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These short and simple expressions are a great way to be more engaging, interesting, and fun when having a conversation in English.
These expressions are a short way to show how we feel about something.
- How nice! = That is very nice!
- How terrible! = That is terrible!
- How wonderful! = That is so wonderful!
- How awful! = This is really awful!
If a friend is telling you a story, and you just sit there and look at them, they might feel like you are not interested in what they are saying. These expressions are a great way to show you are interested or to show how you feel.
How + adjective!
This sentence pattern is used more often in speaking than in writing. But if it is used in writing, then an exclamation mark (!) is usually put at the end.
- How exciting!
- How terrible!
- How wonderful!
- How interesting!
- How fabulous!
- How horrible!
- How nice!
- How cool!
- How strange!
- How bizarre!
- How fascinating!
- How weird!
It is possible to add more information after the adjective. Most commonly, we use “for + person” or “of + person”.
- How terrible for her!
- How exciting for you and your husband!
- How great for your company!
- How nice of you!
- How awful of him!
Bonus Tips and Points
1. There is a similar expression that we use with nouns.
What + a/an + adjective + noun!
- What a great day!
- What an interesting idea!
- What a crazy guy!
- What an ugly day!
- What a wonderful day!
- What an amazing movie!
- What a great joke!
2. We can add an infinitive after the noun.
What + a/an + adjective + noun + infinitive…!
- What a strange thing to say!
- What a cool place to go on vacation!
- What a nice thing to do!
Real-World English Conversations
A) I got fired today.
B) How awful!
A) My sister is getting married next year.
B) How nice!
A) The newspaper says that it will rain every day during our vacation next week.
B) How terrible!
A) I got a puppy! Look!
B) How cute!
A) Do you want to see a picture of my new car? Here, look.
B) How cool!
A) I went bungee jumping with my sister last weekend.
B) How fun!
A) It really was. Have you tried it?
B) No. I’m afraid of heights.
Study these free English lessons to improve your English speaking. If you learn these common sentence patterns well, then your English speaking will improve greatly and you will be able to have fluent conversations in English in the near future! Study the lessons well, practice using the sentences and questions at home and in real life, and make sure to come back to review the material so you do not forget. If you do these three things, then you will be speaking English like a native English speaker in no time!
English Sentence Patterns for Speaking Index
