Complaining and Apologizing ESL Role-Plays, Activities, Games and Worksheets
Appropriate Apologies

ESL Complaining and Apologizing Activity - Speaking: Gap-fill, Matching, Forming Sentences, Controlled Practice - Pair Work
In this productive complaining and apologizing speaking activity, students practice making complaints and giving apologies using prompts. Working alone, students complete complaints with the words...
How to Complain and Apologize

ESL Complaining and Apologizing Worksheet - Vocabulary and Reading Exercises: Categorising, Reading Comprehension, Gap-fill - Speaking Activity - Pair Work
In this insightful dealing with complaints worksheet, students identify and practice expressions for making complaints and saying sorry. Students begin by...
Always and Never

ESL Complaints Role-Play - Speaking Activity: Communicative Practice - Pair Work
Here is a communicative making complaints role-play activity to help students practice complaining with 'always' and 'never'. In pairs, students take turns picking up a card that shows the subject of a complaint and two verbs. Using a dialogue...
Complaint Cards

ESL Complaining and Apologizing Role-Play - Speaking Activity: Making Statements and Questions, Communicative Practice - Pair Work
In this free making complaints speaking activity, students role-play making complaints, apologies and requests in different situations. In pairs, students look at...
Customer Complaints

ESL Making Complaints Role-Play - Speaking Activity: Role-Play, Communicative Practice - Pair Work
In this communicative complaining and apologizing role-play, students practice making and dealing with complaints about misleading advertisements. In pairs, students role-play the first complaint...
Dealing with Complaints

ESL Complaints Game - Speaking: Role-Play, Guided Discussion, Communicative Practice - Pair Work
In this communicative dealing with complaints game, students role-play handling complaints using expressions on cards to score points. First, students brainstorm six situations in which people make...
I'm Sorry

ESL Apologizing Games - Vocabulary and Speaking: Pelmanism, Matching, Forming Sentences - Group Work
In these two engaging apologizing games, students practice expressions with 'sorry'. In groups, students take turns turning over one card from each set. If the statement or question matches the...
Stop Complaining!

ESL Complaints, Requests and Apologies Worksheet - Vocabulary Exercises: Writing Sentences, Matching - Speaking Activities: Discussion, Guessing, Role-Play - Pair Work
In this useful complaining and apologizing worksheet, students learn how to make common complaints, requests and apologies. First, students read...
Back to the Shop

ESL Shop Complaints Game - Speaking: Role-Play, Communicative Practice
In this free shop complaints game, students role-play making complaints in a shop and their classmates try to guess where they are and what product they are complaining about. In teams, students imagine that items they bought are faulty and...
Complaining and Apologizing Language

ESL Complaining and Apologizing Handout
This free complaining and apologizing phrases handout provides students with some useful expressions to use when making and dealing with complaints. The sheet covers language and phrases for making a complaint, apologizing, giving reasons, calming someone down, asking for specifics...
I can't get no satisfaction!

ESL Complaints Role-Play - Speaking Activity: Communicative Practice - Pair Work
In this communicative making complaints role-play activity, students make and deal with complaints in various situations and score how satisfied they are with each outcome. In pairs, students role-play each situation with one person making the...
Race to Make It Right

ESL Apologies Game - Speaking: Matching, Completing Sentences, Freer and Communicative Practice - Group Work
In this engaging making apologies game, students race to match and complete apologies in response to complaints and expressions of dissatisfaction. In groups, one student turns over the...
Softening Complaints

ESL Softening Complaints Activity - Vocabulary and Speaking: Forming Sentences, Communicative Practice - Pair Work
In this communicative making complaints speaking activity, students learn how to soften complaints using 'not very' and 'rather'. In pairs, one student places nine...