Useful Phrases for B2 First and C1 Advanced Speaking Exams
Knowing lots of vocabulary and grammar is important in a Cambridge Speaking exam, but you also need to know how to use your English to complete each part of the test.
The B2 First and C1 Advanced Speaking exams have a similar four-part structure, but the level of language and the demands of the tasks are different.
In this guide, we'll look at what you need to do in each part of the Speaking exam and the useful language you can practise to help you do it naturally and confidently.
And remember: these aren't phrases to memorise and force into every answer. Choose the expressions that feel natural to you and practise using them in different situations.
Part 1: Talking about yourself
What do you have to do?
In Part 1, the examiner asks you questions about yourself and everyday topics.
You might be asked about your studies, work, interests, where you live, your plans for the future or your experiences.
At both B2 and C1, the aim is to answer naturally and develop your answers rather than giving very short responses.
If the examiner asks:
“What do you enjoy doing at weekends?”
try not to answer:
“I like meeting my friends.”
Instead, develop it:
“I really enjoy meeting up with my friends at weekends because we're all quite busy during the week, so it's normally the only chance we get to spend time together.”
Useful language for developing your answers
B2 First
I’d say...
Personally, I...
The main reason is that...
This is because...
For example, ...
I particularly enjoy...
It depends, really. If...
In the future, I’d like to...
C1 Advanced
I’d probably say...
I tend to...
One of the main reasons is...
What I particularly enjoy about it is...
I suppose it depends to some extent on...
If I had to choose, I’d probably...
I've always been particularly interested in...
Given the opportunity, I'd like to...
Speaking tip
Don't try to turn every Part 1 answer into a two-minute speech. Answer + reason/detail/example is often enough to show the examiner what you can do.
Part 2: Comparing, describing and speculating
What do you have to do?
In Part 2, you work individually with photographs.
This part is slightly different at B2 and C1, but in both exams you need to do much more than simply describe what you can see.
You may need to:
compare the photographs
discuss similarities and differences
speculate about the people or situations
answer the question given by the examiner
So instead of spending your time saying:
“In the first picture I can see three people. In the second picture I can see two people...”
you want to compare, speculate and answer the task.
Useful language for comparing
B2 First
Both pictures show...
In both pictures...
One similarity is...
The main difference is...
Whereas in the first picture..., in the second...
This situation seems..., while the other...
C1 Advanced
What the two situations have in common is...
One noticeable difference is...
While the first image appears to..., the second seems to...
In contrast to the first situation, ...
The most striking difference between them is...
There seems to be a considerable difference in terms of...
Useful language for speculating
Remember that you don't know exactly what is happening in a photograph.
B2 First
They might be...
They could be...
Perhaps they are...
It looks as though...
Maybe they're feeling...
They probably...
C1 Advanced
It could well be that...
They may well be...
I get the impression that...
Judging by..., I'd imagine that...
There's a good chance that...
They may have decided to...
It would appear that...
Useful language for answering the question
Don't forget the actual question while you're talking about the photographs.
I think they might prefer...
The reason this might be difficult is...
I'd imagine this would be more...
They would probably feel...
Of the two situations, I'd say...
Speaking tip
Don't describe everything you can see.
The photographs are there to give you ideas. Your English should focus on comparison, speculation and the question you're being asked.
Part 3: Discussing the options with your partner
What do you have to do?
Part 3 is where interaction becomes especially important.
You and your partner are given a topic and several ideas or options to discuss. You need to exchange opinions, respond to each other's ideas and, at some point in the task, work towards a decision.
This should sound like a conversation, not two separate monologues.
That means you need language for several different things.
Giving your opinion
B2 First
I think...
In my opinion, ...
I'd say that...
From my point of view, ...
I think one of the main advantages is...
C1 Advanced
From my perspective, ...
As far as I'm concerned, ...
I tend to think that...
I'd argue that...
The way I see it, ...
One factor worth considering is...
Agreeing and developing your partner's idea
B2 First
I agree.
That's true.
That's a good point.
I completely agree with you.
Yes, and I also think...
C1 Advanced
I completely agree with you there.
That's a very good point.
I was thinking along the same lines.
I'd agree with that, particularly because...
I think you've got a point there.
Building on what you said, ...
Try not to stop at:
“Yes, I agree.”
Develop it:
“That's a good point. I'd also say that this option would probably be much more affordable for young people.”
Disagreeing politely
B2 First
I see what you mean, but...
I'm not sure I completely agree.
That's true, but...
Maybe, although I think...
I understand your point, but...
C1 Advanced
I can see where you're coming from, although...
I'm not entirely convinced that...
I take your point, but I'd argue that...
That may be true to some extent, but...
I'd look at it slightly differently.
Involving your partner
B2 First
What do you think?
Do you agree?
How about this one?
What about you?
Which do you think is better?
C1 Advanced
What's your view on that?
Would you agree with that?
How do you see it?
Do you think the same applies to...?
What are your thoughts on...?
Reaching a decision
B2 First
So, which one should we choose?
I think this might be the best option.
Shall we choose this one?
We seem to agree that...
So, are we going for this one?
C1 Advanced
Taking everything into consideration, I'd probably go for...
On balance, this seems to be the strongest option.
Shall we settle on...?
It sounds as though we both agree that...
If we have to choose one, I'd be inclined to go for...
Speaking tip
Don't feel that you have to agree with your partner.
A polite disagreement can actually create a better discussion because it gives both of you more opportunities to explain, justify and respond to ideas.
Part 4: Developing a discussion
What do you have to do?
In Part 4, the examiner asks further questions connected to the topic you discussed in Part 3.
The questions are broader and give you the opportunity to discuss ideas in greater depth.
This is where you can really demonstrate your ability to:
express and justify opinions
develop ideas
consider different perspectives
agree or disagree
speculate
respond naturally to your partner
At C1 especially, you should aim to go beyond a simple opinion and explore the question in more depth.
Giving and developing opinions
B2 First
Personally, I think...
The main reason is that...
For example, ...
Another thing to consider is...
It depends on...
I think this is important because...
C1 Advanced
From my perspective, ...
I'd argue that...
There are several factors to consider.
To a certain extent, ...
One aspect that's often overlooked is...
Another point worth considering is...
I think a distinction needs to be made between...
It largely depends on...
Considering both sides
This is particularly useful when the question doesn't have one obvious answer.
B2 First
On the one hand..., but on the other hand...
It depends on the situation.
There are advantages and disadvantages.
That's true in some cases, but...
C1 Advanced
On the one hand..., whereas on the other...
There are arguments to be made on both sides.
While that may be true in some circumstances, ...
To a certain extent I agree, although...
Much depends on the individual circumstances.
Buying yourself thinking time
You don't have to answer immediately.
B2 First
That's an interesting question.
Let me think...
I've never really thought about that before.
I suppose...
C1 Advanced
That's an interesting point.
I haven't really considered that before, but...
Off the top of my head, I'd say...
My initial reaction would be...
That's quite a difficult one to answer, but...
A short expression like this gives you a moment to organise your thoughts without creating an awkward silence.
Don't try to memorise everything
You definitely don't need to learn every phrase in this article.
In fact, trying to memorise a huge list just before your exam can make your speaking sound less natural.
Instead, choose two or three expressions from each section that you genuinely like.
Then practise using them with different topics.
For example:
Part 1:“The main reason is that...”
Part 2:“What the two situations have in common is...”“It could well be that...”
Part 3:“I can see where you're coming from, although...”“What's your view on that?”
Part 4:“One aspect that's often overlooked is...”
The aim is to practise these expressions enough that you don't have to think about the phrase itself during the exam. You can concentrate on the idea you want to communicate instead.
Final tip: use the language to communicate
A strong Speaking performance isn't about squeezing as many advanced expressions as possible into the exam.
The phrases are simply tools.
Use them to develop your answers, compare ideas, speculate, respond to your partner, disagree politely and keep a discussion moving.
That's what good communication looks like — and that's ultimately what you're trying to demonstrate in the Speaking exam.
Free B2 & C1 Speaking Cheat Sheets
Want to practise these phrases before your exam?
We've created two free Speaking Exam Cheat Sheets — one for B2 First and one for C1 Advanced — with useful language organised by each part of the Speaking test.
Each cheat sheet includes:
what you need to do in Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4
useful phrases for each task
language for comparing, speculating, giving opinions, agreeing and disagreeing
phrases for interacting with your partner and reaching a decision
practical exam tips to help you use the language naturally
Download the sheet for your exam and keep it handy while you practise.
Download the B2 First Speaking Cheat Sheet
Download the C1 Advanced Speaking Cheat Sheet
Don't try to memorise every phrase. Choose a few expressions from each section that feel natural to you and practise using them with different topics. The goal is to make the language part of your English — not to sound as though you've memorised a script.
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