phrases, using synonyms, giving an example and making a general comment.

In this Business English Podcast, we’re going to focus on disagreement. We’ll learn different ways to disagree, from polite to strong.

As you’ll remember, the listening takes place in the R&D department of PharmaTek, a pharmaceutical company. Pharmaceutical means medicine (or drug). This meeting is between Gene, the head scientist, and Louis and Karina, two researchers. They are talking about the results of a new trial. Here, “trial” means “test”—the test of a new medicine on animals or patients. The new medicine is called Zorax. Let’s listen.

Transcript & Study Notes.

Today’s Business English Podcast episode is the first part in a two-part series looking at agreeing and disagreeing. In these two episodes, we’ll be practicing different levels of agreement and disagreement, from weak to strong.

Appropriate agreement and disagreement is an important part of all meetings and discussions.

In this podcast we focus on agreement. In the second show ( BEP 29 ), we’ll look at disagreement.

Transcript & Study Notes.