Learn how to ask and answer "How are you?" in British English
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| Welcome to EnglishClass101.com’s “British English in Three Minutes”. The fastest, easiest, and most fun way to learn English. |
| Hi, how’s it going? I'm Gina. Nice to meet you! |
| In this series, we’re going to learn some easy ways to ask and answer common questions in English. It’s really useful, and it only takes three minutes! |
| In this lesson, you’re going to learn new, more common ways to answer ask and answer the question: “How are you?” in English. |
| You’ve probably learned “How are you?” and “I’m fine” in textbooks before, but in the United Kingdom, people will usually ask this question and answer it in a different way. |
| First, let’s first review. If someone says: |
| “How are you?” |
| You can say: |
| “I’m fine.” - |
| (slow) I’m fine. |
| Here are some other ways to answer: |
| “Quite good.” - This means about the same as “I’m fine”. |
| (slow) Quite good. |
| We also have: |
| “Not bad.” You can use this if you are feeling just okay, or so-so. |
| (slow) Not bad. |
| Let’s look at our question again: How are you? |
| This is the most well-known way of asking how someone is. You could use it when you want to be polite. |
| But now, let’s look at some different ways to ask how someone is. These ways are more casual, and much more common. |
| First: |
| "Hi, how are you doing?" |
| (slowly) "Hi, how are you doing?" |
| or, |
| "Hey, how's it going?" |
| (slowly) "Hey, how's it going?" |
| or in an especially casual situation, you could say |
| "You alright?" |
| (slowly) "You alright?" |
| What if you're not doing alright? Although it's the British way to say you're doing fine even if you're not, if you feel comfortable with the other person you could also choose to tell them when you're not fine. |
| You could say: |
| “Not so good” |
| (slow) Not so good |
| “Not great” |
| (slow) Not great. |
| or, |
| "I've been better" |
| (slow) "I've been better" |
| Be careful: If you say one of these, the other person will usually ask, “Why, what’s wrong?” to be polite. Then, you will have to explain! |
| But, if you're feeling particularly well you could answer more enthusiastically. |
| "Fantastic!" |
| (slow) "Fantastic!" |
| "Fabulous!" |
| (slow) "Fabulous!" |
| or even |
| "I'm very well indeed!" |
| (slow) "I'm very well indeed!" |
| Now it’s time for Gina’s Tips! |
| Because of the popularity and influence of American film and media, some American phrases have become common in the United Kingdom as well. "How are you doing?" was originally an American phrase, but these days you can hear it on either side of the pond! |
| Now, do you know the difference between “What do you do?” and “What are you doing?” It’s a little tricky, but we’ll explain it simply in the next British English in 3 Minutes lesson! See you next time! |
Comments
HideHow are you today? Can you answer this in English?
Hello Victor,
Thank you so much for reaching out and for your keen observation. Our team works hard to ensure the accuracy of all our lesson transcripts. However, we are not immune to occasional errors. Your feedback is invaluable to us in maintaining the quality of our lessons.
In the meantime, I suggest you continue using the texts for study. Even if there are some errors, you can still learn a lot. Try to identify the errors yourself - this could be an excellent exercise to test your understanding and knowledge!
Thank you for bringing this to our attention. 😄
Thank you!
Éva
Team EnglishClass101.com
Hello Ziyo,
That's fantastic to hear! I'm thrilled to know that you're eager to learn more. Please feel free to ask any questions you have or share the topics you're interested in. We're here to help you improve. 👍👍👍
As for your message, it's mostly correct, but there's a small adjustment to be made:
Instead of "I want to learn more this lessons," it would be more appropriate to say, "I want to learn more from these lessons."
In English, we generally use the preposition "from" when talking about gaining knowledge or skills from something (like lessons). Also, "lessons" is plural, so "these" is more appropriate than "this."
Keep up the good work, and don't hesitate to reach out if you have any more questions! 😄
Thank you!
Éva
Team EnglishClass101.com
Very good , i want to learn more this lessons
Hello Olga,
Thank you for your message and for sharing your concerns. Learning a new language can be challenging, especially at the beginning. But don't worry, it's a journey that we're on together. 😄😎
It's completely normal to find it difficult to understand the lesson at first. As an absolute beginner, it's important to start with the basics and gradually build your skills. Using tools like Google Translate can be helpful, but it's also important to immerse yourself in the language as much as possible.
You might find our beginner level lessons more suitable for your current level. These lessons are designed to introduce you to the basics of English in a simple and easy-to-understand way.
Remember, learning a language is a process, and it's okay to take your time. Don't be too hard on yourself. You're making the effort to learn, and that's what matters the most!
Here's a friendly tip: Try to practice listening to English as much as you can. This can be through songs, movies, or even podcasts. This will help you get used to the sounds and rhythms of the language.
Keep going, Olga! You're doing great, and with time and practice, you'll see improvement. ❤️
Thank you!
Éva
Team EnglishClass101.com
Hello,
It seems, you expect an absolute beginner to understand at least the transcript of this lesson. Well, I consider myself an absolute beginner and I have to use the Google Translate Service for this purpose, as I understand almost nothing when listening to the video. It's as if tried to explain elementary geometry to 7-8 year olds using the notation and concepts of linear algebra😭
Just in case, this text was written for me by a friend of mine, who is, on my scale of levels, well above the beginner level😁
Kind regards,
Olga
Hello Meera,
Thanks for the great feedback!! We hope you’re enjoying studying English with us.
If you ever have any questions, please feel free to shoot them through here. 😉
Kindly,
Éva
Team EnglishClass101.com
Hello. Thank u so much. Am very grateful for this opportunity to learn British. Its very easy to understand.
Hello Sina,
I'm great thanks! Thanks for practicing with us!
Please feel free to ask us any questions you have throughout your studies.
Sincerely,
Éva
Team EnglishClass101.com
I'm fine, And you?
Hello Naomi,
I'm very glad to hear that you like learning with us and that our lessons are easy to understand! That's what we aim for!
If you ever have any questions throughout your studies, please feel free to ask us here or direct to your teacher in the MyTeacher feature.
Cheers,
Éva
Team EnglishClass101.com
thanks . i like larn in here, because these explain very make me easy to understand . i hope even if i follow the material more make me find new ways to larn english.
Hi there Firas,
Thanks for taking the time to write to us.
Please feel free to ask us any questions you have throughout your studies.
Kindly,
Éva
Team EnglishClass101.com
Hey,
What's up!?
Hello Sazali,
Welcome all the way from Indonesia! What a beautiful country you live in!
I was living in Bali for 2 years! I really miss speaking Bahasa! Anyway, thanks for taking time to introduce yourself, we hope you are enjoying studying with us.
Please feel free to shoot through any questions you have throughout your studies.
Kindly,
Éva
Team EnglishClass101.com
Hello, my name is Sazali, i'm form Indonesia, i will learn britihs because my favorite team Liverpool Win in Premier League. 😄
Hi kamal,
Thank you for posting!
In case you have any doubts, please let us know:wink:
Cristiane
Team EnglishClass101.com
I like it.:heart:
Nice join here,:thumbsup:
Textbooks always written by another organism:stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:
Hi mehdi,
Those are all good answers to the question "How are you?"
Thank you for answering!
Kellie
Team EnglishClass101.com
very well
so so not bad