Total Phrases- 4535
1 of 402

Out-positive / Apology url

After a boss tells a worker that management won’t let him give the worker an expected raise

  1. I only wish I could have done more.
  2. I did the best I could.
  3. I’m sorry, my hands are tied.
  4. It might not make any sense to you, but that’s what they decided, and I hope you understand.
  5. I’m sorry that it’s not the answer you hoped for.
  6. My apologies that it took me longer to get the answer than I thought it would.
  7. I hope that we’ll be able to give you a better answer next time.
  8. I’m hoping this is something you can live with for the time being.
  9. I was told to explain to you that it’s due to circumstances beyond their control.
  10. Please give us a chance to make it up to you next time.

After a boss tells a worker that management won’t let him give the worker an expected raise

Out-positive / Apology
2 of 402

Out-negative / Push away url

I won’t do it

  1. I don’t feel like it.
  2. It’s not my cup of tea.
  3. I will do no such thing.
  4. It just isn’t for me.
  5. I need that like a hole in the head.
  6. Leave me out of it.
  7. I don’t have time for that nonsense.
  8. That’s none of your business.
  9. That’s out of the question.
  10. Under no circumstances!
  11. Not on your life.
  12. Nothing doing.

I won’t do it

Out-negative / Push away
3 of 402

Out-neutral / Observation url

General-2

  1. Now you see it now you don’t.
  2. Who knows what evil lurk in the minds of men?
  3. One thing leads to another.
  4. It’s not all fun and games.
  5. The tree grows as the twig is bent.
  6. It’s a drop in the bucket.
  7. It’s happened once and it will happen again.
  8. It’s not always so cut and dry.
  9. You can’t live with them and you can’t live without them.
  10. Some people never learn.

General-2

Out-neutral / Observation
4 of 402

In-negative / Explaining url

Hitting the neighbor's dog with a car

  1. It took me completely by surprise.
  2. It came out of the blue.
  3. It really threw me for a loop.
  4. I take full responsibility for it.
  5. The experience has shaken me to the core.
  6. I had to make a split second decision.
  7. I had to save my own skin.
  8. It scared me half to death.
  9. It really shook me up.
  10. It’s a very unusual occurrence.
  11. How do you think I feel?
  12. Do you think I did it on purpose?
  13. I don’t know what to say.
  14. When push comes to shove, it’s not something I could have prevented.
  15. It was a freak accident.
  16. It happened in a blink of an eye.
  17. It sent shivers up my spine.

Hitting the neighbor's dog with a car

In-negative / Explaining
5 of 402

In-neutral / Acceptance url

Finding a parking place 5 blocks from the restaurant

  1. This is a good place as any.
  2. It’s certainly not what we hoped for, but it’s better than nothing.
  3. I think we don’t have much of a choice.
  4. That’s good enough for me.
  5. That’s to be expected.
  6. That’s just the way it’s going to have to be then.

Finding a parking place 5 blocks from the restaurant

In-neutral / Acceptance
6 of 402

Out-positive / Encouragement url

To a friend, both of you considering starting a business together

  1. This is a golden opportunity to make the most of the situation for the long haul.
  2. Success is sometimes a long drawn-out process.
  3. Let’s take one step at a time, and climb one mountain at a time.
  4. As they say, it’s not the mountain in front of us that makes us hesitate, but the pebble in our shoe.
  5. At any rate it’s worth a try.
  6. Now we’re cooking with gas.
  7. The rest is up to us.
  8. There’s no harm in trying.
  9. Let’s put our mind to it, and there’s nothing we can’t do.
  10. I think we’re onto something.
  11. This work is tailored to our needs and abilities.
  12. It will happen before you know it.

To a friend, both of you considering starting a business together

Out-positive / Encouragement
7 of 402

Out-neutral / Observation url

About Others – Neutral-1

  1. She took it upon herself.
  2. He’s sleeping like a log.
  3. She’s waiting on him hand and foot.
  4. She’s just another pretty face.
  5. He’s a chip off the old block.
  6. He’s going to wait until hell freezes over.
  7. He’s a high as a kite.
  8. She’s been through that before.
  9. You heard him as well as I did.
  10. I brought her up to date.

About Others – Neutral-1

Out-neutral / Observation
8 of 402

Out-neutral / Advice url

Realistic-2

  1. The main question is, do you think you deserve better, and are you willing to make the effort to make the changes to make that happen?
  2. You get out of life only what you put into it.
  3. I didn’t mean to burst your bubble.
  4. You should know better that that.
  5. I think you’re just beating your head against a wall.
  6. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.
  7. You will reap what you sow.
  8. Beggars can't be choosers.
  9. You’ve got a long way to go.
  10. Let that be a lesson to you.
  11. Don’t buck the system.
  12. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.
  13. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
  14. It doesn’t have to be that way.
  15. No, no, no, you’ve got it all wrong.

Realistic-2

Out-neutral / Advice
9 of 402

In-positive / Confidence url

Husband telling his tired wife he will make dinner

  1. You let me worry about that.
  2. I can handle it.
  3. Let me handle this.
  4. Don’t you worry about a thing.
  5. Just leave it to me.
  6. This is just my cup of tea.
  7. You’re in good hands.

Husband telling his tired wife he will make dinner

In-positive / Confidence
10 of 402

Out-neutral / Observation url

About Others - Negative-1

  1. He’s got egg all over his face.
  2. It will be on his head.
  3. He’s given her every chance.
  4. She’s taking her own sweet time.
  5. She’s a bundle of nerves.
  6. He’ll see red.
  7. The odds are against them.
  8. She dumped him like a hot potato.
  9. She’s in a state of shock.
  10. It’s hard not to feel sorry for him.
  11. He’s making life miserable for himself.
  12. He’s got a few under his belt.
  13. Who in their right mind would do something like that?
  14. They sound like a bunch of bozos.

About Others - Negative-1

Out-neutral / Observation
11 of 402

Out-neutral / Negotiating url

I find your viewpoint hard to understand-1

  1. That’s wishful thinking.
  2. That’s neither here nor there.
  3. That leads us right back to where we started.
  4. Is that too much to ask?
  5. That’s beside the point.
  6. Now that’s a horse of a different color.
  7. You’re missing the point.
  8. You’ve missed the whole point.
  9. That’s not the same thing at all.
  10. It happens to be true whether you choose to believe or not.
  11. Put it whatever way you want.
  12. I wasn’t born yesterday.

I find your viewpoint hard to understand-1

Out-neutral / Negotiating
12 of 402

Out-positive / Encouragement url

To a friend who is working very hard at a new job

  1. You’ll get your reward in the long run.
  2. Of course it’s above and beyond the call of duty.
  3. It’s very sorely needed, and I’m sure they’ll appreciate it.
  4. It’s for a worthy cause.
  5. When you look back on it, you’ll see that it was all worth it.
  6. It’s not as if you have much of a say in the matter.
  7. That’s a good choice.
  8. That’s a wise decision.
  9. How’s it coming?
  10. You’re a good man.
  11. Do whatever you feel you have to do, whatever you feel is necessary in the situation.

To a friend who is working very hard at a new job

Out-positive / Encouragement