How to introduce yourself in English?

How to introduce yourself in English?

Questions like “Who are you?” " How are you ? How old are you ? » are essential to know in English. These will definitely be the first questions you get asked when you meet someone and start a conversation in English .

To put all the chances on your side and thus give the best possible first impression, it is necessary to know how to structure sentences to create an English presentation worthy of Shakespeare. You can say goodbye to the dictionary!  

Introduce yourself in English: greet someone

Before starting a conversation in English with a person, it is important to greet them first. Indeed, the first impression you give to your interlocutor will remain engraved in their memory. There are several ways to say "hello" in English.

The most common are:

• Good morning , good morning
• good morning, good morning, good morning
• Good afternoon / Bonjour (English speakers use it in the afternoon)
• good evening
• Hello - Hey / Hello

Unlike the French language, the English language has the term “bon après-midi” which literally means “good afternoon” and which is used from noon to 4 p.m.

Then, you have to ask if the person is well to express interest. Putting a person at ease will be beneficial because they will be more likely to continue the conversation with you.

For example, you can say or respond:

• How are you doing? / How are you ? - How are you ?
• How are you doing? / How are you ? - How are you ? (Slightly more informal than the first sentence)
• I'm fine, thank you / I'm fine, thank you.
• I'm fine and you? / I'm fine and you ?
• Good thanks and you? / Thanks and you ?

Introduce yourself in English: give your identity

Once you've greeted the person, you probably want to know their name so you know who you're dealing with.

To ask for a person's name, you can use the following formulas:

• What is your name? - What is your name ? / What is your name ?

Generally, “what is your name” is contracted and we do not offer the verb “is”. Instead, we'll say "what's your name."

If your interviewer asks you the question before you do so, you can answer:

• My name is... / My name is...
• I am I am...

For example :

" Hello, my name is Anna. What is your name?"

During a job interview in English, it is important to differentiate between your first and last name. Your first name will be your “first name” while your last name will be your “last name”.

So, if a recruiter asks you to introduce yourself, you must know these formulas:

• My first name is... / My first name is...
• My last name is... / My last name is...

Be careful, “last name” is a false friend. In French, it does not mean “nickname” but “surname”.

For example :

“ My first name is Anna. My last name is Bridgerton. » / “My first name is Anna. My last name is Bridgerton.

In French as in English, it is important to say the famous “nice to meet you” which means nothing other than “enchanté” in French. English speakers attach importance to this expression (nice to meet you) and say it very often.

For example :

My name is Anna, nice to meet you! / My name is Anna, nice to meet you!

Introduce yourself in English: give your age

Not always, but sometimes you have to give your age. Imagine you want a drink and the waiter asks you your age in English to see if you are of legal age, you probably want to know how to answer.

The question is :

• How old are you? / How old are you ? - How old are you ?

To find out your age, you can say:

• “ I’m 21 ” or “ I’m 21 ” / I’m 21.

As you can see, unlike French, in English, we use the verb “to be” to give our age and not the verb “to have”. We therefore say “I am 21 years old” but this translates, in French, to “I am 21 years old”.

Introduce yourself in English: say where you live or where you come from

Saying where you live and where you come from are two different things. A person can very well be from Lyon, but live in Paris. This is why it is useful to ask these different questions, which are quite similar, and whose answers can be diverse.

Say where you live:

To know the answer, you need to ask:

• Where do you live? / Where do you live ? - Where do you live ?

To answer, you can say:

• " I live... + name of the city ".

For example, this gives:

• I live in Paris / I live in Paris
• I live on Broadway / I live on Broadway.
• I live not far from here, 5 minutes / I live not very far from here, 5 minutes from here.
• I live near Paris / I live near Paris.

“Vivre” being the verb “to live”.

Say where you are from:

Now you want to ask your interlocutor where they are from so that you can arrange a next meeting near them?

There are two ways to phrase the question:

• Where do you come from? / Where are you from ? - Where do you come from ?
• Where are you from? / Where are you from ? - Where do you come from ? (most common formula)

Can you answer then?

• I come from Paris / I come from Paris.
• I come from Paris / I am from Paris. (most common formula)

If you want to say that you are French, you can add “ Je suis français ”.