When someone shares difficult news with us, whether it’s about a loss, a setback, or something deeply personal, it can be hard to know what to say in English. You want to be supportive, kind, and comforting, but sometimes words just don’t feel like enough.
In today’s blog we explore useful English phrases you can use to respond sensitively when someone shares bad news with you.
In this post, I’ll walk you through 8 everyday phrasal verbs with back with clear examples and real-life situations. Perfect for intermediate to advanced learners who want to sound more fluent and confident in everyday conversations, work emails, and casual chats.
Over the past week, I’ve had some lovely, honest chats with students about making mistakes. We’ve been talking about the little (and not-so-little) moments when things go wrong — a decision you regret, something you said that didn’t land well, or just one of those days where everything feels like a bit of a disaster.
Here are some of the English idioms we explored — they’re natural, expressive, and very useful for talking about the messy, imperfect bits of life in English.
