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Presentations (theory)
I.

Grammar:
a. The differences of the Present Simple and the Present Continuous:

The present
simple

The present
continuous

Use

Examples

when something is generally true

-for a situation that we think is more
or less permanent
-for habits and things that we do
regularly. We often use adverbs of
frequency in this case (usually,
sometimes, never, always, seldom,
occasionally)
-to talk about the future when we
are discussing a timetable of a fixed
plan
-to talk about the future after linking
words (when, as soon as, since,
until/till, as, while, in case, if)
-with some special verbs which we
dont use in continuous tenses
(stative verbs). See the second
table: stative verbs.

It rains in autumn.
I live in Moscow.

Use

Examples

I seldom go to the
cinema.

This train arrives at

twelve.
I will speak to him
when he comes.
I see you now.

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-for things that are happening at the
moment of speaking
-for temporary situations
-habits but they have to be
temporary or new habits
-for annoying habits, when we want
to show that something happens to
often and we dont like it. In this
case we usually use and adverb like
always, forever or constantly.
-for definite future arrangements
(with a future time word).

I m studying at the
moment.
Im staying with my
friends now.
Hes smoking too
much.
Shes always losing
her keys.
Im going to Moscow
tomorrow.

b. Stative verbs:
Some English verbs, which we call state, non-continuous or
stative verbs, arent used in all continuous tenses (like the
present continuous, or the past continuous. These verbs often
describe states that last for some time. Here is a list of some
common ones:

like
love
hate
want
need
prefer
agree
mind
own
sound
hear
disagree
satisfy
doubt
wish
dislike
deserve
lack

Stative verbs
know
realize
suppose
mean
understand
believe
remember
recognize
appear
taste
astonish
please
promise
think (=have an
opinion)
imagine
be
involve
measure (=have

belong
fit
contain
consist
seem
depend
matter
see
look (=seem)
smell
deny
impress
surprise
feel
concern
have
include
posses

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a length)
owe
weigh
taste
Note. A verb which isnt stative is called a dynamic
verb. A dynamic verb is used with continuous tenses,
for example, Im speaking now.
c. Stative and dynamic words (some verbs can be both stative and
dynamic):
Stative
Think = have an opinion
I think you are right.

Have = own
I have a house.

See = see with your

eyes/understand
I see you now. He sees
what you mean.
Taste=has a certain taste
This meat tastes great.
II.

Dynamic
Think = consider, have in
my head
Im thinking about my
family now.
Have = part of an
expression [have + noun =
verb]
Im having a good time.
See = meet/have a
relationship with
Im seeing him tomorrow.
Taste = the action of
tasting
Hes tasting my dish.

Words and phrases:

a. Essential words:
Nouns and
phrases

Verbs

Adjectives

attitude
complexity
content
equipment
eye contact
formality
gesture
handout
impact
interest
introduction
involvement
structure
visuals
aim

adjust
conclude
design
establish
promote
provide
summarize
analyze
convince
divide
examine
outline
persuade
split
clarify

allotted
confident
relaxed
relevant
brief
clearly
absolute
brilliant
complex
critical
dramatic
essential
important
outstanding
remarkable

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background
comments
flipchart
parts
points
position
springboard
title
topic
argument
audience
comments
ideas
thoughts
questions
equipment
and
environment
board
marker
transparency
handout
overhead
projector
white board
slide projector
curtain
flip chart
slide
microphone
video player
pointer
type of visual
line graph
vertical axis
horizontal axis
scale
solid line
broken line
dotted line
picture diagram
graphic diagram
pie chart

cover
digress
sequence
signal
achieve
emphasize
highlight
reiterate
simplify

simple

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plan
bar chart
flow chart
table
technical
illustration
map

Examples

Examples

Examples

I will show you

this table.

You should
persuade this
audience.

This view is critical.

b. Phrases and questions:

Useful phrases and questions:
Hello/hi, everyone.
Let me just start by introducing myself.
Im in charge of/responsible for production.
Today, Id like to speak about..
Ive divided my talk into three main parts.
I will be using the whiteboard and flipchart.
The presentation will last about 15 minutes.
If you have any questions, please feel free to interrupt.
first/second/third/then/next/finally
Id like to emphasize
Are you satisfied with this product?
Is that clear?
For example/for instance
Lets take a look at this chart.
The first slide shows
Is that clear for everyone?

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Describing change
up
to go up
to increase
to rise
to grow
to improve
to get better
to recover
to rocket
down
to go down
to decrease
to fall
to drop
to deteriorate
to get worse
to worsen
to slump
speed of change
rapid rapidly
steady steadily
gradual gradually
slow slowly
degree of change
dramatic dramatically
significant significantly
moderate moderately
slight slightly
c. Classic presentation organization:
How to make a good presentation?
1. Greet 2. Introduce self 3. Introduce presentation 4.
Explaining structure of presentation 5. Present main body
6. Conclude 7. Summarize 8. Take questions
Opening words
Are we ready to begin?
Welcoming you audience
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen/everybody.
Welcome everybody.
Introduction
Let me introduce myself/Id like to introduce myself.
Introducing the subject/purpose
Im her to talk about
Im going to talk today about
My topic is concerned with
Outlining your structure

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Im going to divide my talk into the following parts.
Id like to outline
Describing the sequence
First of all,
Secondly
Thirdly
After the next
Instructions about questions
Dont hesitate to interrupt me when you have a question.
I can take your questions at any time during my presentation.
Handouts
Let me give you the handouts with some space for notes.
Ill give you the handouts at the end of the presentation.
Starting the presentation itself
Ill go straight into my first topic that is describing
Id like to describe you the main features of
Moving on to the next point
Now/Lets move on to/Lets turn to
Giving more details
Id like to expand on this aspect/problem/point
Visuals
Here you can see a graph of
Have a look at this pie chart of
As you can see
The figures indicate
If you like at this slide, you will see
Giving examples
For example, /A good example of this is/As an illustration,
/To illustrate this point
Summarizing
In other words/Now, to sum up/To summarise
Lets summarize briefly what weve looked at
Concluding
To conclude../In conclusion,
In conclusion, my recommendations are
Thanking
Many thanks for your attention.
Thank you for your attention.
Inviting questions
Now Ill try to answer any questions you may have.
Can I answer any questions?
Are there any questions?
Are there any final questions?
Answering questions
Let me think about that for a moment.
Im not sure about that. Is there anyone here who can help?
III.

Short presentations:
1. Sample

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much for coming along
here today. I hope my presentations isnt going to take too
long and that you will find it interesting. The purpose of
todays presentations is to discuss how we can improve
internal communications with our company.
Now let me begin by explaining that Id like to talk about the
business case for better communication. Secondly, I want to
cover different styles and methods. And finally I would like to
finish off by talking about some of the basics we need to have
in place to deliver good quality, consistent communications
across the company. Id be very happy to invite you to ask
questions at the end of the session and Im sure therell be
plenty of time to discuss some of the points that have been
raised.

2. Sample
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for finding
the time to come and join me for this presentation. My name is
John White , Im a retail consultant, and many of you will have
seen me shadowing you in your jobs and looking through the
accounts and so on in the company over the last week.
Ive invited you here today to have a look at my findings. First,
Id like to have a look at the performance of the company, the
sales of the company over the last three years. Then Id like to
have a look at our market share in the womenswear market
and look at our competitors. And thirdly, Id like to suggest
some improvements in our range of womenswear. At the end
Id be happy to answer any of your questions.