3 phrases · A2 · B1 · C1
Explaining why in English
Every phrase below is a fixed shape you can fill in and use immediately, ordered from the simplest to the most advanced. Each one carries what it means in English and in Hindi, three examples that vary the slot, and the situations it actually gets said in.
The phrases
Simplest first. The braces mark the part you change.
It depends on {NOUN}
A2Say that the answer is not fixed — it changes with something else.
यह ___ पर निर्भर करता है।
- It depends on the budget.
- It depends on how much time we have.
- It depends on what the client says.
Anywhere · say it as: It depends / on the budget · used at work, interviews
The reason I {VERB} is that {CLAUSE}
B1Attach a reason to what you just said, clearly.
मैं ___ इसलिए ___ क्योंकि ___।
- The reason I applied is that I want to work on bigger projects.
- The reason I am asking is that the deadline has moved.
- The reason I say this is that we tried it last year.
Anywhere · say it as: The reason I applied / is that I want bigger projects · used interviews, at work
What tends to happen is {CLAUSE}
C1Describe the usual pattern of events, based on experience.
आम तौर पर होता यह है कि ___।
- What tends to happen is that the last week takes as long as the first three.
- What tends to happen is that people agree in the room and object afterwards.
- What tends to happen is that the small requests eat the whole afternoon.
Formal — writing, presentations, officials · say it as: What tends to happen / is that the last week takes as long · used at work, interviews
What goes wrong
The versions that get said instead, and why they land differently.
| Commonly said | Correct English |
|---|---|
It depends of the budget. | It depends on the budget. In English it is always "depend ON". Nothing depends "of" anything. |
It is depending on the budget. | It depends on the budget. "Depend" describes a state, so it does not take -ing here. |
The reason is because I want bigger projects. | The reason is that I want bigger projects. "The reason" and "because" both mean the same thing, so using both is saying it twice. |
Where you will need these
The same phrases, sorted by the room you are standing in.
More phrase groups on the phrases index, or browse by situation on the speaking pages.
Reading it is not the same as saying it.
A phrase you have read is not a phrase you can reach for. CoCap makes you produce it, in a conversation, and corrects what comes out.
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