A. Useful Expressions
Receiving a call
- Hello / good morning / good afternoon.
- Good morning, ...(your institution)....
- Hello. Dea speaking.
- Yes, can I help you?
- Oh, hi! It's been a long time. How are you?
Starting a call (caller)
- Hello / good morning / good afternoon.
- May I speak to ...(someone)..., please?
- Could I speak to ...(someone)..., please?
- I'd like to speak to ...(someone)....
Telling identity
- This is ...(your name)... speaking.
- ...(your name)... speaking.
- I'm calling on behalf of ...(company)....
- ...(someone)... told me to contact you.
Asking identity
- Who's calling, please?
- Who's speaking?
- May I have your name?
- Who am I speaking to?
- Is that ...(someone)...?
- Can I ask who’s calling?
Note:
We don’t use "Are you ...?"to find out who is on the other end of the phone. We can ask "Is that Anne?", not "Are you Anne?"Asking to wait
- Hold the line, please.
- Could you hold on?
- Just a moment, please.
- Please wait a minute.
Connecting
- The line is free now. I'll put you through.
- Thank you for holding.
Giving information
- I'm sorry. He/she is not available at the moment.
- I'm afraid the line is engaged. Could you call back later?
- I'm afraid he's still in a meeting.
- I'm sorry. He's out of the office today.
- I'm sorry. There's nobody here by that name.
- Sorry. I think you have dialled the wrong number.
Leaving a message
- I'd like to leave a message.
- Please tell him that I will meet him next week.
- Please tell him that I called.
- That's alright. I'll call back later.
- Yes. Please tell him to contact me.
Taking a message
- Would you like to leave a message?
- Do you have a message?
- May I take a message?
- May I have your number?
- Let me repeat your message. ...(repeat the message and confirm the details, e.g. place, time, telephone number, etc.)
Asking to repeat
- I'm sorry. Could you speak up, please?
- Could you repeat that, please?
- I'm afraid I can't hear you.
- I'm sorry. I didn't catch that. Come again?
- I beg your pardon. The line is very bad.
Closing a call
- Thank you. Bye.
B. Example Dialogues
Dialogue 1
Tom: "Hi, could I speak to Lily?"
Lily: "This is Lily speaking."
Tom: "Oh, hi Lily – I didn’t recognize your voice. It’s Tom."
Lily: "Hello, Tom. How are you?"
Tom: "Not too bad, thanks. By the way, James isn’t there, is he?"
Lily: "No, but I’m expecting him to stop by later."
Tom: "Alright – could you ask him to call me back?"
Lily: "Of course. Do you want to give me your number?"
Tom: "He should already have it, but I’ll share it just in case."
Lily: "Okay, hold on while I grab a pen ... Alright, go ahead."
Tom: "It’s eight-nine-six-eight-five-five-two. Got it?"
Lily: "Got it!"
Dialogue 2
Julie: "three-five-nine-one-six-one"
Voice: "Ah, hello. Could I speak to Jim, please?"
Julie: "Jim?"
Voice: "Yes, Jim Fife. Is he there?"
Julie: "I’m afraid there isn’t anyone here by that name. Who am I speaking to?"
Voice: "This is Terry Smith. Isn’t that Marilyn’s house?"
Julie: "No – you’ve got the wrong number."
Voice: "Ah – I’m sorry."
Julie: "All right."
Dialogue 3
Niken: "Hi, this is Niken. May I speak to Mr. Wilson, please?"
Assistant: "One moment, let me check if he’s available ....
Hello? I’m sorry, Mr. Wilson is currently in a meeting. Would you like to leave a message?"
Niken: "Yes, could you ask him to return my call as soon as he can?"
Assistant: "Of course. Does he have your phone number?"
Niken: "Yes, he does."
Assistant: "Great – I’ll make sure he gets your message and calls you after the meeting."
Niken: "Thank you."
