Spoken Etiquette

Greetings and Farewells

Formal

Hello!	Здравствуйте!
Good morning/afternoon/evening	Доброе утро/ день/ вечер.
How do you do?	Здравствуйте! (очень официально)
How are you?	Как поживаете?
I’d like to say goodbye.	Я бы хотел попрощаться.
I am looking forward to seeing you again soon.	С нетерпением буду ждать новой встречи с Вами.
I’m afraid I must leave now.	Боюсь, я должен уходить.

Informal

Hi!	Привет!
How are you? How are you doing? How are things?	Как дела?
Bye!	Пока!
Take care!	Береги себя!
So long!	Пока!
See you later! See you!	Увидимся!
I’ll miss you.	Я буду скучать.
I’m off now. Bye!	Я ухожу. Пока!

What would you say?

• You are leaving home in the morning.

• You meet you friend in the park.

• You enter the classroom.

• You are leaving the office after a job interview.

• You are a teacher. You have just arranged to meet with some parents next week.

• You are leaving the party.

• Your parents are going on a trip.

My Family

My family is neither small nor large. There are 5 of us: my father, mother, grandfather, sister and me. I have one more brother, but he’s married and doesn’t live with us.

My parents are not the same age. My mother is 5 years younger than my father. She’s a pretty woman of 45, but she doesn’t look her age. My mother is very practical, clever, kind and lovable. We all love her. She is a housewife. She manages our house and, in her quiet way, our family very well. She’s a perfect homemaker.

My father is a wonderful man. As I’ve already mentioned he is older than my mother. He’s 50, but he is still strong, tall and handsome. He’s my best friend. He’s always full of common sense and ready to give me some good advice. My father is a doctor. He works a lot. He has his own practice and our family is financially secure.

Unfortunately both of my grandmothers are dead. They were kind and nice. My grandfather is alive. He’s not young anymore, he’s 67, but he still works. He’s a doctor, too, and crazy about his work, that’s why he doesn’t want to retire. I know the proverb “A man is as young as he looks and no older than he feels”. That’s my grandfather’s idea of life. That is all about my parents and grandparents. Now about my sister and brother.

My sister is a very attractive girl. She’s my intimate friend. I love her very much. We have the same interests and much in common. Her name is Maria. She’s 22. She’s not married yet, but she is going to. She has a boy-friend and they love each other very much.

My elder brother Pyotr is a fine manly fellow, blue-eyed, dark-haired and broad-shouldered. He’s very clever. I enjoy talking with him. On the one hand he’s serious and thoughtful; on the other hand he has a good sense of humour and is a great lover of fun. Pyotr is already married. He’s married to Anna. So she’s my sister-in-law. Anna is a fashion-designer and Pyotr is an artist. In my opinion they are both very talented. They have two children, the twins, Katya and Ivan. Everybody loves them. They are just kids; they’re only 2 years old. Katya and Ivan are very funny. I am fond of my small niece and nephew.

I love my family. When I’m far away I miss them very much and feel pretty homesick. I’m lucky to have a large caring family.