CEFR A1 · 5 min
When I landed in Sydney Airport in 2005 with one carry-on bag and what I thought was decent English, the first stranger I spoke to said ‘How ya going?’ I had no idea what that meant. It was not in any textbook. This lesson is about greetings that actually get used.
Today's focus: Greetings (formal + informal) and introductions
Three levels:
- Very informal (friends, Australia): G’day! How ya going? Hey!
- Neutral (most everyday situations): Hi, how are you? Nice to meet you.
- Formal (interviews, official): Good morning. How do you do?
Use I’m [name] in almost all real situations. ‘My name is…’ is textbook-stiff outside job interviews.
Examples in context
Try it — click to reveal the answer
▶ Which greeting fits a job interview? (a) ‘Hey!’ (b) ‘Good morning, pleased to meet you.’ (c) ‘How ya going?’
Interviews call for formal register. Save ‘hey’ and ‘how ya going’ for people you already know.
▶ Fill the blank: ‘_____ Sarah. _____ to meet you.’ (use I’m / Nice)
‘I’m’ is a contraction of ‘I am’ — completely correct and natural in speech.
▶ True or false: ‘How do you do?’ expects the answer ‘Fine, thanks.’
Modern usage is fading — you are more likely to hear ‘How are you?’ in real situations today.
When in doubt, use Hi, I’m [name], nice to meet you — it works in 95% of real situations across all English-speaking countries.
Independent project; not affiliated with, endorsed by, or accredited by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Confers no qualification. Cambridge CELTA course completed — 120 supervised teaching hours and four written assignments validated to the required standard.