Name: 925 English Lesson 25 – Asking for and Giving Directions in English | Business ESL
Uploaded: 2026-01-12T17:25:58.000Z
Duration: 8 min 37 s
Description: Thousands of YouTube videos with English-Chinese subtitles! Now you can learn to understand native speakers, expand your vocabulary, and improve your pronunciation...

Present continuous

You're learning with nine to five English Business English for the workplace.

Hi, Tim here with another 9 to 5 English lesson.

Future simple

In today's lesson, we're going to learn how to ask for and give directions.

It would be great if the map apps on our phones were perfect.

But even with the help of technology, we can get confused in a new city, a new neighborhood, or a new office building.

And when we do, we need to be able to ask for help.

One simple way to ask for directions is to ask if someone knows where something is.

Or you can just say that you're looking for a certain place, whether it's a building or a room inside a building.

One other polite way to ask for directions is with the expression could you tell me how to get to a place?

Why don't we try some of these expressions for asking for directions?

Listen to each example, then repeat it for yourself.

Could you tell me how to get to the library?

What's the best way to get to the nearest subway station?

As you heard, sometimes you don't know exactly where you're going, but

you need a certain kind of place like a subway station.

In that case, we often ask for the nearest one.

Now, there are actually two kinds of questions here.

If you ask someone the best way to get somewhere, you're looking for directions.

If you ask where is a place, you're asking for location.

You need to be able to answer both kinds of questions.

You can just tell the person where to go using expressions like go straight, turn right, or turn left.

Then you mention the street the person is to go straight on or where they should turn.

Remember to repeat the examples after you hear them.

Just head straight down Burnett avenue for about 200 meters.

When you come to the Royal bank, Take a left on west side Road.

You'll have to go up a floor and then down the hall.

You might have noticed a couple of other verbs that we use to give directions.

First, you might tell someone to head in a certain direction.

The other verb we use instead of turn left or right is take a left or right.

How can you tell someone exactly where something is?

Well, in that case you need some location words like across from, to the left, of, at the corner, and

We use these expressions to describe where something is in relation to Something else.

Let's practice these expressions and you'll see what I mean by about describing location.

Once again, repeat the examples you hear.

It's between Sprout Cafe and the Korean restaurant.

Now one thing that can be confusing is when we say right across from.

That doesn't mean right as in turn right or left.

Not a little to one side, but directly across from.

Ok, we've practiced some useful expressions.

Now let's hear how this sounds in a conversation.

Lets listen to a short dialog between Tim and Zara.

Tim is asking for directions to a place called the Cascade Building.

Could you tell me how to get to the Cascade Building?

Just head straight down ellis street for 100 meters.

And is it on the left or the right of the street?

Zara uses one expression for giving directions and another for describing the location of the building.

We'll repeat the dialogue but this time we're going to beep out the second speaker's words.

You will have to say those parts yourself.

Remember to tell Tim to head straight down ellis street for 100 metres.

Then tell him that the building is right across from the subway station.

For this lesson, we've learned some great ways to ask for and give directions.

Subtitles ListPlay Video

925 English Lesson 25 – Asking for and Giving Directions in English | Business ESL

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straight