Each person with his hands)

or

2. May I introduce you to Mr Robinson? This is Mr Baker.

or

3. I’d like you to meet Miss Maine... This is Mr Richards.
The people introduced will say:

How d’you do — How d’you do

or (especially in the USA) Pleased to meet you — Pleased to meet you. (Some

English people consider this vulgar.)

Remember that How d’you do is only used after introduc­tions, and cannot be used for later meetings.

If there is no third person to introduce you, say:

May I introduce myself? My name is Peter Dennison.

The answer will be:

How d’you do. My name is Mary Bell.

Men do not call themselves Mr. They use either their Christian name and surname as above, or just their surname. Women normally use both Christian name and surname; they may add

Mrs or Miss to avoid confusion.

Introducing a speaker

If you are introducing a speaker you should say (indicating the speaker with your hand):

Ladies and gentlemen, Professor Borrowdale

Or

Ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure in introducing our guest

speaker, General Smith-fields.

Most English people only shake hands when they are introduced, or when meeting after not seeing each other for a long time. They do not bow for introductions.

When you know the person a little better, you may say

How are you?

The answer will be:

Very well, thank you.

or (less formal)

Fine, thanks.

Remember that the thank you or thanks should end the phrase, not begin it. If you are not well and wish to make this known, say:

Not too well, I’m afraid.

When speaking English abroad or addressing a foreigner visiting our country the usage of the word “Miss “ «Mistress” in Modern English and abbreviated into «Mrs. in writing) and “Mister” (shortened to “Mr.” in written form) may cause some trouble. These are used with the names of persons who have no other title e. g. Miss Smith, Mrs. Brown, Mr Johnston.

Now “Miss” goes only with the name of a girl or an unmarried woman. “Mrs.” is joined to the names of married women only. “Mr.” is a form of address used before a man’s name when he has no other title or before the name of his office, e. g. Mr. Secretary, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chairman. When used vocatively as in “Listen to me, mister! ” or “Just a moment, miss! ” both words acquire; distinct vulgar and familiar flavour and such usage should be avoided by the students. “Madam is a polite form of address to any woman and should be used when addressing a stranger. An elderly person addressing a young girl might call her “young lady.” If one wishes to show respect to a man, whether a stranger or not, the polite form of address to use would be “sir e.g. Sir, it is my duty to inform you...; Thank you, sir....