Overused English Phrases│Expand Your Vocabulary and Speak like a Native Speaker🌟

Hello guys, Today we’re going to  

discuss 9 overused English phases and we’ll focus  on advanced alternatives you can use instead of  

them. If you don’t know me, I’m Kate, your English  teacher and my goal is to help you improve your  

English. Before we get started I just wanna make  it clear that I don’t tell you NEVER use these  

phrases. I made this lesson to help you add more  native-like phrases to your vocabulary. Sometimes,  

it’s cool to express simple ideas in a  more advanced way. Now let’s get started.  

The first phrase is I’m busy. We  say it very often. Do you agree?  

1 Instead of saying: "I'm busy"  Say: "I have a lot on my plate".  

I have a lot on my plate. The word "plate" usually means a dish you eat food  

from. In the phrase "I have a lot on my plate,"  it means you have many tasks or responsibilities.  

Imagine your plate is full of food. Just like it’s  hard to eat too much food at once, it’s hard to do  

too many things at the same time. Take a look at these sentences:  

She has a lot on her plate with work and  school – this means she is very busy with  

both her job and studying. The next phrase which is  

overused is I need help. (vstavka) 2 Instead of saying: "I need help" you can say:  

"Could you give me a hand?" Does it mean to  give someone an actual hand? No, no, no.  

"Give me a hand" is a friendly way to ask for  help. Native speakers often use this phrase  

to make their request sound more friendly. You can also use "Could you assist me?" Could  

you assist me? It is a more  formal way to ask for help.  

Take a look at these examples: 1. Could you give me a hand with this heavy bag?  

2. Could you assist me in filling out this form? So, when you want to ask your friend, you can say:  

Could you give me a hand? And  in more formal situations,  

with your teacher at school or in a store, you can  say “Could you assist me?” when you ask for help.  

Just imagine - your friend asks if you can  help them fix their smartphone. You’ve never  

fixed a smartphone before, and you say –  I will try to do it. I will try to do it.  

This phrase is extremely overused. 3 Instead of saying "I will try to do it" you can  

say I’ll give it a shot. "I’ll give it a shot" The word "shot" usually means firing a gun or  

taking a picture. But in the phrase "I’ll  give it a shot," it means trying something,  

even if you’re not sure about the result. For example: "I’ve never cooked this dish before,  

but I’ll give it a shot." This  means you’re not sure how well it  

will turn out, but you will try to cook it. Another great phrase is "I’ll give it a go."  

"I’m not great at painting, but I’ll give it  a go." That means you’re not confident in your  

painting skills, but you will try to paint. We use "I’ll give it a shot" or "I’ll give  

it a go" when we want to say we will try to do  something and we are not sure about the result.  

The next phrase which is  overused, and my students say  

this one all the time. It is difficult for me. 4 Instead of saying: "It is difficult for me" say:  

"I'm struggling with..." "I'm struggling with..." The verb "struggle" means to experience difficulty  

to do something. When you say "I'm struggling  with...," it means you are trying, but it’s not  

easy. Native speakers use this one a lot. The word "struggle" means to have  

a hard time doing something. So, instead of saying ‘It’s difficult  

for me to do it’, say ‘I’m struggling to do it’  or I’m struggling with something. This phrase  

make you sound like a native speaker. For example: I'm struggling with my  

homework – This means you're finding your homework  difficult but you’re trying to understand it.  

She is struggling to lift the box – It is  difficult for her to lift the box because it's  

heavy, but she is making an effort to lift it. Please pay attention – we say I’m struggling  

with + a noun or I’m struggling + to infinitive. The next phrase we say very often – Hurry up!  

5 Instead of saying: "Hurry up" Say: "Could you  speed things up?" or "Let’s move things along."  

Imagine a situation - You're getting  ready to go to the airport with a friend,  

and you're running late. Your friend  is still slowly packing their bags.  

Instead of saying, "Hurry up," you can  say: "Could you speed things up?"  

You're politely asking them to pack faster  because you’re running out of time.  

You can also say - "Let’s move things  along." That means both of you need  

to move faster so you don't miss your flight. The next overused phrase is I don’t understand. I  

don’t understand this. I don’t understand that. 6 Instead of saying: "I don’t understand" you can  

say - "I’m not following". "I’m not following" Imagine a situation - you're in a classroom,  

and the teacher is explaining something,  but it's hard to understand.  

You can say - "Sorry, I'm not following.  Could you explain that again?"  

You can also say - "I’m confused." "I’m confused."  – This means you need more explanation.  

The next phrase is – It’s easy. 7 Instead of saying:  

"It is easy" Say: "It's a breeze" The word "breeze" means a light, gentle wind.  

When we say "It's a breeze," it means something  is very easy to do, just like a gentle wind.  

"It's a breeze" – This means  the task is very easy.  

Cooking this recipe is a breeze. –  This recipe is very simple to make.  

You can also say "It's effortless." It's  

effortless" means the task  requires almost no effort.  

For me, learning new languages is effortless.  – I can learn new languages easily.  

Another phrase which is overused is – I  don’t care. People say this one a lot,  

and, sometimes, it may sound a bit rude. 8 Instead of saying: "I don't care" Say: "It  

doesn't matter to me." It doesn't matter to me. You can also say "It's all the same to  

me." Or "Whatever works for you." Imagine a situation - Your friend asks,  

"Should we watch a comedy or action movie?" You can say: "Whatever works for you." This  

means you're letting them decide  because it’s not important to you.  

"It doesn’t matter to me."  You mean both are fine.  

"It’s all the same to me." That means it  doesn’t matter to you which one to choose.  

And the last but not the least  phrase – I am happy! I am so happy  

that you’re still watching this video. 9 Instead of saying "I’m happy" say "I’m  

over the moon" or "I’m walking on air" Does it really mean to walk on clouds or  

go up over the moon? Of course not! These are  just fun ways to say how happy you feel. These  

phrases are idioms. And if you want to understand  native English speakers better, consider watching  

my video about idioms! Here’s the link. "I’m over the moon because I got an A on my  

test!" That means you are extremely  happy about your good grade.  

"I’m walking on air after hearing the  good news!" That means you are feeling  

really happy because of the good news. Please leave a comment below this video  

and tell me about a time when you felt over the  moon! When was the last time you were walking on  

air? I'm really curious to hear your story! That’s it for today’s lesson. Thank you for  

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