In this second part of two online exercises on introducing yourself in English, you will learn and remember more formal English phrases that you can use to both introduce yourself to other people and what to say when somebody introduces themself to you. You'll also learn more phrases that you can use to continue the conversation after the introduction.

In addition to learning phrases to introduce yourself, you'll also learn phrases you can use when you are looking for people you don't know but are supposed to meet (e.g. people coming for a job interview, visting your company, attending a meeting or a training session etc...).

Although the vocabulary used here is focused on business and formal situations, it can also be used in less formal situations as well.

If you haven't done the first part of this exercise yet, I recommend that you do the first part of this exercise, before starting this second part (it will make doing it easier).

To learn the English phrases used to end a conservation and say goodbye, do our exercise on 'How to say goodbye in English'.

To learn the English phrases used to introduce one person to another person, do our exercise on 'How to introduce people in English'.

Exercise: Finding and introducing yourself to people

In the following two situations, people are introducing themselves to each other. In situation 1, one person is waiting in a company reception area for a meeting. In situation 2, one person is waiting in a company reception area to have a job interview.

From the context, try to guess what the meaning of the words/phrases in bold are. Then do the quiz at the end to check if you are right.

Situation 1

Louise:'Excuse me, are you Simon Ward?'

Peter:'No, I'm not.'

Louise:'Sorry to have bothered you.'

Peter:'That's no problem.'

2 minutes later

Louise:'Excuse me, are you Simon Ward?'

Simon:'Yes, I am.'

Louise:'Good afternoon Simon. My name's Louise Tate. We've spoken by telephone before.'

(Handshake)

Simon:'Good Afternoon Louise. Nice to finally meet you.'

Louise:'And you too. Sally has asked me to meet you and take you to her office. Do you have a pass from the reception desk?'

Simon:'Yes, I have.'

Louise:'Have you been here before?'

Simon:'No, I haven't. It's a very big office.'

Louise:'Yes, it is.'


Situation 2

Peter:'Excuse me, are you here for an interview?'

Ruth:'Yes, I am.'

Peter:'Can I take your name, please?'

Ruth:'My name's Ruth Geddis.'

Peter:'Good morning Ruth, my name's Peter Smith and I work in the Human Resources Department.'

(Handshake)

Ruth:'Good morning.'

Peter:'Did you find us ok?'

Ruth:'It was no problem. Your office is very close to the railway station.'

Peter:'If you'd like to follow me, I will take you up to the interview room.'



Quiz:

Match the words/phrases in bold from the above text to each of the definitions/descriptions below. Click on the "Check" button at the bottom of the quiz to check your answers.

When the answer is correct, two icons will appear next to the answer. The icon contains extra information on the word/phrase. In the icon, you can listen to the pronunciation of the word/phrase.


1. A polite question/phrase that is used to ask if a person had any problems arriving at your office, is

         

Did you find us ok:
(phrase) It is polite when either meeting somebody for the first time or meeting somebody you have met before that after the introduction or greetings (e.g. hi, hello etc...) to have a quick conversation with them. This is called 'small talk' and it can about be about anything (e.g. the weather, football, work etc...). The phrase/question 'did you find us ok?' is an example of small talk. This is commonly used when you meet somebody who has travelled to meet you at your home, office etc... and has never been there before. It is basically asking them if they had any problems in finding the place. It is just used out of politeness and normally the person asking it, doesn't really care if they had any problems or not. In Spanish: "nos encontraste bien / encontraste nuestro edificio sin problemas".

Close

Did you find us ok:
Close

2. A polite phrase that is used to respond/reply when somebody has said 'we've spoken by telephone before' to you, is

         

Nice to finally meet you:
(phrase) When two people who have communicated by either phone or email several or more times, are meeting for the first time, it is common that one of them will say 'we've spoken by telephone before' or 'we've communicated by email before' after saying their name. The phrase 'nice to finally meet you' is used as a reply/response by the other person. For example, 'my name's Simon Ward. we've spoken by telephone before' 'nice to finally meet you'. This phrase is used to be polite and can be followed by the name of the person who said 'we've spoken by telephone before', e.g. 'nice to finally meet you Simon'. In Spanish: "encantado de conocerlo por fin".

Close

Nice to finally meet you:
Close

3. A polite phrase that is used to ask a stranger/person you don't know if they are waiting to attend an interview or a meeting, is

         

Excuse me, are you here for:
(phrase) This polite phrase is used when you are searching for people you haven't met before. 'excuse me, are you here for' is used when you are looking to find several people who are waiting to attend an event, interview, meeting etc..., so you can take them there. With this phrase, you have to say the name of the event at the end. For example, 'excuse me, are you here for the meeting?'. If the person replies with. 'no, I'm not', then it is polite to reply to them with the following apology, 'sorry to have bothered you'. It is possible to use this phrase without 'excuse me', but it sounds less polite. In Spanish: "perdone, está aqui para".

Close

Excuse me, are you here for:
Close

4. A polite way to ask somebody to go to a place with you, is

         

If you'd like to follow me:
(phrase) This very polite phrase is used to ask a person who has been waiting to meet somebody or do something to follow/go with you. This phrase is normally used when you have met somebody who is waiting in a reception area and you want to take them to a different place (e.g. a meeting, interview, event, floor of the building etc...). You can say after this phrase where you are going to take the person. For example, 'If you'd like to follow me, I'll take you to the meeting'. Normally, this phrase is used after the two people have introduced themselves to each other (e.g. 'my name's Chris') or after they have greeted each other (e.g. 'hi Peter, how are you?'). In Spanish: "me acompaña".

Close

If you'd like to follow me:
Close

5. If a person says 'no, I am not' after you ask them 'excuse me, are you Roger Smith?', you should apologise by saying

         

Sorry to have bothered you:
(phrase) It is important and polite to apologise if after asking a person 'excuse me, are you ...?' or 'excuse me, are you here for ...?' they say 'no, I am not'. You do this by saying 'sorry to have bothered you'. The word 'bothered' means to 'disturb' or 'interrupt'. In Spanish: "perdone por molestarle".

Close

Sorry to have bothered you:
Close

6. A phrase that is used to tell somebody that you are meeting face to face for the first time that you have communicated with them previously, is

         

We've spoken by telephone before:
(phrase) This phrase is used during an introduction by one of the two people introducing themselves, to say that they have communicated/spoken by phone to each other before (although they have never met in person before). This phrase comes after one of the two has said their name, e.g. 'my name's Simon Ward. we've spoken by telephone before'. Normally, the other person would reply/respond with 'nice to finally meet you'. If you want to say that you have communicated by email, then you would say 'we've communicated by email before' instead. Both of these phrases should only be used if you have had communicated several or more times with the other person in the past. If you have only communicated one or two times by phone in the past, you would say 'we spoke by phone' instead. And the other person would respond/reply with 'nice/pleased to meet you'. In Spanish: "hemos hablado por teléfono antes".

Close

We've spoken by telephone before:
Close

7. A polite way to ask a stranger/person you don't know if their name is a person you are looking for, is

         

Excuse me, are you:
(phrase) This polite phrase is used when you are searching for a person you haven't met before. 'excuse me, are you' is used to ask a stranger (who is waiting) if their name is the name of the person that you are looking for. The name of the person who is being looked for, always follows this phrase, For example, 'excuse me, are you Andrew Sweeney?'. If the person replies with. 'No, I'm not', then it is polite to reply to them with the following apology, 'sorry to have bothered you'. It is possible to use this phrase without 'excuse me', but it sounds less polite. In Spanish: "perdone, es usted".

Close

Excuse me, are you:
Close

8. A polite question/phrase that is used to ask if a person has visited your office in the past, is

         

Have you been here before:
(phrase) It is polite when either meeting somebody for the first time or meeting somebody you have met before that after the introduction or greetings (e.g. hi, hello etc...) that you have a quick conversation with them. This is called 'small talk' and it can about be about anything (e.g. the weather, football, work etc...). The phrase/question 'have you been here before?' is an example of small talk. This is commonly used when you meet somebody who has travelled to meet you at your home, office etc... It is basically asking them if they have ever visited/been to the place before. It is just used out of politeness and normally the person asking it, doesn't really care if they have been to the place before or if they haven't. In Spanish: "ha estado aqui antes".

Close

Have you been here before:
Close

9. A polite way to ask somebody what they are called, is

         

Can I take your name, please:
(phrase) 'excuse me, are you here for an interview?' is used when you have to find a number of/several people, so you can take them to the interview. If the person you ask this to, says they are, the next thing you would ask them for is their name (so you can tick it on the list of names you have). 'can I take your name, please' is used to do this, in a formal and very polite way. This phrase is used in other situations as well (e.g. searching for people going on a holiday tour, attending a conference etc...), but it is not normally used if you are searching for people for a meeting or a business presentation. In these situations, you would just introduce yourself to them normally (e.g. 'my name's Chris Smith'). In Spanish: "puedes decirme su nombre, por favor".

Close

Can I take your name, please:
Close

10. When one person during an introduction says 'nice to finally meet you', it is polite for the other person to respond/reply by saying

         

And you too:
(phrase) This phrase is used for politeness. When two people who have communicated by either phone or email several or more times, are meeting for the first time, it is common that one of them will say 'we've spoken by telephone before' or 'we've communicated by email before' after saying their name. And then for the other person to reply by saying 'nice to finally meet you'. The phrase 'and you too' is used as a reply/response to 'nice to finally meet you'. For example, 'my name's Simon Ward. we've spoken by telephone before' 'nice to finally meet you' 'and you too'. If you don't respond by saying 'and you too', it is very rude/impolite. In Spanish: "y yo tambien".

Close

And you too:
Close





Practice

Now that you understand the meaning of the words/phrases and when to use them, practise using them by creating your own sentences with them in English. Also click on the icon next to each correct answer and listen how each is pronounced correctly.