LET'S SEE

Good morning. I hope you had a pleasant weekend. Over the next few days we are going to look at some expressions that are very typically used in spoken English. Today's expressions are: Let's see or let me see. They are used: to say that you and one or more other people should find the answer to something. They are used to indicate that you need a moment to think about something. We usually pause after we say these phrases, which is a further indication that we are thinking. NOTE: The contraction let's is let us. Us is a 1st person plural pronoun, but the expression let's see can have a singular meaning and often refers only to the person who is speaking. Example 1 A: Have you seen the newspaper anywhere? I can't find it. B: Let's see. I was reading it earlier, while I was eating breakfast. It's probably still in the kitchen. In Example 1, when Speaker B says let's see he really means to say let ME see. He is not expecting Speaker A to participate. It would be the equivalent of saying a ver in Spanish. Example 2 Can everybody be quiet, please? I'd like to start the meeting. Let me see... the first item on the agenda is the new billing policy. Please post any questions about today's Daily Vitamin in the Daily Vitamin Plus! section on our website. To enter, you will need your login and password (included at the end of this e-mail). If you have any questions about how to use the Daily Vitamin Plus! section, please don't hesitate to contact us. Have a productive day!