Hi and welcome to the Espresso English Podcast, where you can improve your English in just a few minutes a day.
My name is Shaina and I'm the teacher at Espresso English.
Make sure to visit the website EspressoEnglishnet, where you can get online courses and e-books that will help you learn English even faster.
Let's get started with today's lesson.
Everyone loves getting a compliment, but do you know how to give them and respond to them naturally in English?
In this lesson you'll learn 50 useful phrases for complimenting someone's appearance work cooking, home and character, plus natural responses to compliments so you can receive them gracefully.
I'll also teach you four common sentence structures we use for compliments, so that you can create as many phrases as you want.
By the end of this video, you'll be able to give a nice compliment and make someone's day.
That means make the person feel very good as a very positive point in their day.
You can download everything in this lesson inside the free PDF guide.
Click on the link under this video and enter your email address so you can receive the free PDF download to review and remember all these phrases.
We'll begin with some phrases for complementing a person's clothes or appearance.
You look nice.
You look amazing.
That one's usually used for very special occasions, like when someone is dressed in especially elegant clothing, like for a formal event.
What a lovely necklace.
I like your shirt.
Where did you get it?
I love your shoes.
Are they new?
That color looks great on you or you look great in blue.
I like your new haircut.
I love your outfit.
The word outfit refers to everything someone is wearing their shirt, their pants or shorts skirt, dress and any accessories or jewelry.
When someone makes you a meal, it's really nice to compliment their cooking.
You can use one of these phrases.
The lasagna is delicious.
You're a fantastic cook.
Did you make this from scratch?
From scratch means from basic or original ingredients, not using pre-prepared foods.
You've got to give me the recipe for this dish.
This is some of the best chicken I've ever had.
I can't get enough of these potatoes.
The cherry pie is out of this world.
Out of this world means very good, incredible, wonderful.
That was wonderful.
My compliments to the chef.
You can say that at the end of the meal.
In this case, the chef is not referring to a professional, but instead to the person who cooked the food.
When you visit someone's home, it's nice to compliment their living space.
You can say, what a nice apartment.
You have a beautiful home.
Where did you get that lovely table?
I love the decor.
Did you do it yourself?
The word decor refers to the interior decoration of the house or apartment.
Let's learn some phrases for complimenting babies or children.
He's or she's adorable.
He or she has the sweetest smile.
What a cutie!
Your children are so polite and well-behaved.
Your son or daughter is really friendly, thoughtful, talented, etc.
You can put in any positive adjective there.
They're wonderful kids.
You must be very proud.
How about complimenting someone's work or performance?
Here are some phrases for that.
You did an excellent job on this project.
Your presentation was clear and professional.
You always come up with great ideas.
I really admire your work ethic.
That refers to someone's dedication to the work.
You're a natural at this.
We would say this when someone is learning something new and it seems like they are able to learn it pretty quickly and easily.
The way you explain that was very helpful.
You handled that situation so well.
I can always count on you to get things done.
That was a creative solution.
You're very resourceful.
And finally, some nice compliments on someone's personality or character.
You're always so generous.
I admire how patient you are.
You have such a positive attitude.
You're a great listener.
You always know how to cheer people up.
You have a great sense of humor.
You're really thoughtful and considerate.
You're such a good friend.
You really inspire me.
You might have noticed in many of those examples that a lot of compliments can be created by following one of these sentence structures.
Your, and then a noun or a noun phrase, is or looks really, and then a positive adjective.
Your dress is really elegant.
Your hair looks great.
Our second sentence structure is I really like or love and then the noun or noun phrase.
I really like your earrings.
I love this vegetable soup.
Sentence structure number three this or that is, and then you can say a really, and then a positive adjective and then the noun.
This is a really nice painting.
That's an awesome car.
And our final sentence structure is what a, or an, and then a positive adjective and the noun.
What a lovely apartment!
What a cute puppy!
These are often said as exclamations.
How can we respond to compliments?
Well, the easiest way is simply to say, thanks or thank you.
But here are some additional phrases you can use to sound even more like a native English speaker.
We can say, thanks, that's so kind of you.
Thanks, I'm glad you like it.
That one's especially used in response to compliments on appearance, cooking, or decor.
Aw, thanks, you made my day.
Thanks, I appreciate that.
That one's in response to a more meaningful compliment on your personality or work.
A few good responses to compliments at work are, Thank you.
I worked hard on that.
Thanks.
I'm glad you found it useful.
That's very encouraging.
Thank you.
So now you have 50 compliments and responses you can use in everyday English.
Try practicing them this week.
Compliment a friend, a coworker or even practice out loud to yourself, because the more you use them, the more natural they'll feel.
Remember to download the lesson PDF with all today's phrases so you can review and practice anytime.
Click on the link in the description.
And if you'd like to learn lots more natural sounding English phrases for everyday life, join my everyday English speaking courses, so you'll know exactly what to say when traveling shopping socializing, even when disagreeing or arguing with someone in English.
You'll find the link to those courses in the video description as well.
Thanks for watching, and I'll see you in the next lesson.
If you want more great English lessons, visit EspressoEnglishnet, where you can sign up by email to receive a free ebook with 500 plus real English phrases.
You'll also find online courses to help you improve your English fast, even if you don't have much time to study.
Keep practicing your English and I hope you have a wonderful day.
