Introducing yourself to new
people and making small talk
There are lots of possible situations where you’ll
meet new people:
If you have ever been to a party, concert, moved to
a new place, or even visited touristic places such as
New York City, you have probably met someone.
Now think…..
What do you usually say when you meet someone
new?
How do you introduce yourself in general?
Do you find it difficult to continue the conversation
with them after exchanging names?
Even though the language we use to make small talk with
new people might seem to be very simple, it is often difficult
to use without practice. Some questions which are normal in
your native language are actually considered rude in the
United States!)
Beginner English: Hi My name is ____. What is your name?
Natural English: These phrases sound more natural than the
one above. [Make sure you pay attention to your intonation
so that you sound friendly.]
Hi there! My name’s _________. What’s yours?
I don’t think we’ve met. I’m ___________.
I don’t believe we’ve met before. My name is __________.
Have we met? I’m ____________.
I think I’ve seen you around, but we haven’t officially
met. I’m _________.
Introducing People to Each Other
At any social event, you are probably going to introduce other people
to each other and talk with more than one person at a time. This
makes having a conversation much more interesting.
Here are some good ways to introduce two people who haven’t met:
I’d like you to meet ____________.
This is ______________.
I’d like to introduce you to _______________.
Have you met ____________? (This phrase was made famous by
Barney Stinson in How I Met Your Mother!)
How to make the first move:
Americans are well-known for almost always asking these three
questions:
What do you do for a living?
Where did you go to school? (This question means, what
college or university did you attend?)
What brings you to __(this event/this party)?
Similarly, if you live in a state like New Jersey with a lot of
neighborhoods and nearby cities, another neutral topic is asking for
more details about where you live.
Do you live in __(this city/this neighborhood)?
What brings you to __(this city/this area)?
Where do you live?
What kind of place do you live in? (Is it an apartment, a house, do
you rent a room, etc.?)
What’s your place like?
How do you like living here/there?
People love getting to know people from different cultural
backgrounds!! They will usually ask you more questions about your
background and for your opinion about their city.
Where are you from originally?
Where are you from in __(your country)?
What are you doing in __(this city)__?
How do you like living here?
What do you think about __(this city)?
Do you like it here?
Think about some possible answers for the questions above.
After learning basic information about the person you have
just met, you can continue the conversation by asking him/her
more general questions.
This also allows you to find something in common! Here are
some basic questions to start with:
What do you like to do?
What do you like to do outside of work/school?
What kinds of things interest you?
What kinds of things do you do in your free time?
Do you like/watch/follow any sports/TV series?
Deciding to Continue or End the Conversation
As you can see, making small talk with someone you’ve just
met is easy if you remember to stick to neutral, general
conversation topics.
After you’ve talked for a while, you may want to continue the
conversation, however if you don't want to talk anymore, you
should end the conversation politely:
It was nice meeting you. I'll see you around/later!
There is someone I want to say “hi” to over there. It was
nice talking to you!
I’m going to get a drink/some water. Nice to meet you!