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How to
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Have MORE Interesting Conversations in English
Ideas for Students of English
In my previous article, I explained how to start conversations using "Have you ever...?"
questions. In fact, there are many other ways you can begin interesting conversations to help you learn English. Asking questions
is a good way, but it's not the only way. In this article, I will suggest various other ways that students can use in any
situation to start a conversation. You can use these ideas with people you know or with people you have just met for the first
time. Good luck!
In everyday life, one of the most common conversation starters is to talk about the situation you are in. If you are
in a restaurant, talk about what you see around you. Give your opinion about something you see or comment on the
atmosphere. If the person you are with shows some interest, you can continue to talk about every aspect of that
restaurant. However, if the person does not seem so interested, you could compare that restaurant to a better one
that you have been to. Besides the location you are in, you could also talk about the weather, about people who
are passing by, or about what you and the other person are wearing, etc.
You do not have to be so specific to start a conversation. Instead, you could make a more general comment. For example,
you could comment about what is happening in the world, or at your job, or in your city. This is a good way to find
out what the other person is interested in. Watch how they respond to your comment and use that as a sign showing whether
you should continue talking or not. Don't worry if the other person does not show enthusiasm. That often happens. However,
if you keep on trying, you will find something that is of more interest to him or her.
A very interesting way to start conversations is to repeat a quote that you heard. You need to remember some interesting
quotes so that you can make this work, but it's pretty easy. I've even written an article to help you! It's called
"Learn English from Famous People" and has advice on where to find very
interesting quotes.
One last suggestion was given to me by a friend who loves to have interesting conversations. His suggestion is to read
the newspaper everyday. You don't have to read lots of articles, but you have to at least read the first few paragraphs
of many articles, so that you know what is going on in the world. You don't have to say a lot about the news stories, but
if you can at least ask some knowlegable questions on what you read, you will be far ahead of most people. In other words,
you will be the life of the party! And that is worth working for, isn't it?
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