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Speaker 1: Sometimes in the middle of a conversation you need to

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change the topic. Maybe something that was said suddenly reminds

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you of something else that you want to say. Well,

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if that's happened to you, then you've come to the

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right podcast. In situations like these, we have a few short,

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natural phrases that gently guide the conversation in a new direction.

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And that's what this podcast English Lesson is all about. It.

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Speaker 2: Welcome to another Happy English podcast coming to you from

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New York City, and here's your English teacher, Michael.

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Speaker 1: Alright, thank you John In. Thanks everyone. It's Michael here

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from Happy English and I help people speak English better.

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And this is Happy English Podcast Episode nine to eighty seven.

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How to change the topic politely in English. Today, we're

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going to look at four very natural conversation phrases that

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you can use to change the topic of a conversation

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midway while keeping the tone of the conversation smooth, polite,

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and friendly. Let's start with that reminds me. We use

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that reminds me when the current topic makes us think

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of something related but not exactly the same thing. It's

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a gentle and thoughtful way to shift the conversation. For example,

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if your partner asks, Uh, what do you want to

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have for dinner tonight? You might say, Oh, that reminds me,

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we're almost out of olive oil. Cooking made you remember

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something connected, so the topic change feels natural. Or if

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a coworker says I'm taking Friday off next week, you

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could respond, oh, that reminds me. Are you free to

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meet on Thursday instead? You can also use that reminds

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me in everyday conversation, like when you're talking to a

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friend about traveling and suddenly you remember something important. You

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might say, ah, that reminds me, I still need to

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renew my passport. That reminds me sounds polite and natural,

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and it tells the listener that the topic change makes sense.

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Now let's look at speaking of. We use speaking of

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when the new topic is clearly and directly connected to

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what was just said. The connection is usually stronger than

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with that reminds me. For example, if your coworker says,

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isn't the CEO coming next week, you might say, yes,

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he is, and speaking of next week, we have a

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team meeting on Tuesday. The time reference makes the connection clear.

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Or if someone says, I watched a really good movie

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last night, you could say, speaking of movies, have you

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seen the new Frankenstein movie on Netflix. You may also

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hear this in casual conversation, like when a friend says

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I'm trying to save some money these days, and you reply, hey,

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speaking of saving money, I found a really cheap but

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good diner last weekend. We should go Speaking of works

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best when the listener can easily follow the connection between

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the two topics. Next up is by the way. We

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use by the way when we want to add something

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extra or change the topic quickly, even if it's not

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strongly connected to what we were talking about before. For example,

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if you're talking with a coworker about a project and

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suddenly remember something important, you might say, by the way,

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did you send the report to the accounting department? Or

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when you're chatting with a friend about weekend plans, you

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might add, ah, by the way, I heard Jack is

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having a party this weekend. Did you know. You can

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also use by the way for small, polite additions to

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a conversation, especially when you suddenly remember something like oh,

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by the way, thanks for your help yesterday. By the

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way is very common in spoken English, but it's best

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to used lightly, so the conversation doesn't feel jumpy. The

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last one is before I forget. We use before I

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forget when something suddenly pops into our head. Now we

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want to say it right away, before we forget. It's

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a polite way to interrupt or change the topic without

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sounding rude. For example, if you're talking with a coworker

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about a project and suddenly remember something important, you might say,

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ah before I forget, can you send me the file

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from yesterday? Or in a casual conversation with a friend,

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you could say, ooh, before I forget, I wanted to

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tell you that I bumped into Jenny at the deli

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the other day. You can also use it at the

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end of a conversation like oh, before I forget, don't

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forget to bring your ID tomorrow. Before I forget sounds

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natural and helpful, and it lets the listener know you're

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interrupting for a good reason. So let's put these together.

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We use that reminds me when the new topic is

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loosely connected. We use speaking of when the connection is

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clear and direct. We use by the way when we're

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adding something extra or switching topics quickly. And finally, we

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use ah before I forget when we suddenly remember something

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important that we wanted to say. All four of these

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phrases can help you change the topic politely and naturally,

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without stopping the conversation or sounding rude. One important tip

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to remember is that native speakers usually don't explain why

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they're changing the topic. We just use one of these

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phrases and keep talking. That's what makes conversation sound smooth

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and natural. So try using them in your English conversations

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this week. That's how you build real fluency. And keep

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in mind the best way to remember English like this

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and any other word or phrase in English, is to

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take that word or phrase, write it in a sentence

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that's true for you or true in your world, and

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then memorize your sentences. Hey, thanks for listening, and remember

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learning another language is not easy, but it's not impossible,

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and I'm here to help you on your journey.

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Speaker 2: This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please

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visit Myhappy English dot com. Show your support for Happy

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English by leading us a review. Get English, Get Happy

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