Lesson 3 of 12 · Breaking the ice

Openers for every situation

The hardest sentence is the first one. Have a few ready, and the rest gets easier.

About 20 minutes
Chapter 3 of the book
Saves on this device

Activity 1 of 5 · Build

Pick your opener

Different places need different first lines. Choose a situation and add something you can see around you.

Situation opener picker

The tool gives you an opener, plus a question to follow it.

✓ Done

A learner's story

Carlos at the wedding

Carlos · civil engineer from Bogotá · intermediate

Carlos was invited to a colleague's wedding. At the reception he knew only the groom, who was busy. He stood by the drinks table for forty minutes, holding a glass and reading the menu card again and again.

Then the man next to him said, “The food looks amazing, doesn't it? Have you tried the little pies?” Within two minutes they were laughing about their terrible dancing. Carlos realised the man hadn't said anything clever. He had simply said the first thing he noticed.

At the next party, Carlos tried it himself. It worked.

Activity 2 of 5 · Sort

Closed or inviting?

A closed opener can be answered with one word. An inviting one asks for more. Both have a place, but you need the inviting kind to keep going.

Opener sorter

Would this get a one-word answer, or an invitation to talk?

✓ Done

Say it

Phrase box

Useful phrases from this chapter. Anything that isn't British English is labelled.

Notice something

This is a great venue, isn't it?
The food looks amazing.
Busy tonight, isn't it?

Ask about the situation

How do you know the hosts?
Is this your first time here?
What brings you here today?

Ask for help

Do you know where the coats go?
Any idea what time it starts?
Is this seat taken?

Activity 3 of 5 · Choose

Which opener fits?

Four places, four first lines. Choose the one that would work best.

Situations

✓ Done

Activity 4 of 5 · Play

The ten-second challenge

You'll get a situation and ten seconds to say an opener out loud. Don't plan it perfectly. Just start.

Ten-second first line

When the timer ends, compare your line with the model.

✓ Done

The research

In a 2014 study by Gillian Sandstrom and Elizabeth Dunn, people who had a short, friendly chat with the person serving them coffee left in a better mood than those who kept it brief and efficient. Even tiny conversations with strangers make a difference.

Activity 5 of 5 · Say it

Say it aloud

Say your opener and its follow-up together, so the second line comes automatically.

Your opener

Your line comes from the opener picker.

✓ Done

Before you move on

Three questions

Which situation do you find hardest to start a conversation in?

Write the opener you'll use there next time.

Think of someone who started a conversation with you well. What did they say?

5 activities to go

Finish all five activities to complete Lesson 3. Your progress saves on this device, and finished lessons are marked on the lessons page.

What to remember

Five things to keep

Notice something you can both see, and comment on it.
Ask about the situation: how they know the host, why they're here.
Asking for small help is a natural opener.
Follow a closed opener with an open question.
A simple opener works better than a clever one.

Your answers and progress stay on this device. Nothing is sent anywhere.