Intermediate · B1 / B2 · Work

Joining a Meeting

Your goal: join an online or in-person meeting, take a turn, summarise, and signal agreement or disagreement politely.

Survival Phrases

Opening & joining

Thanks for having me — I'll mostly be listening today.
Can everyone hear and see me alright?
Apologies, I joined a minute late — what did I miss?

Taking a turn

Could I just come in here for a second?
Building on what Sam said…
If I could add one thing —

Summarising

So, to recap: Sam owns the design, I'll handle the copy.
Let me check I've understood — we're going with option B?
Action items: Marina drafts the brief by Friday.

Agreeing & disagreeing

I'm with Sam on this one.
I see your point, but I'm not sure it scales.
I take your point, though I'd push back a little.

Model Dialogue

Read the dialogue aloud twice — once for each speaker. Notice how B picks up A's words and adds something.

Chair: Right, let's get started. Marina, you wanted to walk us through the campaign?

Marina: Thanks. So the plan's in three parts — tease, launch, follow-up. The main ask is budget for paid ads.

Sam: Can I just check — is the paid ads bit essential for week one?

Marina: Good question. It's not essential, but it'd get us twice the reach. I'm happy to start organic and revisit if numbers are soft.

Chair: I'm with Marina — start lean, reassess after week one. Marina, can you own the brief by Friday?

Marina: Yes — I'll have a draft by Thursday so Sam can review before we send.

Sam: Sounds good. I'll add the design notes to the same doc.

Chair: Great. So, to recap: draft brief Thursday, review Friday, launch Monday. Anything else?

Marina: Nothing from me — thanks all.

Register: formal vs informal

Situation	More formal	More informal / natural
Interrupting politely	Could I just come in here for a second?	Quick one before we move on —
Disagreeing	I take your point, though I'd push back a little.	Not sure I agree, tbh.
Summarising	So, to recap, we've agreed…	So we're saying…
Volunteering	I'd be happy to take that on.	I can do that.

At B1/B2 the line between formal and informal is often tone and softeners (just, a bit, possibly), not different words. Soften requests when the stakes are higher.

Typical Mistakes (B1/B2 & Portuguese interference)

I am according with you. → I agree with you. / I'm with you on that. ((according with não existe))
Let me explain you the plan. → Let me explain the plan to you. ((explain + to))
I have a doubt about this. → I have a question / concern about this. ((doubt ≠ questão))
We need to discuss about the budget. → We need to discuss the budget. ((discuss sem about))
I will send the document until Friday. → I'll send the document by Friday. ((until = duration; by = deadline))
Can you repeat me what he said? → Can you tell me what he said? / Could you repeat what he said? ((repeat sem me))

Culture Note

Interrupting is an art in English meetings — phrases like 'Could I just come in here?' signal intent without rudeness.
Silence is normal: people leave pauses for others to enter; jumping in too fast can read as pushy.
Disagreement is usually softened ('I see your point, but…'); blunt 'You're wrong' is rare and jarring.
End-of-meeting recaps ('So, to recap…') are expected — they confirm who owns what.

Practical Task

Rebuild the dialogue with your own project and a disagreement from a colleague.
Record your part only, practising interrupting and summarising.
Write a meeting recap with three action items and owners.
Real-life mission: watch a short English meeting recording and note three meeting phrases.

Before you finish, can you…

☐join a meeting and apologise for being late?
☐interrupt and take a turn politely?
☐summarise actions with owners?
☐disagree without sounding harsh?

Bring your recap — the teacher chairs and forces a disagreement mid-meeting.