1. Introductions

　　自我介绍

　　Before you can get to know someone, it’s a good idea to introduce yourself.

　　在你认识某个人之前， 自我介绍是个好办法。

　　You can introduce yourself to anyone you don’t know, or to remind someone you’ve met before who might have forgotten you. When you’re introducing yourself, you can add a little bit of information like where you first met, or what you do. You can even use your English learning as a conversation starter.

　　你可以向不认识你的人做自我介绍，或者提醒某些你之前见过但是已经忘记自己的人。当你在自我介绍时，你可以加一些之前在哪里见过或者你的职业之类的信息。你甚至可以用英语学习作为谈话的开篇。

　　例句：

　　“Good morning! We always have coffee at the same time but we’ve never spoken before. My name is [Your Name].”

　　“早上好!我们总是同时喝咖啡，但是我们之前从没说过话。我的名字是……。”

　　“Hello, how are you today? My name is [Your Name]. I’m still learning English so please let me know if I make any mistakes.”

　　“你好，今天怎么样?我的名字是……我还在学英语，所以如果我犯错了请让我知道。”

　　“Hi Angela. You might not remember me but we met at Tom’s Christmas party last year. I’m [Your Name].”

　　“你好，安吉拉。你可能不记得我了但是我们去年在汤姆的圣诞聚会上见过。我是……”

　　2. Universal Topics

　　通用的话题

　　Topics that are universal can be shared by almost anyone.

　　通用话题几乎可以被任何人分享。

　　Things like the weather, current news, sports and entertainment are usually safe conversation starters, especially when you’re speaking to a group—even if one person doesn’t really watch sports, someone else in the group might.

　　像天气、时事、体育和娱乐之类的事情通常是安全的谈话开端，特别是当你和一群人谈话时——即使一个人真的不看体育，其他人或许会。

　　Although these topics are talked about by many, some people might not be fans of sports, or might not follow entertainment news, so if you can, try to match people’s interests to the topic you choose. For example, if you’ve heard them talking about big news stories in the past, you could try to talk about a news story from today.

　　尽管这些话题被许多人讨论过，一些人可能不是体育迷，或许不关注娱乐新闻，所以如果你可以，尽量将这些人的兴趣和你选择的话题结合起来。比如，如果过去你听过他们谈论大新闻，你可以试着讲一个当下的新闻故事。

　　例句：

　　“Did you watch the Oscars last week? I can’t believe Leonardo DiCaprio finally won one!”

　　“你看上周的奥斯卡了吗?我不能相信莱昂纳多•迪卡普里奥终于赢了一座小金人!”

　　“This weather is crazy! It was cold yesterday and today I came in with an open jacket. I hope it stays warm, don’t you?”

　　“这个天气太疯狂了。昨天很冷，今天我穿着开怀的夹克进来。我希望天气能暖和，你呢?“

　　“That basketball game yesterday had me glued to my seat. Wasn’t that a great save at the very end?”

　　“昨天的棒球赛太有吸引力了。最后的那记扑救不是很棒吗?”

　　3. The Day

　　当天的情况

　　If you’re not sure what topic to talk about, or don’t have anything interesting to say, you can just ask someone about their day, or you can talk about yours.

　　如果你不确定讨论什么话题，或者没有什么趣事要说，你可以问问别人当天怎么样，或者你可以说说自己的一天。

　　例如，你可以问他们：

　　How was your day? / How has your day been so far?

　　你今天怎么样?

　　How have you been feeling today?

　　今天感觉如何?

　　What have you been doing today?

　　今天在忙些什么?

　　Has anything exciting happened today?

　　今天有什么值得振奋的事情吗?

　　What are you planning for after work?

　　下班后打算做些什么?

　　Are you doing anything fun after work?

　　下班后要做些有趣的事吗?

　　You can also share information about your day and how you’re doing, but try to keep a balance of talking and listening, so you both get to speak the same amount (and you’re not just talking about yourself the entire time).

　　你也可以分享一天的信息和你如何做事的，但是尽量保持讲话和聆听的平衡，所以你说同样多的话(而且整个过程不要一直讨论自己)。

　　Even if the person looks like they’ve been having a bad day, you can make it brighter just by making small talk! Make sure not to ask questions that are too personal, and instead offer some nice words of encouragement.

　　即使这个人看起来当天过得很糟糕，你可以用一个小谈话使它明亮起来。一定不要问太私人的问题，而是说一些悦耳的鼓励。

　　例句：

　　“Hey there. You look like you’re having a rough day. I hope it gets better for you.”

　　“你好，看起来你今天比较辛苦，我希望一切能好起来。”

　　“Good morning! I went camping on Saturday, and of course it rained all day. Was your weekend any better?”

　　“早上好!我周六去野营，下了一整天的雨。你的周末好吗?”

　　“The day is almost over! Do you have any interesting plans for the evening?”

　　“今天就要结束了!晚上有什么有趣的计划吗?”

　　4. The Workplace

　　工作地点

　　Some conversations are only appropriate in a work environment.

　　有些谈话只适合在工作环境里进行。

　　Stay even less personal at work than in more casual places, and avoid gossiping (talking about other people who are not present)! Instead, you can talk about the day, an upcoming party or meeting, or ask about the person’s job.

　　比起更舒服随意的地方，工作上尽量少涉及私人话题，避免八卦(讨论不在场的其他人)!相反，你可以讨论某一天，一场即将到来的聚会或会议，或者问这个人的工作。

　　例句：

　　“Hi Tom. How are things going over at the IT department today?”

　　“你好汤姆，今天在IT部门进展顺利吗?”

　　“Good morning. I’m really looking forward to the party after work today. I hear Pam brought her famous carrot cake!”

　　“早上好。我好期待今天下班后的聚会。我听说Pam带了她最出名的胡萝卜蛋糕!”

　　“What a busy day. This is the first time I’ve gotten up from my seat all day! Are you busy too?”

　　“好忙的一天。这是我今天第一次从座位上站起来!你也很忙吗?”