Most meetings follow the same shape: someone opens, people give updates, the group discusses, and someone wraps up. If you know two or three phrases for each stage, you can join in at the right moment instead of waiting for a gap that never comes.
Opening the meeting
If you are running the meeting, your first job is to start on time and say what the meeting is for.
- "Okay, let's get started. Thanks, everyone, for joining."
- "I think we're all here, so let's begin."
- "The aim of today's meeting is to agree on the launch date."
- "We've got three things on the agenda today. First... then... and finally..."
- "We have 30 minutes, so I'll keep us moving."
- "Before we start, does anyone want to add anything to the agenda?"
If you are not running it, a simple "Morning, everyone" or "Hi, all" when you join is enough.
Giving an update
Updates work best when they are short: what is done, what is next, and any problem. These phrases give you that structure.
| Purpose | Phrases |
|---|---|
| Start your update | "Quick update from my side." / "So, where we are with the website..." |
| Say what is done | "We've finished the first draft." / "The testing is now complete." |
| Say what is in progress | "We're currently working on..." / "I'm still waiting to hear back from the client." |
| Flag a problem | "One thing to flag: we may miss Friday's deadline." / "We've hit a small issue with..." |
| Say what comes next | "Next week, we'll focus on..." / "The next step is to..." |
| Hand over | "That's it from me." / "Happy to take any questions." |
Asking for input
Good meetings hear from everyone, not just the loudest people. Use these to invite others in.
- "What do you think, Priya?"
- "Does anyone have any thoughts on this?"
- "I'd like to hear from the design team on this one."
- "Is there anything we're missing?"
- "Any objections before we move on?"
Giving your opinion
- "I think we should..."
- "In my view, the bigger risk is the timeline."
- "From my experience with the last project..."
- "I'd suggest we start with the smaller market."
- "One option could be to..."
"One option could be" and "I'd suggest" sound softer than "We must". They invite discussion instead of closing it down.
Agreeing
- "I agree with Tom."
- "That makes sense to me."
- "Good point. I hadn't thought of that."
- "I'm happy with that."
- "Exactly. That's what I was thinking."
- "I agree, and I'd add that..."
Disagreeing politely
This is the stage most phrase lists skip, and the one that worries people most. In English at work, a direct "I disagree" or "That's wrong" can sound harsher than you mean. The usual pattern is: show you heard the point, then give your view, then give a reason.
| Too direct | More polite |
|---|---|
| "That's wrong." | "I'm not sure that's quite right. The figures I saw were lower." |
| "I disagree." | "I see your point, but I see it a bit differently." |
| "That won't work." | "I'm worried that might be hard to do by March." |
| "No, we should do X." | "Could we also look at X? It might save us some time." |
| "You're missing something." | "Have we thought about how this affects the support team?" |
Other useful softeners:
- "That's a fair point. My only concern is..."
- "I agree up to a point, but..."
- "I'm afraid I don't think that will work, because..."
- "Can I offer a different view?"
For more on this, see our guide on how to disagree politely at work.
Interrupting and getting a turn
In a fast meeting, you may need to step in. Polite interruptions are short and they ask permission.
- "Sorry to interrupt, but can I add something here?"
- "Can I just jump in for a second?"
- "If I could come in here..."
- "Just to build on what Sam said..."
If someone interrupts you:
- "Sorry, can I just finish my point?"
- "One second, I'm nearly done."
- "Let me finish this thought, and then I'd love to hear yours."
If you find it hard to get a word in at all, our guide on how to speak up in meetings has more help.
Clarifying and checking
Asking a question is better than nodding and guessing. Native speakers ask for clarification all the time.
- "Sorry, could you say that again?"
- "Just to check I understand: you mean the deadline moves to May?"
- "What do you mean by 'phase two'?"
- "Could you give an example?"
- "So, if I've got this right..."
- "Can I just confirm who's doing this?"
Phrases for online meetings
Video calls bring their own problems: delays, mute buttons and screens that won't share.
| Situation | What to say |
|---|---|
| Checking sound | "Can everyone hear me okay?" / "Am I coming through clearly?" |
| Someone is muted | "Anna, I think you're on mute." |
| You can't hear | "Sorry, you broke up a bit there. Could you repeat the last part?" |
| Your connection is bad | "My connection is a bit unstable. I'll turn my camera off." |
| Sharing your screen | "I'll share my screen. Can you see it?" |
| Two people talk at once | "Sorry, go ahead." / "No, you go first." |
| Using the chat | "I'll drop the link in the chat." |
For a full list, see English phrases for client and video calls.
Closing and next steps
A good close makes sure everyone knows who does what, and by when.
- "We're nearly out of time, so let's wrap up."
- "To sum up, we've agreed to..."
- "So the next steps are: Lee will send the draft, and I'll book the room."
- "Who's going to take that on?"
- "Can we aim to have that done by Thursday?"
- "I'll send a quick summary after the call."
- "Thanks, everyone. Have a good afternoon."
A short sample meeting
Maria: Okay, I think we're all here, so let's get started. The aim today is to agree on the new launch date. Dev, can you give us a quick update?
Dev: Sure. Quick update from my side. We've finished the testing, but one thing to flag: the payment page still has a bug. We're working on it now.
Maria: Thanks. What do you think, Sara? Can we still launch on the 10th?
Sara: I see why we want the 10th, but I'm worried that's tight. Could we look at the 17th instead? It gives us a week to fix the bug.
Dev: Sorry, can I just jump in? I think we can fix it in three days.
Maria: Just to check I understand: you'd be done by the 8th?
Dev: Yes, that's right.
Sara: Okay, that makes sense to me. I'm happy with the 10th if we test again on the 9th.
Maria: Great. So, to sum up: Dev fixes the bug by the 8th, Sara runs a final test on the 9th, and we launch on the 10th. I'll send a summary after the call. Thanks, everyone.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Saying "I have a doubt" when you mean a question. Say "I have a question" or "Can I check something?"
- Using "discuss about". The verb "discuss" takes no "about". Say "Let's discuss the budget."
- Waiting for silence. In many meetings it never comes. Use "Can I just add something?" instead.
- Long updates. Keep it to done, next and problems. People remember short updates.
Many of these phrases also work in emails and client calls. If you want a wider set, our list of business English vocabulary for the office is a good next read, and the best apps for business English page compares tools for practice.
Practise this with Katie AI
Reading phrases is a start, but you remember them when you say them out loud. Katie AI lets you rehearse a team meeting, a status update or a tricky disagreement by speaking, and it corrects every sentence and explains why. Try the same meeting a few times until the phrases come without thinking.