Useful Expressions for Debating

 

Useful Expressions for Debating

Welcoming the audience

Ladies and Gentlemen welcome to this debate.

Stating the issue

The motion for debate today is ...

People / Dr. Johnson... believe(s) / feel(s) / insist(s) / think(s)...that...

Let's first define some important concepts...

Phrases to present the most important point

This argument/idea is of paramount importance.

The most important argument for ... is ...

The main idea/thing is ...

The most important idea is...

Most importantly, I want to mention that...

The primary argument for... is...

Two/three... important arguments support my point of view...

Conceding an argument

It's true/obvious/evident that ... However, ...

While you might say that ..., it's important to remember that ...

I agree with you that ... On the other hand, ...

Although/even though it is true that... I believe that...

I agree/admit/concede that... , but we must remember that...

I can understand that... Nevertheless, ...

Sequencing a list of arguments

First of all, I'd like to state ...

Firstly, ... Secondly, ...Thirdly, ...

The second argument in favor of ...

To begin with, ...

I'd start by...

For a start, ...

The next argument I'd like to state is...

 

Adding an argument to strengthen your point

In addition to that,...

You also have to consider...

Furthermore,...

Moreover,...

What is more,...

I might also add that...

Perhaps / maybe I should also mention...

Not to mention the fact that...

Not only that but also...

 

Concluding

Let me recap/recapitulate my point ...

As a final word, let me summarize my point of view ...

To reiterate my point of view, ...

My final thought is ...

It all boils down to ...

In a nutshell, what I am trying to say is ...

To sum up, ...

Finally, ...

  

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