A visitor to this website recently asked for the sort of phrases he might use when introducing himself to people, for example in an English class. We thought we would write a blog post on the subject.
Starting with the most important piece of information, we could say ‘I’m Maria Gonzalez.’ or ‘My name is Maria Gonzalez.’ If we want to say how old we are, we simply say ‘I’m twenty-three.’ or ‘I’m twenty-three years old.’ Then we might say, for example, ‘I’m Spanish.’ or ‘I’m from Spain.’ To give more detail about where we live, we could say ‘I’m from Valencia in Spain.’ or even ‘I’m from Valencia, on the east coast of Spain.’
If we live somewhere different now, we might like to add this information by saying, for example ‘I was born in Valencia, but I live in Madrid now.’ (Notice the tense here ‘I was born.’) If the place we are living in now is only temporary (=for a short time) we express this by saying, for example, ‘I’m studying in Madrid for six months.’ (Notice that present continuous tense ‘am studying’ for an activity that the speaker is doing at the moment.)
We might like to talk about our family, in which case we might say, ‘I live with my parents and my younger brother.’ We could add, ‘I also have an older sister who lives in France.’
If we work, we might talk briefly about this, saying, for example, ‘I’m a teacher.’ or ‘I work as a teacher.’
When we meet other people for the first time, it is sometimes nice to tell them a little about ourselves – our interests and what we like to do in our spare time. There are various ways to do this:
I like playing tennis in my spare time. / I play a lot of tennis.
I like reading. / I’m a keen reader.
I’m a big fan of Real Madrid.
If we are in an English class, we might explain why we are learning English. We might say, for example, ‘I’m learning English because I need it for my job/my studies.’ or we might say ‘I’m learning English because it’s useful for travelling.’ It’s possible that we simply want to say ‘I’m learning English because I enjoy learning languages.’
We hope this has given you a few phrases to use when you are meeting new people.
Dear Kate,
Thank you for this article.
My name is María Eliana González and I am from Chile. I work as an assistant to the Head of Primary in a British School.
My question is the following…. in Chile, it is customary to greet people in an email, and then we introduce the reason why you are writing.
As far as I know, you do not do that in England. But in order not to go straight to the point, how could you greet them….
I’m wholly over the moon to read this article. Because I have made this one but (mine is so extended) for my students. Thanks a billion.
It is customary to greet when you come across some one ,you reply in writing or initiate a letter. No body would , I am sure he or she may be from any where, any set of life , any section , any religion, any of race or any part of life. No one would ever mind or disapprove it. . It is a very good practice always follow it Regards,
It is customary to greet when you come across some one ,you reply in writing or initiate a letter. No body would ever mind. I am sure he or she may be from any where, any set of population or life , any section , any religion, any race or any part of life. No one would ever mind or disapprove it. . It is a very good practice always follow it Regards,
Hi Maria Eliana. Thanks for this. Yes, in English we would also greet the person first before explaining who we are (if they don’t already know) and then saying why we are emailing them. I hope that answers your question. Best wishes.
you could actually say: “Hope this finds you well” or ” Just a quick one to ask you/let you know/ etc”
Hope this helps J
Hi, This remember me some of the basics learning points which I learned long times ago.
Thanks
“long time ago” Razeen
I am wondering, if perhaps, it should be “oneself” rather than “yourself”. If not, when is it appropriate to use “oneself”?
Hello Pauline. Thanks for this. Yes, ‘oneself’ would be correct, but it sounds a little formal for a blog post like this which is fairly conversational in style. Best wishes!
Tips given by Kate Woodford are important for beginners in English learning.It also describes as how to introduce oneself among
people we meet for the first time.it’s quite a relevant piece of primary lesson.
Satyabrata
Thank so much for this ,and I will use it from now
hi
I’m ahmed I’m form Sudan I like to learn English language because it’s frast in the world
Having something to lose making live worth living
I hope I can get benefit.
Dear Kate,
Your blog about “introducing yourself” is very informative.I remember how I struggled in introducing my self when I appeared first time in classes when I was young.So I determined to share these sentences with my kids today itself.Keep your good work up .Moreover, it would be great if you post a blog about how we should be introduced in office environment.Such as we introduce our selves to a newly recruited employee.
Thank you.
Hi! Thanks for your kind words. Thanks also for that idea for a blog. I shall certainly look into it! Best wishes!
Hi l am Zhang qi l am from China l am 53 year old. I’m learning English now. Because it’s good for travel and make friends.
Hi Dear Kate! Thanks very much for this, I’m jean Baptiste Bikindi – from Rwanda Kigali city and I fond of English though is hard to understand it. Nice day 😁
This article is useful for beginner who English is the second language.
Thank you so much for this article.
Thank you, everyone, for all your kind comments.
Hi, my name is Arin. Very happy to see this article. It helps me a lot to learn about introducing myself to the blog of mine.
Thank you so much, Kate..
You’re very welcome!
Excellent and very useful post. The students are always worried about introducing themselves.
Thank you!
Leila, thank you! That’s lovely to hear. Best wishes.
Hi my name is ramdhan, I am from Tunisia North Africa , I want to invite an English native speaker to my country , so I can practice English and then improve my communication skills. thank you best wishes
Thanks to introduce yourself to new one.