Saying what you think, and how sure you are
At B2 you are expected to argue a point, not only state it. These markers frame an opinion, generalise, add a reservation or bring a topic back to the facts.
| you want to… | say |
|---|---|
| give your opinion | a mi modo de ver |
| speak in general | en líneas generales |
| say it depends | según se mire |
| state the facts | lo cierto es que |
| add a reservation | eso sí |
| give the other side | por su parte |
| narrow the topic | a la hora de |
Opinions and generalisations
A mi modo de ver is a little more careful than creo que:
| The way I see it, that article has a bias. | A mi modo de ver, ese artículo tiene un sesgo. |
Según se mire can be a whole answer:
| Is it expensive? It depends how you look at it. | ¿Es caro? Según se mire. |
Facts and reservations
Lo cierto es que often sets the facts against what someone claims:
| He says he has no prejudices, but the fact is that he has them. | Dice que no tiene prejuicios, pero lo cierto es que los tiene. |
Eso sí adds a qualification to what you have just said: usually a condition or a drawback after something good, sometimes a plus after something bad (es caro; eso sí, dura años):
| The hotel is cheap; mind you, it is far from the centre. | El hotel es barato; eso sí, está lejos del centro. |
Sides and topics
Por su parte brings in another party's position. Su covers him, her, it, them and usted; for your own position, say por mi parte.
| The government, for its part, has said nothing. | El gobierno, por su parte, no ha dicho nada. |
A la hora de + infinitive is when it comes to. Tener que ver con is to have to do with; with nada it rejects a point:
| That has nothing to do with the topic. | Eso no tiene nada que ver con el tema. |
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