‫‪Language‬‬

‫‪functions‬‬

‫مرجع مهم الختبار الحكومة‬

‫حصري لملتحقي دورة التوظيف‬

‫أ‪.‬محمد‬
Language functions

1- Introducing, Greetings and Good - byes

 Hello, I am (x)
 Please / glad / to meet you, I am (----)

 (x) This is (z). (z) This is(x)

 Glad to meet you, x
 Pleased to meet you, z

 Hello, x. how are you?

 Not too bad / Fine, thanks (z). And you.

 How do you do? Formal

 Good morning formal
 Good afternoon formal
 Good evening formal

 Hello. Hi! Informal

 Morning informal
 Afternoon informal
 Evening informal

 Good- bye / bye

 Good night (said when leaving at night).
 Have a nice (evening / time / holiday) (Used in good- byes)
 Thanks and the same to you.
 See you on / at (time)
 Yes. O.K. Bye
 I'll send you a postcard

 I'll phone you on / at (time)

 But I must go (an excuse to go)

 See you soon next / next week

 Good luck with the interview / on Monday
 Give my regards to -----

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Like and dislikes
 Do you like it?
 Yes, I do, I love it
 It's O.K.
 It's quite nice.
 I am crazy about it.
 It's all right
 It’s fantastic.
 I don't mind it.

 No, not much.

 No, I don't. I hate it.
 I can't stand it
 It doesn't appeal to me.
 It's horrible
 I hate it

Asking, requesting, offering, and inviting

 Can / could I have ……? Asking for things
 Do you think I could have ( asking for things )
 Could you take this to (asking people to do things?)
 Would you mind asking them to (…?)

(More Formal)
 Have you any idea………… (asking for information politely).
 Do you know if…….. (asking for information politely)

 What's a..... (asking for explanation).

 I do not understand why ……. (Asking for clarification)

 I do not know whether to …………….

 I do not know what to say ……. (Asking indirectly for advice and help).
Offering and giving help
 Shall I take that for you?
 Can I help you?
 Would you like a ….
 What would like you to ….
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Offering to make amends
 I'll let you know next time.
 I'll get you another one.
 I'll like to …
 Let me …..

Accepting Help
 Thank you. That's very kind of you

Refusing Help
 It’s all right, thanks. I can manage.

Making suggestions
 What shall I do? (Asking for suggestions)
 What about ….
 That's a good idea
 Let's …..
 Why don't ….
 Why not
 Shall we….
 Would it be a good idea to
 Have you thought of
 We could

 Good idea (agreeing)

 {No, I don't think so (disagreeing)
 {No, (give a reason)

Describing (people, places, weather)

 What's she like? (Appearance and personality)
 What des she look like? (Appearance)
 What color …?
 What sort of hair has …… got?
 What's the weather like?
 How far / large / long …..

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Asking for and giving directions
 Excuse me, can you tell me that way to …. ?
 Excuse me, how do I get to …?

 Turn right at….

 Turn left into …..
 Take the second turning on the right.
 Go past the……
 Go down / along road as far as…..
 Go to the end of the road.
 The … is on the / your right.
 It's not very far.
 It’s about five minutes walk.
 You can't miss it.
 Next to, on the corner (of).
 Opposite, on the left / right (of).
 Between, in front of
 Behind, over, under, inside, outside

Invitation
 Would you like to?
 Yes, I'd love to
 Yes, that would be great
 I am sorry, I can't
 I'd doing something that day, I am afraid

Apologies
 Sorry / I am terribly sorry / I am awfully sorry / I am really sorry

 That's O.K.
 That's all right.
 Don't worry about it.
 Never mind. It's nothing to worry about.
 It doesn't matter

Checking information
 Isn't / wasn't / didn't … (negative question)
 You did that, didn't you (tag question).
 Aren't you supposed to be at…? (Negative question).
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Obligation and prohibition
Ask about obligation
 Do we have to………..?
 Do you think we should…….?

Talk about obligation

 I think we should ……..
 You're expected to ………
 You're supposed to ………..

Talk about prohibition

 You are not allowed to …………
 You're not supposed to ………….
 You mustn't / shouldn’t …………..
 It’s illegal to………..

Giving rules
 You must …..
 You can't / mustn't

Permission
 You can…... If you want to ….
 You're allowed to ….

Warming and advices

 Be careful….
 Watch out / look out
 Make sure you…..
 Don't forget to…..
 If you're late again, you won't be in the team.
 Yes, O.K. I will
 It's all right. I'll be careful
 Don't worry. I will

 You should …
 You ought to …
 If you bend your knees, you'll keep your balance better.
 What should I do?
 Should I take?

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Examples of Some Key Language Functions

A language function is the purpose of speaking that sentence or phrase. For example, “I’m
sorry” represents the function of apologizing and, “Good Morning!” represents the function of
greeting.

In the speaking test, the examiner will ask certain questions that are testing your knowledge of
the suitable ways to speak for certain language functions. It is very useful if you can recognize
these language functions.

You should also understand that some questions combine two (or even more) types of
language function in one question.

Index of Language Functions

1. Talking About Personal Habits

2. Expressing Likes and Dislikes

3. Expressing a Preference

4. Comparing

5. Suggesting

6. Expressing Opinions

7. Explaining

8. Speculating ( = Guessing When You Don't Know)

9. Speculating ( = guessing) About the Future

10. Expressing Plans, Intentions and Hopes for the Future

11. Clarifying

12. Explaining a Word When you have Forgotten (or don't know) the Word

13. Speaking in General

1. Talking About Personal Habits

Example question: What do you usually do in the evenings?

1. I usually , I usually go for walking.

2. I often ... I often listen to the music in the evenings.
3. While I'm studying I usually ...
4. Sometimes I ....
 5. Whenever I can I ...

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2. Expressing Likes and Dislikes

Example question: What kinds of music do you like?

1. My favourite ... is ... , My favourite music is slow music.

2. I like ... I like listening to Arabic music. (Hate, like, love and prefer can be followed either by -
ing or a to-infinitive)
3. I enjoy ... I enjoy listening to Arabic music.
4. I'm quite keen on ... I'm quite keen on rock music.
5. I just love ... rock
6. I absolutely adore ....
7. I'm crazy about ...
8. I'm addicted to ...
9. I don't care too much for ... = I'm not really into ...
10. I dislike ...
11. I can't stand ...
12. I hate ... (extreme language)

3. Expressing a Preference

Example question: Do you (or, would you) prefer to travel alone or with others? (e.g., a friend)

1. I prefer ... because, I prefer traveling alone because it is more quite.

2. My preference is ... because ..., My preference is to travel with others because it is more
joyful.
3. I prefer A (v + ing) to B (v + ing) because ...
4. If I had the choice, I'd + V ... because ...
5. If I had the choice, I'd rather + V... because ...

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4. Comparing

Example question:

What are the differences between people's homes in the city and people's homes in the
countryside?

1. A is/are bigger than B.

2. B is/are not as big as A.

5. Suggesting

Example questions:
What would you suggest a visitor to your country see and do?

What do you think the government could/should do?

1. I'd .... (suggest, recommend, say, tell him) (her/them) ...., I’d tell him to visit Babylon.
2. Maybe/perhaps/possibly ... + could / should ..., perhaps he could visit Basra.

6. Expressing Opinions

Example question:

Do you think that children should always be offered an incentive (a reward of some kind) when
parents ask their children to do something?

1. I think ...
2. I believe ...
3. I feel ...
4. Personally, I (think, believe, feel) ...
5. I tend to + (think, feel, believe) that ...
6. In my opinion, ...
7. In my view, ...
8. It seems to me that ...
9. I'm convinced that ...
10. My view is that ...
11. From my point of view, ...

7. Explaining

Example question: Why are many older people reluctant to learn computer skills?

1. The reason why ... is because / is that ..., Because the process is very complicated, many
older people are reluctant to learn computers.
2. The main reason why ... is because / is that ...
3. One reason why ... is because / is that ...

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8. Speculating ( = Guessing When You Don't Know)

(When talking about the present or the past)

Example question: Do old people in China have opportunities to attend any forms of classes?

1. Well, I'm not sure but ..., Well, I’m not sure but I believe the old people in china have
opportunities to attend any forms of classes.
2. Well, I've never thought about that before but ...
3. As far as I know, ...
 4. I imagine ...
5. I guess ...
6. I suppose ...
7. I'd say ...

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9. Speculating ( = guessing) About the Future

(Most commonly, how the future will change, compared to now.)

Example question: How do you think the agriculture (in Iraq) will develop in the future?

1. I predict ... + a noun, I predict the agriculture in Iraq will be developed in the future by ? .
(farmers, fertilization).
2. I expect ...

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10. Expressing Plans, Intentions and Hopes for the Future

Example question: What are your future work plans? (after you graduate)

1. I plan to ... I plan to be a lecturer in the university of Baghdad.

2. My plan is to ...
3. I plan on + V ing
4. I intend to ... I intend to be a footballer.
5. I hope to ...
6. I'm going to ...
7. My ambition is to ...
8. My immediate goal is to ...
9. My ultimate (= final) goal is to ...
10. Ultimately, ...
11. Hopefully, ...
12. I expect to ...
13. I’d like to ... = I want to ..
14. If everything goes according to plan, I'll ...
15. My dream is to ...
16. It's always been my hope/plan/ambition/dream to ...
17. My heart is set on + Ving

11. Clarifying

1. In other words, .. A- I don’t think that this is the right job for you. B- in other words you
want me to leave, is that it?
2. Let me put that another way. I don’t think that this is the right job for you. Let me put that
another way I wish you leave it.
3. To put that another way, ...
4. What I'm trying to say is ..
 5. My point is that ...
6. More specifically, ...
7. For example, ... Hyundai is a magnificent car company that has many cars. For example
Elentra and Accent.
8. For instance, ...

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12. Explaining a Word When you have Forgotten (or don't know) the Word

"I can't remember the word Car .....

1. It’s a thing that ... it’s a thing that has four wheels, contains four doors, you can drive.
2. it's a type of ...
3. it's something you ...
4. he's a person who ...
5. it's something like ...
6. it's similar to ...
7. it's kind of like a ..."

 Q "It's a thing, a tool that you use to put air into your bicycle tyre - you use it like this"
(Show the action).

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13. Speaking in General

1. In general, Dogs are friendlier than cats but cats are cleaner than dogs.
2. Generally, ...
3. Generally speaking, .. Generally speaking, people like her could be a leader.
4. Typically,
5. Usually,

 Use the Present Tense when speaking in general.

Use this sentence "Boys like to play computer games but girls prefer to go shopping."

Functional Language (language functions)

"Functional language" is language that we use to perform various "functions" such as giving
advice or apologizing. Functional language typically uses fixed expressions for each function–for
example "if I were you" or "my suggestion is" in giving advice, and "it was my fault" or "please forgive
me" in apologizing.

These pages list common expressions for each function, graded by level.

 Giving Advice
if I were you, my suggestion is...
  Making Requests
can I, may I ask, I'd like to request...
 Apologizing
it was my fault, please forgive me...
 Giving Bad News
I'm sorry to say, I tried my best but...
 Agreeing
you're right, I feel the same way...
 Disagreeing
I don't really agree, but what about...
 Disagreeing Strongly
absolutely not, rubbish! I can't accept it...
 Offering
shall I, can I give you a hand...
 Asking for Opinions
in your opinion, what's your view on...
 Giving Opinions
I feel that, I could be wrong but...

Language Functions and Examples

of Forms
)‫جدول بسيط يوضح كل كل (فنكشن‬
‫ الجدول ليس قاعدة بل‬... ‫واللغة المستخدمة به‬
)‫(غالبا‬
Language Function Examples of Language Forms

Indirect/ direct object, subject/ verb

Expressing needs and likes
agreement, pronouns

Describing people, places, and things Nouns, pronouns, adjectives

Describing spatial and temporal

Prepositional phrases
relations

Describing actions Present progressive tense, adverbs

 Past tense verbs, perfect aspect (present and
Retelling/relating past events
past)

Making predictions Verbs: future tense, conditional mode

Asking Informational Questions Verbs and verb phrases in questions

Asking Clarifying Questions Questions with increasing specificity

Sentence structure, modals (will, can, may,

Expressing and Supporting Opinions
shall)

Adjectives and conjunctions, comparatives,

Comparing
superlatives, adverbs

Contrasting Comparative adjectives

Increasingly complex sentences with

Summarizing
increasingly specific vocabulary

Persuading Verb forms

Literary Analysis Sentence structure, specific vocabulary

Cause and Effect Verb forms

Drawing Conclusions Comparative adjective

Nouns, abstract nouns, pronouns, and

Defining
adjectives

Verb forms, indicative verb, declarative

Explaining sentences, complex sentences, adverbs of
manner

Common, collective and abstract nouns, verb

Generalizing
forms, nominalizations

Complex sentences; increasing specificity of

Evaluating nouns, verbs, and adjectives; correlative
conjunctions

Language of propaganda, complex sentences,

Interpreting
nominalizations
 Adverbs of time, relative clauses, subordinate
Sequencing
conjunctions

Modals (would, could, might), compound

Hypothesizing and speculating
tenses (would have been)

Modals (would, could, might), compound

Summarizing
tenses (would have been)
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