Talking about meetings interrupting practice

Talking about meetings interrupting practice

Work in groups of three or four. Choose one of the topics below, tell your partners which one you chose and start talking about it straightaway. You can talk about its meaning, your opinions on that topic, related experiences and knowledge, etc. Your partners will (politely) interrupt you and ask you questions about that topic, comment on what you said and/ or add their own points. You should then politely interrupt back, then continue what you were saying before you were interrupted or ask your partner about what they said. The person who has politely interrupted most often when your teacher stops you wins, but you must use different phrases each time that you interrupt. Your teacher will tell you if/ how you can use the cards and/ or the list of phrases to help.

 

Interrupting and… cards

Place down or cross off one of these cards each time that you politely interrupt someone using at least slightly different language to what anyone has used before.

Useful language for interrupting

Meetings vocabulary to talk about/ Meetings topics to talk about

• Active listening
• (Drawing up/ Sticking to/ Dealing with things not on/ Item on) the agenda
• AGM (= Annual general meeting)/ Shareholders meeting
• Agreeing on things/ Coming to agreement
• Agree to do things
• Aims/ Goals/ Objectives
• (Dealing with/ Scheduling) AOB
• Arguments/ Conflicts/ Quarrels/ Rows
• Bargaining power
• Bargaining/ Haggling
• (Call someone’s) bluff
• Board meetings
• The board room
• Brainstorming/ Mind maps
• (Comfort/ Toilet/ Fag/ Loo) breaks
• Breaking the ice
• Bringing meetings forward
• Bring meetings to a close/ Calling it a day/ Wrapping things up
• Casual meetings/ Informal meetings
• (Choosing/ Being) the chair(man/ person)/ Chairing a meeting
• (Double-)checking/ Clarifying
• Chitchat/ Small talk
• Coming up with ideas (brainstorming, etc)
• (Finding) common ground
• Compromising
• Conceding/ Making concessions
• (Achieving) consensus
• Counterproposals
• Deadlocks/ Impasses
• (Making/ Dealing with) demands
• Digressing/ Rambling
• Diplomacy/ Being diplomatic/ Being tactful/ Being indirect
• Directness/ Frankness/ Tactlessness
• Fall-back position/ Plan B
• Flexibility
• Follow up (meetings/ after the meeting)
• Formality/ Politeness
• Getting back to people
• Getting back to the point
• Getting the ball rolling/ Kicking off
• Goodwill gestures
• Greetings
• (Playing) hardball
• Hierarchy/ Status/ Seniority in meetings
• Humour/ Jokes in meetings
• Insisting
• Interrupting/ (Dealing with) interruption/ Turn taking
• (Agreeing on the/ Drawing up the/ Taking/ Action/ Running through the) minutes
• Moving on/ Turning (your attention) to other points
• Off the point/ Off topic
• One-off meetings
• Outstanding issues
• Being persuasive/ Persuading people
• (Initial/ Bargaining) position
• Postponing meetings/ Putting back meetings/ Putting off meetings
• Productive meetings/ Worthwhile meetings
• Progress check meeting
• (Putting forward) proposals
• Quorum
• Recapping
• Reconvening meetings
• Regular meetings
• Renegotiating
• Rubber stamp meetings
• Meetings running over
• Sending your apologies
• Shaking on it
• Show of hands
• Splitting the difference
• (Dealing with) sticking points
• Stressing (your point)
• Summing up
• Unanimous decisions
• (Making/ Dealing with) ultimatums
• Venues for meetings
• (Casting/ Split) votes
• Win-win (solution)

When your teacher stops you, ask about any interrupting phrases above you are not sure how to use, etc.

Ask about any vocabulary above which you don’t understand or topics above which you’d like to discuss as a class. Listen to your teacher speak about them, and interrupt when you want to ask or add something.

Without looking above, write as many interrupting phrases as you can in the boxes below.

Brainstorm as many interrupting phrases as you can. Some can go in more than one box.

Meetings vocabulary collocations

Firstly without help, join words on the left and right of each section to make collocations.

• Action +                                                   business               
• Agree +                                                    forward/ to a close                 
• Annual general/ Shareholders +                  ice
• Any other +                                              meeting
• Bargaining +                                             meeting/ room
• Board +                                                    minutes/ plan/ points
• Brain +                                                     on/ to…
• Breaking the +                                          power
• Bring +                                                    -storming

• Call it + a day
• Call someone’s + bluff
• Casting/ Split + break
• Catching + chat
• Chair + ground
• Chit + -man/ -person/ -
• Cigarette/ Coffee/ Comfort/ Loo/ Toilet + up (with someone’s news)
• Come up + vote
• (Seek/ Find) common + with new ideas

• Counter + in touch (with…)/ going
• Dead + -lock (over…)                    
• External/ Internal/ Regular + meeting                             
• Fall-back + over (what we agreed)
• Follow + -part/ proposal
• Get + position
• Get back + rolling
• Get the ball + to the point/ to…
• Go + up (meeting/ after the meeting/ on…)

• Go + ahead/ on
• Go/ Run + gesture
• Goodwill + off (the meeting)
• Have + position
• In + the agenda
• Initial + through (the agenda/ agreement)
• Item on/ Point on/ Topic on + -top (computer)
• Kick + writing (by the end of the week)
• Lap + your say

• Laser + agreement/ contract
• Leave it + issue (for the next meeting)
• Long+ map
• (Brainstorm onto a) mind + off (meeting)
• Move + on (to the next point)
• Off + pointer 
• One + the point/ topic
• Oral/ Verbal + there (until…)
• Outstanding + -winded

• Over + agreement (with…/ on…)
• (Annual/ Semi-annual) performance + B
• Plan + back/ off/ forward
• Play + cap/ convene/ negotiate   
• PowerPoint + check (meeting)
• Progress + hardball
• Put + page/ slide/ presentation
• Re- + review
• Reach + -view (of the present situation)

• Rubber + apologies (for his/ her absence)
• Run + difference (between … and…)
• Send his/ her + hands (on our agreement)/ on it
• Shake + hands (to decide…)
• Show of + over (by… minutes)/ out of time
• Small + point    
• Split the + print (of the contract/ of the agreement)
• Sticking + stamp (meeting/ the decision)
• Stress + your point

• Sum + arranged/ confirmed/ decided
• Take + conference      
• Tele-/ Video + it up/ things up (here/ there)
• To be + minutes/ notes/ part in
• Turn + solution
• Waste of + time
• (Find a) win-win + to the next point of the agenda
• Worth + up (what we agreed)
• Wrap + -while

Maybe after looking at previous worksheets to help, check as a class or with the answer key.

Take turns choosing topics from above and sharing your opinions on them, experiences of them, cultural differences related to them, etc.

Suggested answers

Other matches may be possible, but this is probably the only way to match all of them.

• Action + minutes/ plan/ points                                                                    
• Agree + on/ to…      
• Annual general/ Shareholders + meeting
• Any other + business      
• Bargaining + power
• Board + meeting/ room      
• Brain + -storming
• Breaking the + ice
• Bring + forward/ to a close

• Call it + a day
• Call someone’s + bluff
• Casting/ Split + vote
• Catching + up (with someone’s news)                  
• Chair + -man/ -person/ -      
• Chit + chat
• Cigarette/ Coffee/ Comfort/ Fag/ Loo/ Toilet + break
• Come up + with new ideas
• (Seek/ Find) common + ground      

• Counter + part/ proposal
• Dead + -lock (over…)                             
• External/ Internal/ Regular + meeting                  
• Fall-back + position
• Follow + up (meeting/ after the meeting/ on…)
• Get + in touch (with…)/ going                  
• Get back + to the point/ to…      
• Get the ball + rolling
• Go + over (what we agreed)

• Go + ahead/ on
• Go/ Run + through (the agenda/ our agreement)                             
• Goodwill + gesture
• Have + your say
• In + writing (by the end of the week)                             
• Initial + position
• Item on/ Point on/ Topic on + the agenda
• Kick + off (the meeting)
• Lap + -top (computer)      

• Laser + pointer
• Leave it + there (until…)
• Long+ -winded
• (Brainstorm onto a) mind +map
• Move + on (to the next point)
• Off + the point/ topic
• One + off (meeting)
• Oral/ Verbal + agreement/ contract
• Outstanding + issue (to discuss in the next meeting)

• Over + -view (of the present situation)
• (Annual/ Semi-annual) performance + review
• Plan + B
• Play + hardball
• PowerPoint + page/ slide/ presentation                  
• Progress + check (meeting)      
• Put + back/ off/ forward      
• Re- + cap/ convene/ negotiate                             
• Reach + agreement (with…/ on…)      

• Rubber + stamp (meeting/ the decision)                  
• Run + over (by… minutes)/ out of time                             
• Send his/ her + apologies (for his/ her absence)
• Shake + hands (on our agreement)/ on it
• Show of + hands (to decide…)
• Small + print (of the contract/ of the agreement)
• Split the + difference (between… and…)      
• Sticking + point
• Stress + your point

• Sum + up (what we agreed)
• Take + minutes/ notes/ part in
• Tele-/ Video + conference
• To be + arranged/ confirmed/ decided
• Turn + to the next point of the agenda
• Waste of + time
• (Find a) win-win + solution
• Worth + -while
• Wrap + up/ things up (here/ there)