You say your sentence. The other person tilts their head and says, Sorry, what? There is a second when you know the words were fine, and then your mouth does the one thing that feels natural: it says the same sentence again, a little louder and a lot faster.
That is the move that fails. The listener did not miss your sentence because it was not loud enough. They missed it because it came out in one piece, and a sentence that arrives in one piece does not get easier when it arrives in the same piece faster. This page gives you five other moves for the second try, with phrases you can say straight away.
(Quotes in curly marks are from the podcast episode linked at the end. Sentences in italics are written for this page unless they are marked as quotes.)
Why the same sentence, said faster, fails
In the episode, Paul describes a video call with a new client. He explained the plan, the price and the schedule in one breath, and the client asked him to repeat it. Paul repeated it faster. The client said, “Sorry, I still did not catch that.” Then he asked a third time. Looking back, Paul’s verdict is clear: “My English was fine. My speed was the problem.”
Paul also shows the other way with one sentence said twice. Said fast, “I think we can finish the report by Friday if we start now and the team helps and I send the plan today and we skip the long meeting” leaves Emily with two words, Friday and report. Said with small stops, “I think we can finish the report by Friday. If we start now. And the team helps.” gives her every idea, and she notes that it was not even slow.
So when you hear Sorry, what? the useful question is not How do I say that louder? but What shape would be easiest to catch?
Five moves for the second try
Use the moves in this order, or pick the one that fits. You rarely need all five.
| Move | What you do | A phrase to say |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Breathe | One breath before you start again, so you do not rush | Hold on, let me gather my thoughts. |
| 2. Cut | Give the main news first, leave out the rest | Here’s the short version. / Let me put it simply. |
| 3. Split | One idea, then a stop, then the next idea | Let me take this step by step. |
| 4. Reword | Say the same idea with simpler or different words | To put it another way… / In other words… / I’ll say it in a simpler way. |
| 5. Restart | Begin the sentence again, without sorry | Let me start again, more slowly. / Let me try that again. / I’ll rephrase that. |
All of these phrases are from the episode. Each one gives your brain a few seconds and gives the listener a new, easier shape.
Move 1: Breathe
The episode’s picture is that a breath is a comma for your voice. In writing a comma tells the reader there is more to come, and in speaking a breath does the same job. The ten-second version from the episode: breathe in through your nose for three seconds, hold for one, breathe out slowly for five. The sentence to carry is Breathe first, then speak. In a conversation nobody sees the whole breath, they only hear a calm Hold on, let me gather my thoughts. and, as Paul says, people think you are careful.
Move 2: Cut
Often the sentence was too heavy. The project has many steps. Let me put it simply. We need two more weeks. (an example from the episode). The cut keeps one idea and drops the rest, and you can add the rest after they have caught the first part. Here’s the short version. The meeting moved to Monday. does the same with news.
Move 3: Split
Sometimes you cannot cut, because there really are three things to say. Then give each of them its own stop. A bus stop is the episode’s picture: if the bus never stops, nobody gets on. Say Let me take this step by step, then First…, stop, Second…, stop, Third… Each stop is about one second, and the listener’s ear gets time to hold the first idea before the second one arrives.
Move 4: Reword
If the problem is a word they do not know, the same sentence will fail a second time however slowly you say it. Choose another way into the idea. We are behind schedule. To put it another way, we need more time. and The plan is too big. In other words, we need to cut it. are two models from the episode. The pattern is a sentence, a phrase that opens a door, then the same idea in plainer words. I’ll say it in a simpler way works when you see a confused face before they say anything.
Move 5: Restart
When your sentence has gone wrong in the middle, do not push through it. Stop, and begin again from the start: Let me start again, more slowly. Another option is Let me try that again., which, in the episode’s words, says “I can fix this” and not “I am sorry for being bad”. I’ll rephrase that. sounds very professional. The same idea explains the small swap Emily suggests: replace Sorry for my English with “Thanks for your patience.” One sentence is about sorry, the other about thank you, and a thank you makes both people feel good.
One heavy sentence, four second tries
Here is one sentence that would get a Sorry, what? from most listeners:
The plan is ready and the price is fixed and the schedule starts on Monday and we need your signature before Friday.
| Move | The second try |
|---|---|
| Cut | Let me put it simply. The plan is ready. We start on Monday. |
| Split | Let me take this step by step. First, the plan is ready. Second, the price is fixed. Third, we start on Monday. Last, I need your signature before Friday. |
| Reword | In other words, everything is ready. We only need your signature. |
| Restart | Let me start again, more slowly. The plan is ready. |
Notice that each second try is shorter than the first, or has more stops, or uses fewer words per idea. None of them is the first sentence with the volume turned up.
Three places to say it again: a client call, a friend, a shop counter
On a video call:
Client: Sorry, could you repeat that?
You: Of course. Let me put it simply. The plan is ready. The price is fixed. We start on Monday.
With a friend, after a long sentence:
Friend: Sorry, what? I missed that.
You: To put it another way, work ran late, so I could not come.
At a shop counter, where the sentence went wrong halfway:
Assistant: Sorry?
You: Let me start again, more slowly. I would like to change this for a smaller size.
In all three, the second try has a clearer shape than the first: shorter, or with a stop in it, or with a fresh start. The phrase at the beginning is only the opener; the new shape is what helps.
Four ways to make the second try worse
| What people do | Why it fails | A better second try |
|---|---|---|
| Say the same sentence faster | The shape is the same and there is less time to hear it | Let me put it simply. |
| Say the same sentence louder | Volume does not help when the listener missed the word, not the sound | I’ll say it in a simpler way. |
| Add more words to explain | More words, more mud | Here’s the short version. |
| Say Sorry for my English | It puts attention on you, not on the idea | “Thanks for your patience.” |
The first two are what most of us do when we are nervous, and that is the reason to practice the phrases before you need them.
Rewrite the sentence: five exercises
1. Name the move
Which move is each phrase? Breathe, cut, split, reword or restart?
- Here’s the short version.
- In other words…
- Let me take this step by step.
- Hold on, let me gather my thoughts.
- Let me try that again.
Answers
- Cut.
- Reword.
- Split.
- Breathe.
- Restart.
2. Cut it
Make each sentence shorter. Keep one idea and start with Let me put it simply or Here’s the short version.
- The meeting has been moved because the manager is travelling and the room is also taken and so we will all meet on Monday at ten.
- I cannot come on Friday because I have a doctor’s appointment in the morning and then I must pick up my sister from the station.
Sample answers
- Here’s the short version. The meeting moved to Monday at ten.
- Let me put it simply. I cannot come on Friday.
3. Split it
Split this sentence into three steps with First, second, third.
We need to send the file to the client and check the price and book the room for Monday.
Sample answer
Let me take this step by step. First, we send the file to the client. Second, we check the price. Third, we book the room for Monday.
4. Choose the better second try
A friend says Sorry, what? Which reply helps more, A or B?
- A: I said the shop closes at six. (faster) / B: To put it another way, the shop closes at six. So we need to leave now.
- A: Sorry for my English. / B: Thanks for your patience. Let me try that again.
- A: The deadline is Friday and the file is big and we have two people. / B: Here’s the short version. The deadline is Friday.
Answers
- B: it gives the idea a new shape and a reason.
- B: it thanks the listener and moves forward.
- B: it keeps one idea first.
5. Say it out loud
- Take a long sentence you said this week at work or at school. Say it once as you said it, then once with Let me put it simply, then once with Let me take this step by step.
- Do the ten-second breath, then say Hold on, let me gather my thoughts. and the first part of your sentence.
- Tomorrow, choose one of the five phrases and use it once in a real conversation.
What if the second try still does not work?
Try one more move from the list, usually the one you have not used yet: after Cut, try Reword. If you are on a call, you can also write the key word in the chat. In person, a small example often works better than another explanation. It is fine to ask a short question, and Does that help? is enough. Staying calm matters more than getting it perfect the third time, and the episode’s own advice is that you do not need all the phrases: “You need the right one at the right time.”
The five moves and the thank-you on one card
- Breathe: Hold on, let me gather my thoughts. Breathe first, then speak.
- Cut: Here’s the short version. / Let me put it simply.
- Split: Let me take this step by step. One idea, one stop.
- Reword: To put it another way… / In other words… / I’ll say it in a simpler way.
- Restart: Let me start again, more slowly. / Let me try that again.
- After it all: Thanks for your patience., not Sorry for my English.
Hear it in a real conversation
These moves come from a podcast episode about six calm speaking habits, with a story about a client call that went wrong and a sample meeting where the same speaker gets it right. Listen to it at normal speed and repeat the phrases out loud: Become a Better Communicator in English: Six Calm Habits for Meetings, Calls and Chats.