Starting a conversation in any language begins with a simple greeting. In English, the way you say hello can depend on the time of day and how well you know the person.

For a simple, friendly greeting you can use anytime, "Hello" and "Hi" are perfect. "Hi" is a little more casual than "Hello."

We also have greetings for specific times of the day:

Notice there's no "Good night" here. We only use "Good night" to say goodbye at the end of the evening.

After you say hello, the next step is to introduce yourself. The easiest way to do this is by sharing your name. You can say:

• My name is [Your Name].
• I'm [Your Name].

Both phrases mean the same thing. "I'm" is just a shorter, more common way to say "I am."

To ask for someone else's name, you simply say:

• What's your name?

It's also polite to say, "Nice to meet you," after you learn their name. The other person will usually reply with, "Nice to meet you, too."

Sometimes, you might want to share a bit more information, like where you're from. You can do this by saying:

• I'm from [Your Country or City].

For example, "I'm from Canada," or "I'm from Tokyo."

To ask where someone else is from, you can say:

• Where are you from?

Here is a full, simple conversation:

With these basic phrases, you have everything you need to greet someone and start a simple conversation. The key is to practice them so they feel natural.

Ready to check your understanding? Let's try a few questions.