You are at a language meetup, a friend's birthday, or a club evening, and you want to talk to someone new without sounding stiff or scripted. This session gives you a practical speaking plan built from three beginner lessons: informal greetings, casual self-introductions, and open-ended personal questions. You will practise choosing between short greetings like Hallo! and Hey!, introducing yourself with your name, origin, and one interest, and asking questions such as Wo wohnst du? and Was machst du beruflich? The goal is not to memorise a monologue but to keep a short, relaxed exchange going and to handle the moment when the other person answers with something you did not expect.
Specific useful preparation
Before you speak, decide on three small pieces of information you are ready to share: your name, where you are from or where you live, and one activity you like. The lessons give you ready patterns for each. For your name, Ich bin Alex is the most casual option, and Ich heiße Alex is equally correct and slightly more neutral. For origin, Ich komme aus Kanada uses aus plus the country name, and for your current city, Ich wohne in Berlin keeps the two ideas separate, which matters if you live somewhere different from where you grew up. For an interest, the pattern Ich wandere gern shows how gern sits right after the verb to mean you like doing something. Prepare a short version and a slightly longer version of each, so you can answer quickly if someone seems in a hurry and expand if they seem interested. Also decide in advance which greeting fits the room. Hallo! is the safest all-purpose greeting and works with friends and in many neutral situations. Hey! is casual but friendly and works at any time of day. Na? is extremely short and informal and fits close friends or people your own age, especially with a rising, friendly intonation. Was geht? is youthful slang for peers and asks how things are going rather than for literal information. Morgen! is a shortened, friendly Guten Morgen for people you already know. If you are unsure, start with Hallo! and watch how the other person responds before you shift into anything shorter.
A specific way to handle the harder turn
The genuinely difficult moment in a first conversation is not the greeting; it is the turn after you have introduced yourself, when the other person answers your question and you have to respond to something you did not plan for. Suppose you ask Wo wohnst du? and the answer is a neighbourhood you have never heard of, or you ask Was machst du beruflich? and the answer is a job title you do not recognise. A useful approach is to treat the answer as material for one follow-up rather than as a test of your vocabulary. The lessons give you a natural tool for this: Und du? returns the question and buys you a turn, and the same idea works in reverse when you want to keep the focus on them. If you did not understand a detail, you can repeat the part you did catch and let them fill in the rest, which keeps the exchange moving without pretending you understood everything. Notice also the register question that sits underneath all of this. The lessons are explicit that du forms belong with friends, family, classmates, and people your age in casual settings, while Sie forms belong with strangers, older people, officials, and professional contexts. If someone answers your informal question with a formal one, or if the setting turns out to be more formal than you expected, switch to Sie and adjust the verb: Wo wohnen Sie? and Was machen Sie beruflich? are the formal counterparts of the questions you practised. Asking age is the one topic where the lessons advise real caution. Wie alt bist du? is direct but not rude among peers, yet with adults you do not know well, the formal Wie alt sind Sie? is safer, and softening it with Darf ich fragen? is safer still. If you sense the question is unwelcome, dropping it costs you nothing and protects the conversation.
Listen once, then say the phrase yourself. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Checking available voices…
Hallo!
Hello!
HAH-loh
Hey!
Hey!
hay
Na?
Hey, what's up?
nah
Was geht?
What's up? / How's it going?
vahs gayt
Ich bin Alex.
I'm Alex.
ikh bin AH-leks
Ich komme aus Kanada.
I'm from Canada.
ikh KOM-uh ows KAH-nah-dah
Ich wohne in Berlin.
I live in Berlin.
ikh VOH-nuh in ber-LEEN
Ich wandere gern.
I like hiking.
ikh VAN-duh-ruh gairn
Read one side aloud, then answer in your own words. The goal is to make the exchange yours.
Hey, was geht?
Hey, what's up?Nicht viel, und dir?
Not much, and you?Auch okay. Morgen, alles gut?
Also okay. Morning, everything good?Ja, alles gut. Bis später!
Yes, all good. See you later!Your turn
Try each prompt out loud. Choose a guided start, the full sequence, or a challenge pass after your first attempt.
Meeting someone at a language meetup
You are at a weekly language meetup in a café. A person your age sits down across from you, smiles, and says Hey, was geht? You have about thirty seconds before they expect a reply, and you want to introduce yourself without launching into a speech.
Your task: Say aloud a short greeting back, then introduce yourself with your name, where you are from, and one activity you like, using the patterns from the lessons. Keep it to two or three sentences, then ask them one open-ended question about where they live or what they do.
Talking with a friend's older relative at a birthday party
You are at a friend's birthday party. Your friend introduces you to their aunt, who is significantly older than you and whom you have just met. The room is noisy, the introduction is quick, and you are not sure whether to use du or Sie.
Your task: Say aloud a neutral greeting, introduce yourself with your name and where you come from, and ask one question about her work or her city using the formal Sie forms from the lessons. Then answer whatever she asks you in return.
Reconnecting with a classmate after a long break
You run into a former classmate you have not seen in two years. You remember each other's names but not much else. The conversation starts warmly but you both have only a few minutes before you need to leave.
Your task: Say aloud a casual greeting, reintroduce yourself briefly even though you both remember each other, and ask two questions: one about where they live now and one about what they do. Keep your own answers short so the exchange stays balanced.
Common questions
When should I use du and when should I use Sie in a casual conversation?
Use du with friends, family, classmates, and people your age in casual settings. Use Sie with strangers, older people, officials, and professional contexts. If you are unsure, start with Hallo! and watch how the other person addresses you, then match their register.
Is it rude to ask Wie alt bist du? in German?
Among peers it is direct but not rude. With adults you do not know well, the lessons recommend the formal Wie alt sind Sie? or softening the question with Darf ich fragen? If the question seems unwelcome, simply drop it and move to another topic.
What can I say if I do not understand the other person's answer?
Repeat the part you did catch and let them fill in the rest, or use Und du? to return the question and keep the exchange moving. You do not need to understand every word to keep a friendly conversation going.
Sources and further reading
- german: greet friends casuallyChecked September 2026
- german: introduce yourself sociallyChecked September 2026
- german: ask basic personal questionsChecked September 2026
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