How to talk about the weather in English

Aha, the weather, a British person’s favourite subject 😉
It is actually true that we do comment on the weather quite a lot! It’s a useful set of English vocabulary for you to learn because (a) the weather is very changeable here and (b) it’s a great way to start a conversation!

Here are 5 natural sentences you can use to talk about the weather:

WHEN IT’S REALLY COLD:

“Make sure you wrap up warm. It’s absolutely freezing out there. Apparently it might even snow later!”

WHEN IT’S COLD:

“I’d take a jacket or cardigan if I were you. It’s a bit chilly today and quite windy.”

WHEN IT’S RAINING:

“Don’t forget your umbrella. There’s just a bit of drizzle at the moment but it’s forecast to tip it down later!”

WHEN IT’S HOT:

“What a gorgeous day! It’s so nice to have some sunshine. It feels like spring is on its way.”

WHEN IT’S REALLY HOT:

“Puh, It’s absolutely boiling outside. Make sure you put your suncream on today!”

So you see, 5 natural sentences and no mention of raining cats and dogs 😉

And here is a way to use the weather to start a conversation on the bus:

Bus passenger 1: “Ooh, it’s a bit nippy today, isn’t it?”
Bus passenger 2: “Yeah. They said it was going to be warm so I put sandals on but there’s definitely a chill in the air.”
Bus passenger 1: “I know, I don’t even bother checking the forecast these days. It’s usually wrong.”
Bus passenger 2: “The BBC app isn’t bad actually but you can’t fully rely on it.”
Bus passenger 1: “Oh, I love the BBC. Have you seen David Attenborough’s new program on BBC1?”

(and so on……See how you can get a conversation going just by mentioning the weather?!)

English weather vocabulary

Do you know what the vocabulary in bold means? See if you can work it out from the context

Now test yourself!

Can you remember the useful phrases from this lesson? Try to fill in the gaps below. Look back if you need to:

M__________ sure you w_________ u_________ w_________
It’s a bit c_________ today and quite w_________.
a bit of d_________
It’s f_________ to t_________ it d_________ later!
What a g_________ day!
It feels l_________ spring is on its w_________
It’s a_________ b_________ outside!
It’s a b_________ n_________ today
There’s definitely a c_________ in the a_________.

What about in your country? Is the weather a common small talk topic? Let me know in the comments below 🙂