Learn English British English in Three Minutes Asking about Names
welcome to English class 101 coms
British English in three minutes the
fastest easiest and most fun way to
learn English hey everyone I’m Gina this
series will teach you some easy ways to
ask and answer common questions in
English it’s really useful and it only
takes three minutes in this lesson
you’re going to learn some new ways to
ask someone what’s your name including
one that you can use when you forgotten
someone’s name now what’s your name was
probably one of the first questions you
learned when you started studying
English I have to tell you though that
most native speakers of English with
never sabers in English just like in
other languages it is often more polite
to be a little indirect of course the
easiest way to avoid asking the question
directly is not to ask at all just
introduce yourself and most people will
respond by doing the same when
introducing yourself simple is nearly
always best just say hi I’m Gina to show
that you want to know the other person’s
name just that and you at the end hi I’m
Gina and you hi I’m Gina and you just
like before take out my name Gina and
put your name in its place after you say
this the person will tell you his or her
name okay now let’s talk about an
embarrassing situation that happens to
everybody
you’ve already met somebody once before
but you’ve forgotten their name the most
polite thing to do in this situation is
to apologize and ask again there’s a
simple way to do this that’s all so
polite and
sorry what was your name again I’m sorry
what was your name again this sentence
is very similar to what’s your name but
it has three important differences first
we say I’m sorry
a small apology can go a long way after
that we say what was your name this is
just like what is your name but instead
of is we use the past tense was this is
really important as it tells the other
person that you remember meeting them
you haven’t forgotten him or her you’ve
just forgotten the name this little word
makes all the difference I’m sorry what
was your name finally we add again to
the end this is another hint
that tells the other person that you
remember learning his or her name before
but you just can’t recall it right now
I’m sorry what was your name again this
phrase is appropriate for both formal
and informal situations now it’s time
for Gina’s tips in the United Kingdom
it’s normal to address people by name in
conversation more than once in both
formal and informal situations it’s a
way to show respect or interest in the
other person and can help you make
friends it is also a great way to
practice someone’s name so you don’t
forget it
if you’re talking to someone named Andy
for example instead of just what do you
do for fun you could say Andy what do
you do for fun you can also put the name
at the end of the sentence what do you
do for fun Andy you don’t want to say
the person’s name too often or it will
sound a little strange but if you
practice someone’s name like this you
won’t forget it and people love to hear
their own name in this lesson we learn
what to say when we forget someone’s
name in the next lesson you’ll learn
what to say when you want to get in
touch with someone whether by telephone
email or even newer ways to communicate
what’s your favorite let us know in the
comments and join us the next British
English in three minutes lesson see you
next time
you