English at college

“I am from Bihar. This is my first year here.”

Say where you come from.

मैं ___ से हूँ।

say it as: I am from / Indore · anywhere

“I have to hand in the assignment by Friday.”

Say what you are obliged to do, usually because somebody else decided.

मुझे ___ करना पड़ेगा।

say it as: I have to / leave by six · anywhere

“I'm supposed to attend all the labs.”

Say what is expected of you — often when it is not happening.

मुझे ___ करना चाहिए था / होता है।

say it as: I'm supposed to / submit it today · anywhere

“That makes sense now that you have explained it.”

Show you have understood and you agree.

यह बात समझ आती है।

say it as: That makes / sense · anywhere

“I agree that the argument is weak in the second half.”

Say what exactly you agree with — not just that you agree.

मैं मानता/मानती हूँ कि ___।

say it as: I agree that / the process needs to change · anywhere

“I'm going to take the exam in December.”

Say what you have already decided to do.

मैं ___ करने वाला/वाली हूँ।

say it as: I'm going to / apply next month · anywhere

“I'm thinking of applying for the exchange programme.”

Say what you are considering, without committing to it.

मैं ___ के बारे में सोच रहा/रही हूँ।

say it as: I'm thinking of / changing my job · anywhere

“I don't know how to start the assignment.”

Say that you are missing a skill — without apologising for it.

मुझे ___ करना नहीं आता।

say it as: I don't know / how to use this · anywhere

“I'm not sure whether the deadline includes the appendix.”

Say plainly that you have not decided or do not know.

मुझे पक्का नहीं पता कि ___।

say it as: I'm not sure / whether this is right · anywhere

“I'm interested in joining the debate society.”

Say what you would like to learn about or get involved in.

मुझे ___ में दिलचस्पी है।

say it as: I'm interested in / learning data analysis · anywhere

“It won't happen again, I promise.”

Close an apology by saying what changes.

ऐसा दोबारा नहीं होगा।

say it as: It won't / happen again · anywhere

“In my opinion, the topic is too broad for a ten-page paper.”

Mark clearly that what follows is your view, not a fact.

मेरी राय में, ___।

say it as: In my opinion, / the second option is safer · anywhere

“I don't think the reading covers that point.”

Disagree with an idea — softly, and in the way English actually does it.

मुझे नहीं लगता कि ___।

say it as: I don't think / that is the real reason · anywhere

“I'm not entirely convinced that the study proves what the author claims.”

Disagree seriously, while leaving the door open.

मुझे पूरी तरह यक़ीन नहीं कि ___।

say it as: I'm not entirely convinced / that this is the cheapest option · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“It would be misleading to suggest that the sample represents the whole population.”

Challenge a claim formally, on the record, without calling anybody a liar.

यह कहना भ्रामक होगा कि ___।

say it as: It would be misleading / to suggest that the change had no cost · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“If I were you, I'd choose the shorter topic.”

Give advice by putting yourself in their place.

अगर मैं आपकी जगह होता, तो मैं ___ करता।

say it as: If I were you, / I would talk to the manager · anywhere

“We could always work on it together.”

Offer a fallback — an option nobody has to take.

हम चाहें तो ___ कर सकते हैं।

say it as: We could always / ask for more time · anywhere

“I was wondering if I could submit this tomorrow instead.”

Make a request that the other person can refuse comfortably.

मैं सोच रहा/रही था/थी कि क्या ___।

say it as: I was wondering if / you could help me · polite — strangers, seniors, customers

“Can I add something here about the second reading?”

Get into a meeting without waiting to be invited.

क्या मैं यहाँ कुछ जोड़ सकता/सकती हूँ?

say it as: Can I add / something here · polite — strangers, seniors, customers

“Sorry to interrupt, but could you go back one slide?”

Get into a conversation that is already running.

बीच में टोकने के लिए माफ़ी, पर ___।

say it as: Sorry to interrupt, / but I think we have the wrong date · polite — strangers, seniors, customers

“The more I revised, the calmer I felt.”

Link two things that grow together.

जितना ज़्यादा ___, उतना ज़्यादा ___।

say it as: The more you practise, / the better you become · anywhere

“On the one hand the topic is popular, on the other hand it has been written about endlessly.”

Lay out both sides before you come down on one.

एक तरफ़ ___, दूसरी तरफ़ ___।

say it as: On the one hand it is cheaper, / on the other hand it takes twice as long · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“Let me put it another way, because that explanation was too complicated.”

Start again with different words, when the first explanation did not work.

मैं इसे दूसरे तरीक़े से कहता/कहती हूँ।

say it as: Let me put it / another way · anywhere

“To begin with, we could not agree on a topic.”

Open a story or a list at the first thing.

शुरुआत में, ___।

say it as: To begin with, / nobody knew who was in charge · anywhere

“I realised that I had misread the whole question.”

Say the moment you understood something — the point of most stories.

मुझे समझ आया कि ___।

say it as: I realised / that I had been solving the wrong problem · anywhere

“What's the difference between the two electives?”

Ask somebody to explain two things you keep mixing up.

___ और ___ में क्या फ़र्क़ है?

say it as: What's the difference / between the two plans · anywhere

“Today I'd like to talk about how the study was designed.”

Open a presentation by naming the subject in one line.

आज मैं ___ के बारे में बात करना चाहूँगा/चाहूँगी।

say it as: Today I'd like to talk about / why response times have doubled · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“Let me start with the method, because the results depend on it.”

Tell the room where you are beginning, so they can follow.

मैं ___ से शुरू करता/करती हूँ।

say it as: Let me start with / the numbers · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“What this shows is that the two groups behaved almost identically.”

Tell the room what to conclude, instead of hoping they will.

इससे यह पता चलता है कि ___।

say it as: What this shows is / that the problem is the timing · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“To summarise, the evidence supports the second hypothesis.”

Close by saying the one thing you want remembered.

संक्षेप में, ___।

say it as: To summarise, / we need two more people · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“What I learned from that was to start the reading three weeks earlier.”

Close a story with the point, which is what the interviewer is waiting for.

उससे मैंने यह सीखा कि ___।

say it as: What I learned from that / was to ask for the deadline in writing · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“Moving on to the limitations of the study.”

Change section without losing the room.

अब ___ की ओर बढ़ते हैं।

say it as: Moving on to / the second point · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“What brings you here — are you taking this course too?”

Open a conversation with a stranger at an event.

आप यहाँ कैसे आना हुआ?

say it as: What brings you / here today · with friends

“How did you get into research so early?”

Ask somebody about their path — the question people enjoy answering.

आप ___ में कैसे आए?

say it as: How did you get into / teaching · with friends

“What if we present together instead of separately?”

Put an option on the table without arguing for it yet.

अगर हम ___ करें तो?

say it as: What if we / split the work · anywhere

“I strongly believe that attendance should not decide the grade.”

State a view you are prepared to defend.

मैं दृढ़ता से मानता/मानती हूँ कि ___।

say it as: I strongly believe / that we should fix this first · formal — writing, presentations, officials

“I would argue that the second chapter contradicts the first.”

Put forward a position, signalling that you know it is arguable.

मैं यह तर्क रखूँगा/रखूँगी कि ___।

say it as: I would argue / that the real cost is the time · formal — writing, presentations, officials