2.

Greetings

Greeting is an act of communication in which human beings intentionally make

their presence known to each other, to show attention to, and to suggest a type of
relationship or social status between individuals or groups of people coming in
contact with each other. While greeting customs are highly culture- and situation-
specific and may change within a culture depending on social status and
relationship, they exist in all known human cultures. Greetings can be expressed
both audibly and physically, and often involve a combination of the two.

Whether you’re speaking with someone face-to-face, through Skype, or over the
phone, greetings are an essential part of getting your English conversation
started.

You will only need to learn a few common greetings, but the words you use will
vary based on the situation. For example, in a job interview, you should use a
formal greeting, but when you meet a friend for coffee, you’ll likely say
something informal.

Formal Greetings:
Sometimes you need to use more formal language to keep a professional tone.
Here are the most common situations when such greetings are necessary:

 job interview
 business meeting
 communicating with top management or CEO
 chatting with a new colleague
 having a conversation with clients
 showing respect to an older person
 speaking with someone you barely know

Formal greeting phrases:

1. How do you do?

 If you are looking for a VERY formal phrase for someone you meet for the first
time, this one will be the most suitable. While this salutation is quite
uncommon today, you can still hear it from older people.

“Hello. How do you do?” is perfect for a business dinner or a formal event, such
as a conference. As per professional speech in every language, the most
appropriate response is neutral or positive “I’m doing well thank you / Fine,
thank you” to keep some distance, even if you are actually having a very bad
day!

If used as a formal greeting, sometimes “How do you do” is, strangely, used as
a statement rather than a question. This most often happens when shaking
hands with someone for the first time. It is easy to hear if this is the case: there
will be no inflection at the end of the sentence. In this instance, the correct
response is to repeat the question back to the asker in the same flat tone, “How
do you do?”

2. Nice to meet you / Pleased to meet you

This is one of the respectful greeting examples you can use replying to someone
you meet for the very first time. For example:

 A: Good morning. I’m Rajesh from …. [COMPANY].

 B: Nice to meet you, Mr. Rajesh.

When people meet, it is a common practice to shake hands. A handshake

generally lasts for a few seconds, which gives enough time to say “Pleased to
meet you”.

3. How have you been?

This is a polite way to ask “How are you?” when you have not seen a person for
a long time. Ask this question only if you have met someone before.

 A: How have you been?

 B: I’ve been busy working a lot. How about you?

The best way to ensure that your greetings sound natural and confident is to
practice them aloud, preferably with a fluent speaker to give you pointers.

4. Good Morning / Good Afternoon / Good Evening

These ways of greeting people are used at different times of the day. Whether
you speak with a regular customer, colleagues or new neighbors, these phrases
are effective to start the ball rolling.
 The greetings change depending on the time of the day. For example, “Good
morning” is generally used from 5:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. whereas “Good
afternoon” time is from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. “Good evening” is often used
after 4 p.m. or when the sun goes down.

Keep in mind that “Goodnight” is not a salutation. In formal communication, it

is used to say goodbye. For example:

 It was nice to meet you. Goodnight!

 Goodnight! See you tomorrow.

To show your respect, you can also add the person’s last name to your greeting
words. Usually, native English speakers tend to be more informal even in
business communication and use the person’s first name after the salutation:

 Good morning, Mr. Rohit

 Good afternoon, Ms. Deepika
 Good morning, Bhanu
 Good evening, Mohan

It is also common to say “Good morning, sir/madam” when greeting someone

in a formal situation whose name is unknown. This is often heard by staff
talking to customers in shops, restaurants and hotels.

Greetings in Formal Conversations: Practice Dialogue

John: Good morning.
Alan: Good morning. How are you?
John: I'm very well thank you. And you?
Alan: I'm fine. Thank you for asking.
John: Do you have a meeting this morning?
Alan: Yes, I do. Do you have a meeting as well?
John: Yes. Well. It was a pleasure seeing you.
Alan: Goodbye. 

Informal Greetings:
When it comes to a conversation with a neighbor or a chit-chat with colleagues
during a coffee break, you can opt for these informal greetings. Situations
where these fit naturally include:
 a casual meeting with colleagues
 having a conversation with your team at work
 networking events
 greeting neighbors
 chatting to a friend

Informal Greeting Phrases:

1. Hello / Hi / Hey

As you almost certainly know already, “Hello” and “Hi” are the most popular
greetings for informal situations. Generally, they are followed by the person’s
name:

Hello, Gopal, How are you?

Hi, Monica. Nice to see you!

As a rule, use “hey” with people you know well. It is perfectly okay to start a
conversation with a stranger in an informal situation with “hey” too, but do not
pronounce it too harshly in this case, or it can come across as rude or
confrontational.

2. Morning / Afternoon / Evening

This is a friendly and warm way to greet someone in most informal situations.
It sounds particularly natural if you are just walking past someone who you
relate to informally but do not have time for a long chat with, such as a
postman, or a neighbor, or a cafe assistant. This said, it works just as well to
start a longer conversation.

3. How are you doing? / How’s it going?

This is a casual way of asking “How are you?” People prefer to ask one of these
questions after the main greeting. Usually, it is followed by a brief, positive
answer. For instance:
A: Hello, Anand! How are you doing?

B: Fine, thanks. And you?

4. Nice to see you / It’s great to see you / Good to see you

When you have not seen a person for a while or meet somebody unexpectedly,
use one of these friendly greetings. You can use them at the beginning of a
conversation, or just after the initial “hello”.

Hello, Vandana. Nice to see you there.

5. Long-time no see / It’s been a while.

These common phrases are used to greet an old friend or begin a conversation
with a person you haven’t seen for a very long time. These expressions are
often followed by questions like “How are you?” or “What’s new?” And it is a
great way to start small talk about what has happened since your last meeting.

A: Hey, Suresh! Long-time no see. How are you?

B: I’m fine, thanks! What’s new?

A: Hi, Ravi. How’s it going?

B: Good thanks.

A: I haven’t seen you for ages.

B: Yes, it’s been a while.

Greetings in Informal Conversations: Practice Dialogue

1.
Bharat: Tom, what's up?
Tom: Hi Bharat. Nothing much. I'm just hanging out. What's up with you?
Bharat: It's a good day. I'm feeling fine.
Tom: How is your sister?
Bharat: Oh, fine. Not much has changed.
Tom: Well, I have to go. Nice seeing you!
Bharat: Later!

2.

Maria: Oh, hello Varun. How are you doing?

Varun: I'm well. Thanks for asking. How are you?
Maria: I can't complain. Life is treating me well.
Varun: That's good to hear.
Maria: Good to see you again. I need to go to my doctor's appointment.
Varun: Nice seeing you.
Maria: See you later. 
Exercise – I

Choose the correct answers from the choices given.

1. If you've invited people to your home, you should greet them as they're

A. eating

B. arriving

C. leaving

2. Greetings in business are usually formal, but greetings among family and
friends are much more

A. impolite

B. polite

C. casual

3. Which greeting is best for a formal business meeting?

A. Hi there
 B. How's it going'?

C. Nice to meet you

4. If you meet someone at night, you can greet them by saying

A. Good night

B. Good evening

C. Good sleep

5. Which is a greeting that friends might use when meeting for coffee?

A. Nice to meet you

B. Good to see you

C. Want a coffee?

6. Which would only be said if you haven't met the person for a long time?

A. Hi Lee. What's up?

B. Hey Joe. How are things?

C. Hi Annie. Long time no see.

7. Businesspeople often greet one another with

A. a hug

B. a high five

C. a handshake

8. What are you doing if you say "I'd like you to meet our accountant Hari."?
 A. introducing Hari

B. meeting Hari

C. greeting Hari

9. Which can you say after being introduced to someone for the first time?

A. Nice to meet you

B. Nice to greet you

C. Nice to see you

10. "Hi, I'm Roberto. But you can call me Bob." What's Roberto doing?

A. calling himself

B. greeting himself
C. introducing himself

Answers:

1. arriving
2. casual
3. Nice to meet you
4. Good evening
5. Good to see you
6. Hi Annie. Long time no see.
7. a handshake
8. introducing Hari
9. Nice to meet you
10. introducing himself
Exercise II

Choose the correct answer.

1. When we arrive we say: ____.

A. Hello
B. Goodbye
C. See you

2. When we leave we say: _____.

A. Hello
B. Hi
C. Goodbye

3. When we meet a person for the first time we say: _____.

A. Pleased
B. Nice to meet you
C. Enchanted

4. If someone says "Thank you", you say: "You're _____."

A. welcome
B. well
C. nothing

5. Which answer is correct for this question: "Where are you from?"
A. Indian
B. India
C. Indianism

6. What is the meaning of "What do you do?"

What are you doing right now?
What do you like?
What is your profession?

7. When you want to get someone's attention you can say: _____.
A. Excuse me
B. Stop
C. Sorry

8. When you arrive at a hotel the receptionist will say: _____.

A. What's happening?
B. Welcome
C. What's up?

9. I _____ 24 years old.

A. have
B. am
C. has

10. At 9 o'clock a.m., you say: _____.

A. Good evening
B. Good afternoon
C. Good morning
Answers:

1. Hello.
2. Goodbye.
3. Nice to meet you.
4. welcome."
5. India
6. What is your profession?
7. Excuse me.
8. Welcome.
9. am 
10. Good morning.