A collection of English phrases about greeting expressions

In the business scene, there are many situations where greeting expressions are used not only face-to-face but also by phone or email. Many people are worried, such as "I'm not used to using English at work, so I'm worried if I can speak well ..." and "What should I do when I say hello in English?"

In this article, I will introduce a convenient greeting expression to eliminate such anxiety. It is also recommended to memorize the whole thing at first and use it as it is. If you get used to it, feel free to arrange it.

First of all, let's hold down the points of greetings in English!

When greeting, it is important to look into the other person's eyes and talk. Some Japanese may be wondering, "Isn't it rude to look at the other person's face and talk?", But eye contact is important in English-speaking countries. If you look away and speak, you may be mistaken for something like "Do you want to end the conversation early?"

By making eye contact, you can give the impression that you are listening to your story. Especially when you meet someone for the first time, you may be nervous, but the first impression is very important. It will also be judged whether you can build a relationship of trust when working together, so be sure to keep an eye on it and communicate with it.

[Basic] Basic greetings that you definitely want to keep in mind

Here are some basic greetings that are useful to remember.

Expression corresponding to "Nice to meet you"

Hi. (Nice to meet you / Hello)

This expression is often used in English greetings. It is often translated as "hello", but there is also the nuance of "nice to meet you". It is common to follow Hi with My name is ~ (my name is ~). It's a convenient phrase that you can easily use in any situation.

Actually, How do you do? (Nice to meet you) that I learned in the textbook is a slightly old expression. Please note that natives rarely use it.

Nice to meet you. (Nice to meet you)

It is an expression that can be used not only in business scenes but also in daily conversation. Natives often shake hands while greeting with this expression. If the other person says Nice to meet you., Answer Nice to meet you, too.

It's a pleasure to meet you today.

A phrase that uses pleasure, which means "joy." It's a very polite expression, so it's recommended to use it for business situations and superiors. If you omit It's and say Pleasure to meet you., It gives a more casual impression.

Expressions used when introducing yourself

I'm ～ from ABC Company.

It is an expression that conveys your name and company name to people of other companies. I'm ~ can be replaced with My name is ~. Remember to put from in front of your company name.

I'm ~ in the Accounting department.

It is an expression that conveys the department to which you belong. It is also possible to omit the and department and use I'm ~ in Accounting. You can use from instead of in, but be aware that in that case the nuance of "representing the department" will increase.

I'm in charge of ~. (I'm in charge)

Use it when you want to explain what kind of work you are doing (in charge).

・I'm in charge of sales. (I'm in charge of sales)
・ I'm in charge of accounting. (I'm in charge of accounting)
・ I'm in charge of recruiting. (I'm in charge of recruiting)

I'm the General Manager.

If you want to tell the job title, use I'm ~ (job title). Below are some words that represent job titles.

Greetings used when exchanging business cards

Here is my business card.

Business cards in English are called business cards. This is a phrase that you can use when presenting a business card. In Japan, we exchange business cards as soon as we meet, but in English-speaking countries, it is common to do greetings at the end of the greeting, so be careful about the timing.

May I have your business card?

If the business card exchange does not start after the greeting, or if the other party forgets to exchange the business card, use this phrase to encourage the exchange of business cards. You can also say Could I exchange business cards, if you don't mind? More politely.

Expressions used when parting

It was great to meet you.

It's a phrase that expresses gratitude for getting to know each other. It is also possible to replace great with nice. You can also say It was nice meeting you.

If the verb is the present tense is, it will be "I'm glad to meet you" and there is a nuance of "Nice to meet you", so you need to be careful about the tense of the verb. If the other person says It was great to meet you., I will reply You too. This is a shorthand phrase for It was great to meet you, too.

Also, if you have met someone before, add again to the end of the word.

I look forward to see you again. (I look forward to seeing you again)

A phrase that says I'm looking forward to seeing you again. It would be nice to be able to use such expressions easily. This is a standard expression, so please remember it. It can also be used at the end of an email.

[Telephone] Greetings on the phone that can be used by rote memorization

Answering the phone is also indispensable in the business scene. Here are some useful phrases that you can use when you receive or make a call.

Expressions that can be used when receiving a call

The following are phrases you can use when you receive a call. Let's memorize the whole thing and use it immediately.

Hello. This is 〇〇 Company. How may I help you?

May I have your name?

May I have your company name?

Would you mind spelling your name, please?

Hold on, Please.

I'm afraid he / she is not available at the moment. Can I take a message? (Unfortunately I can't answer the phone. Do you have any message?)

I'm afraid he / she is out of office right now. (Unfortunately I'm out now)

Would you like him / her to call you back later?

Expressions that can be used when making a call

Use the following phrases when making a call.

Hello, this is 〇〇 of BC Company. (Hello, this is 〇〇 of BC Company)

Is Mr. / Ms. 〇〇 there? (Are you there?)

Would you mind taking a message for me?

Let me give you my phone number.

Do you know what time he / she will be back?

I'll call back later then.

[Email] Greetings by email that can be used with Maru Copy

Next, let's look at greeting expressions that can be used in writing and concluding emails.

Expressions that can be used for export

Dear Mr. / Ms. 〇〇

This is a common expression used at the beginning of an email. After Dear, write the other party's full name or surname. However, Hello and Hi can also be used if you have a close relationship with a colleague. In that case, it would be more natural to use the first name.

Dear Sir, / Madame,

A convenient expression that can be used when you do not know the name of the other party. If you don't know your gender, you can use Dear Sir or Madame.

Dear 〇〇 department staff

This phrase can be used when only the department name of the contact is known.

To Whom It May Concern:

A general phrase that can be used when you do not know the name of the person in charge or the name of the department in charge. In Japanese, it's called "to all concerned".

Expressions that can be used in closing

Sincerely

Sincerely is often used as a formal expression of knots. It's a clever expression, so I use it for clients and superiors. The following are phrases that can be used in similar situations.

・Yours sincerely
・ Yours truly
・ Respectfully
etc.

Best Regards

It's not as clever as Sincerely, but it gives a polite impression, so it can be used in many business situations.

・ Best wishes
・ Kind regards
・ With regards
・ Cordially
etc.

Take care

An expression that can be used for people with closer relationships, such as colleagues. If you are very close, you may use it for people outside the company. Be careful not to use it as it is rude to your superiors.

・ Best
・ Regards
・ Cheers
・ Thanks
etc.

[Meeting] Greetings that can be used to start or proceed with a meeting

It seems that the hurdles to proceed with the meeting are high, but it is safe to remember the fixed phrases. Here are some phrases that can be used at meetings.

Expressions that can be used at the start of a meeting

OK, everyone has arrived now, so let's get started.

A phrase that signals the start of a meeting. It has the role of drawing the attention of the participants.

Hi, everyone. Thank you for coming today. (Hello everyone. Thank you for joining us today)

It's smart to say thank you to the participants who gathered for the meeting.

Firstly, I'd like to introduce myself. I'm 〇〇. (Let me introduce myself first. I'm 〇〇)

It is natural for the moderator to introduce himself. After this, let me introduce if there are other members on the management side.

Expressions that can be used to explain the purpose of the meeting and the agenda

〇〇 will lead the first topic from the agenda. (Mr. 〇〇 will proceed on the first topic)

This phrase can be used when entering the content of a meeting and changing the person in charge. agenda is the "agenda". Remember this because it's a word you often use in Business English.

Today we are here to discuss ~. (Today we are here to discuss ~.)

It is important for participants to understand the purpose of the meeting, "what is the purpose of the meeting?" Be clear about your purpose at the beginning of the meeting.

Firstly, we'll be talking about ~. (First, let's talk about ~)

A phrase you can use to get into the first agenda. Use Next and Secondly to move on to the next agenda. Let's proceed with the meeting with And finally on the final agenda.

Expressions that can be used to conclude a meeting

That will be all for today.

A phrase that tells you that the meeting is over.

Thank you all for your participation.

At the end of the meeting, thank you for joining us. Thank you for taking part. Has the same meaning. The take part means "participate in".

I'm grateful to you all for attending. (Thank you for attending)

Similar to the sentence above, it's a phrase that conveys gratitude. If you remember a few phrases, it's convenient to use them properly for each meeting. attend is also a word that means "to participate in".

We've had an eventful meeting today. (Today's meeting was very meaningful.)

It is also recommended to add a word of your impression of the meeting. eventfull has meanings such as "serious" and "many events".

Watch out for rude greetings! NG expression that Japanese people tend to say

In business, you often hear the name of the other person. What I want to be careful about in such a case is how to hear the name. Be careful if you use What's your name? Or Who are you ?.

In fact, these expressions that Japanese people tend to use are very rude. It is an expression that is used for suspicious persons, so please be careful not to use it not only in business situations but also in daily conversation. Please try using the following phrases.

May I have your name, please?

This is a phrase commonly used when asking the person you meet for the first time for a name. It is a very polite expression using May I ~? (May I ~?).

I'm 〇〇, and you are? (I'm ~. What's your name?)

First, give your name and ask you are? And the other person's name. It's more casual than the above phrase, but it can also be used in the business scene. However, please do not use it as it is rude to superiors.

Conclusion

There are many fixed expressions in English greetings, so it is recommended that you first memorize them and use them anyway. If you use it over and over again, you should be able to hear greeting phrases from your mouth naturally. In particular, many people may not be good at making a phone call where the other person's face cannot be seen, but if you get used to it, it will be okay.

When greeting face-to-face, be careful not to make your voice quiet due to anxiety, and be aware that you should look into the other person's eyes and communicate firmly.