HOW TO SPEAK

1. GREETING
There are many ways to greet someone. We’ll learn about the most common way to greet
someone with the help of example sentences. Greetings establish contact and show a level of
friendliness and formality.
 Look
When you talk with them, make eye contact, particularly during the greeting.
 Smile
Make the eyes friendly. Smile and mean it. False smiles do not reach the eyes, so whatever
you do, don't pretend.
 Introduce yourself
If you don't already know them, a simple neutral introduction is to say your name
 Shake hands
Generally, a firm handshake is best, but not a bone crusher. Try to match the other person's
pressure.
 Greeting someone you never met:
Hi, my name is Ganesh. It’s nice to meet you.
You can respond to this by saying,
It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Suresh.
Another common question to ask is
 What do you do for a living?
You can respond to this by saying,
I work at a college.
I work at a call centre.
I work in a software company.
I’m a chemist.
 Usually, you will not need to ask for a name. It is implied that each person should say their
name. But in case they don’t, you can ask,
What is your name?
 If you are not able to get the name and if you would like for them to repeat their name, you
can say,
What was that again?
Excuse me?
Pardon me?
 Greeting someone you know
Hey Senthil, how have you been?
Hi Suresh, how are you?
Suresh, it’s been a long time, how are you man?

2.  If you meet someone unexpectedly, you can say,
Hey Suresh, it’s good to see you. What are you doing here?
Or
What a surprise. I haven’t seen you in a long time. How have you been?
Here are some other example responses.
I’m pretty busy at work these days, but otherwise, everything is great.
I’m doing very well.
I finally have some free time. I just finished taking a big project, and I’m so relieved that I’m
done with it.
For Example: Your responses when you meet someone at a restaurant.
I’ve been here a couple of times, but I don’t come on a regular basis.
I come pretty often. This is my favorite restaurant.
I can’t believe we haven’t seen each other before. I come here at least twice a week.
Openers and Closers
Conversation openers and closures signal when a conversation is beginning and ending.
Greetings establish contact and show a level of friendliness and formality. Pre-closings signal the
end of the conversation. Closings end the conversation.
Greetings
Responses
Good morning/afternoon/evening....................... Good morning/afternoon/evening
Hello...................................................................
Hi
How are you?.....................................................
Fine, thanks/Great/OK
How are you doing?...........................................
Pretty good
How's it going?.................................................. .
Not bad
How's it going?.................................................
Not bad.
What's new?......................................................
Nothing much.
What's happening?...........................................
Not much.
Long time, no see ...............................................
Yeah, I haven't seen you for a long time
Pre-Closings Responses
It's been a pleasure.........................................
Well, it's getting late........................................
It was nice talking with you..............................
Nice to see you (again)....................................
Maybe we can get together sometime..............
Let's get together sometime...
Well, I've got to run...
Well, it's getting late...
Closings Responses
Yes, I enjoyed taking with you
Maybe we can talk again some time
Yeah, I enjoyed it
Nice to see you
Sounds good!
Sounds good.
OK. See you.
Yeah, maybe we can talk again some
time.

3. Good-bye.........................................................
Have a nice evening/weekend/life....................
Talk to you later................................................
See you later.....................................................
See you..........................................................
Good-bye
You too
OK. Bye-bye
OK. Take care
So long
Expressing Understanding / Misunderstanding
I see / I get it.
OK.
Uh huh.
Interrupting
Excuse me...
Sorry but...
I don't see. / I don't get it.
Huh?
Uh uh.
Could I interrupt for a moment?
Could I ask a question?
Clarifying and Repeating
What do you mean by...?
What was that?
Could you repeat that?
Could you say that again?
Bringing in others' ideas
For me...
In my opinion...
I think...
What's your opinion?
How about you?
Do you agree?