When making new friends, there are usually three parts to the conversation you will have with your new friend. The first is the greeting. In this part, you and your new friend will greet each other and tell each other your names. The second part is the conversation. Sometimes the conversation is small talk and some times the conversation is about important matters, such as business. "Small talk" is an American slang term. It means that the conversation is about matters that are not very important. When conversing with your new friend, it is customary to give information about your family, your work, or you will talk about any matter that is important to you and your new friend. The third part of the conversation is the leave-taking. In this part, you tell your new friend that you are happy to meet him and that you must end the conversation.
In this conversation, Thinh will introduce himself and his wife to Jim, their new neighbor.
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Thinh: Hello.
Jim: Oh, hi there!
Thinh: Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Thinh Nguyen and this is my wife, Lan Quong.
Jim: Pleased to meet you. My name is Jim Peters. Did you just move in next door?
Lan: Yes, we did. Have you lived here long?
Jim: Me? I guess so. I've lived here for about 6 years now. Have you lived in America very long?
Thinh: No. Not really. When we left Vietnam and came to America we lived with a cousin in Dallas for 2 years. Where do you work, Jim?
Jim: I teach mathematics at Willow Springs community college. What do you do?
Thinh: I am a mechanic at Allied Diesel. I repair truck engines.
Jim: What about you, Lan?
Lan: I am a nurse's assistant at Whitfield County hospital.
Jim: Well, Thinh and Lan, it was good to meet you. I have to go now. I'm teaching a class this evening and I need to get to the college.
Thinh: It was good to meet you, too, Jim.
Lan: Yes, it was good to meet you.
Jim: See you around!
Thinh and Lan: Good-bye, Jim!
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New words and Expressions
"Allow me to introduce myself.
" - This phrase is used when you want to tell your new friend that you are going to tell him your name.
"Pleased to meet you."
- This phrase is used after you and your new friend have told each other your names.
"Did you just move in next door?", "Where do you work?", "Have you lived here long?"
- These are some phrases that people use to make "small talk." These phrases are used when you ask your friend for basic information about himself. These phrases help new friends to get to know about each other's lives.
"It was good to meet you."
- This phrase is usually used when you are ending the conversation. A person who uses this phrase will be considered polite by his new friend.