Conversation Starters

Answer each of these questions in English to practice what you will say when people ask you these things.
We've provided some examples to help you. See this blog post for more.
When you have conversations with others, you can use this sheet to help you ask and answer questions
with them and have a good, strong conversation!

Where you live

• Where are you from?

• Where do you live?

• What are 3 things you like about where you live?

• What are 3 things you dislike about where you live?

• Where would you like to live?

Examples:

• I'm from the United States.

• I live in Barcelona.
• I love that there are so many things to do here.
• I hate the crowded traffic here.

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Hobbies
• What are 5 things you like to do in your free time?

• What are 3 things you would like to try?

• What is your favorite hobby and why?

• Why did you start your favorite hobby?

Examples:

• I like to program, play videogames and go hiking.

• I would like to try hang gliding.
• I became interested in computer technology when I was a boy and my grandpa bought his first computer. I
learned to use it quickly and enjoyed helping other people use theirs at school. I've been interested in it ever
since then.

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Family
• Do you have kids? If so, how many?

• How many brothers and sisters do you have?

• How old are your brothers and sisters?

• What family members do you live near?

• What family members do you live far away from? Where do they live?

• What is your relationship status? Married? Single? Dating?

Examples:

• I don't have any kids, but I want to have a couple eventually.

• I have 2 brothers and 1 sister.
• My brother is 34 years old.
• All of my family lives in the United States.

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Friends
• What 3 things do you like to do with your friends?

• Who is your closest friend? What makes you so close?

• How and where do you usually make friends?

• What attributes do you look for in your friends?

Examples:

• I like to go out to eat with my friends on the weekends.

• I usually make friends online through chat applications and at work.
• For me, a friend should have similar interests and have a positive attitude.

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Food
• What are your 3 favorite foods?

• What are the 3 foods you dislike the most?

• What types of restaurants do you typically eat at?

• What restaurants would you recommend for people visiting where you live?

• Do you like to cook? If so, what do you like to cook? If not, why not?

• What are your 3 favorite desserts?

Examples:

• I love pizza, hamburgers and ice cream.

• I can't stand wasabi, cabbage and blue cheese.
• I typically eat at American and Italian restaurants.
• I hate cooking, though I do it because I can't eat out all the time. I just don't have the patience to wait for
food to finish cooking.

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Language Learning
• Why do you want to learn English?

• What 3 actions are you taking to help you learn and practice English?

• What 2 things do you like about English?

• What 2 things are really difficult for you in English?

• What other languages do you know or are learning?

Examples:

• I want to learn English to improve my career.

• I'm using chatting apps to practice talking, Anki to review vocabulary and YouTube for video lessons.
• Phrasal verbs are really difficult for me.

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TV and Movies
• What are your 3 favorite TV series or movies?

• Describe what each of those 3 shows is about in a sentence.

• What 3 genres do you like the most?

• How often do you go to the cinema?

• What's the most recent movie you watched? How did you like it?

• Do you watch shows in English with subtitles? Why or why not?

Examples:

• I recently watched Alita: Battle Angel in the cinema and loved it! It had a really interesting story and lots of
fun action!
• I like science fiction, fantasy and thriller movies.
• I watch movies in their original language with English subtitles so that I can understand what they're saying
better and learn new vocabulary.

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Holidays (UK) / vacation (US)
• What did you do during your last holiday trip?

• What do you usually do for holidays?

• What would you like to do?

• Where would you like to go?

Examples:

• We visited the west coast of the United States last summer. We went through California, Arizona, Nevada
and Utah, visiting a lot of famous cities and reuniting with family.
• I'd like to do more fun things at the beach like parasailing and jet skiing.

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Music
• What are you 3 favorite songs?

• What 3 genres of music do you like the most?

• Who is your favorite musician?

• How does music help you in your life?

Examples:

• I like rock and pop music the best.

• It's hard for me to pick a favorite musician, but I guess I've always liked Evanescence and Linkin Park.
• Music helps pump me up and motivate me when I need more energy and focus. It helps me get more done,
and it helps me enjoy myself more while I work.

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Travel
• Do you like to travel? Why or why not?

• What countries have you visited?

• What are 2 things you liked about those countries?

• What are 2 things you disliked about those countries?

• Where would you like to visit?

Examples:

• I don't like long trips in car or by plane, but I love exploring new places once I arrive.
• I've been to the United States, Mexico, Canada, Spain, France, Italy and London.
• Europe has so much history and I'd like to visit a lot more cities and countries here, like Greece, Germany,
and the Netherlands.
• I loved all the famous places in Paris, like the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre Museum, but I didn't like how
dirty a lot of the city was while I was there.

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