Small Talk: Meeting a New Coworker
It is your first week at a new office in Denver, and a coworker starts a friendly chat by the coffee machine. Practice keeping small talk warm and natural. · B1 · Role-Play
How to practice: first listen to the whole dialogue. Then play BOTH roles out loud — or take one role and answer the other from memory. When it flows, record the full dialogue below.
A Hi, I’m Jack. You must be the new designer, right?
B That’s me! I’m Sophia. Nice to meet you, Jack.
A Nice to meet you too. So, how’s your first week going?
B Pretty good, thanks. Everyone’s been really friendly.
A Glad to hear it. Where did you work before this?
B I was at a small studio in Portland for about three years.
A Oh nice. What made you move to Denver?
B Mostly the mountains — I love hiking on weekends.
A Same here! A few of us go hiking every other Saturday. You should join us.
B That sounds great, I’d love to. Thanks for the invite!
A Anytime. Well, I’d better get back to work. See you around!
B See you around, Jack!
The full dialogue with real voices. Listen first, then take your role.
Record yourself, play it back, and compare with the model. Recordings stay in your browser — nothing is uploaded.
Your task
Practice the dialogue, then record a second version where you answer as yourself: your real job or studies, your real city (say it in English), and a hobby you truly have.
Coach tips
- Small talk runs on follow-up questions: “What made you move?” keeps the chat alive.
- Match the energy: short friendly answer + one detail + sometimes a question back.
- Soften answers with “pretty,” “mostly,” “about” — Americans use these softeners constantly.