• Simple Sentences For Adults
• Telephone Game Phrases Sentences For Adults

• Asking and Answering Questions

• Greetings and Introductions

• Numbers and Time

• Telephone Conversations

• Eating Out and Shopping

• Traveling

• Going to the Doctor

What are some funny phrases to use for the game TELEPHONE DOWN THE LINE? The one where you say a sentence into someones ear, and then they say the same thing to the next person, then they say it to the next person, etc etc. To find other phrases like this, read our article: 18 Empathy Statements That Help Improve Customer-Agent Rapport. How are you Using our Positive Words, Phrases and Empathy Statements? It has been great for us to see that you have been putting these words, phrases and empathy statements into practice in your contact centres. 15 Phrases for The Telephone Game. But now I have learned there are a few phrases that work better than others so I come prepared.

Speaking on the telephone can be a challenge to all students. There are many reasons for this:

• There is no body language.
• People are often nervous when speaking on the phone.
• People might speak quickly and be difficult to understand.

Practice your telephone skills using the short English conversations provided below that focus on several everyday situations. Print these telephone scenarios for use in class or share the telephone conversations with your friends online. For example, you could Skype your friend, navigate to a telephoning English practice page, and rehearse together by each taking a role, exchanging roles, and practicing a few times.

Telephone Tips

Practice each dialogue with a friend or classmate a few times. Next, write your own telephone dialogues, go into another room, and use your smartphone to call your partner. Practicing by using a real phone will make future conversations with native speakers much easier. After you've practiced with a friend, try these tips:

1. Call local businesses: The best way to get better is by practicing calling various stores or businesses. Before calling, jot down a few notes on the information you would like to find out. Use your notes when you call the stores to help you feel more confident when you speak.
2. Call yourself: To practice leaving messages, call yourself and leave a message. Listen to the message to see if you can understand the words clearly. Play the recording for a native-speaking friend to see if she understands the message you have left.
3. Introduce yourself properly: When on the phone, use 'This is..' rather than 'I am..' when introducing yourself in English.

Don't be shy about askingthe speaker (politely) to repeat names and numbers to ensure that you get the right information. Repeating names and numbers will help slow speakers down.

Key Vocabulary

Before practicing the following dialogues, familiarize yourself with the following terms, which are common to many telephone conversations.

• This is ..
• May (Can, Could) I speak to..?
• I'm calling ..
• Hold the line a moment..
• put someone through..
• Who's calling..?
• take a message
• call, ring, phone

Calling Someone at Work

Caller: Hello. This is [your name]. May I speak to Ms. Sunshine, please?
Receptionist: Hold the line a moment, I'll check if she is in her office.

Caller: Thank you.
Receptionist: (after a moment) Yes, Ms. Sunshine is in. I'll put you through.

Ms. Sunshine: Hello, this is Ms. Sunshine. How can I help you?
Caller: Hello, my name is [your name], and I'm calling to inquire about the position advertised on JobSearch.com.

Ms. Sunshine: Yes, the position is still open. Could I have your name and number, please?
Caller: Certainly, My name is [your name]..

Leaving a Message

Fred: Hello. Could I speak to Jack Parkins, please?
Receptionist: Who's calling, please?

Fred: This is Fred Blinkingham. I'm a friend of Jack's.
Receptionist: Hold the line, please. I'll put your call through. (after a moment)—I'm afraid he's out at the moment. Can I take a message?

Fred: Yes. Can you ask him to give me a call? My number is 909-345-8965
Receptionist: Could you repeat that, please?

Fred: Certainly. That's 909-345-8965
Receptionist: OK. I'll make sure Mr. Parkins gets your message.

Fred: Thank you. Goodbye.
Receptionist: Goodbye.

Making a Doctor's Appointment

Caller 1: Dr. Peterson's office. How may I help you?
Caller 2: I'd like to make an appointment to see the doctor.

Caller 1: Certainly, are you ill at the moment?
Caller 2: Yes, I'm not feeling very well.

Caller 1: Do you have a fever or any other symptoms?
Caller 2: Yes, I have a slight fever and aches and pains.

Caller 1: OK, Dr. Peterson can see you tomorrow. Can you come in the morning?
Caller 2: Yes, tomorrow morning is fine.

Caller 1: How about 10 o'clock?
Caller 2: Yes, 10 o'clock is fine.

Caller 1: May have your name?
Caller 2: Yes, it's David Lain.

Caller 1: Have you seen Dr. Peterson before?
Caller 2: Yes, I had a physical exam last year.

Caller 1: Yes, here you are. OK, I've scheduled for 10 o'clock tomorrow morning.
Caller 2: Thank you.

Caller 1: Drink plenty of warm fluids and get a good night's sleep.
Caller 2: Thank you. I'll do my best. Goodbye.

Caller 1: Goodbye.

Making a Dinner Reservation

Caller 1: Good Evening Brown's Grill. How may I help you?
Caller 2: Hello, I'd like to make a dinner reservation for Friday.

Caller 1: Certainly, I'd be happy to help you with that. How many people are there in your party?
Caller 2: There'll be four people.

Caller 1: And what time would you like to make a reservation?
Caller 2: Let's say at 7 o'clock.

Caller 1: I'm afraid we don't have anything available then. We could seat you at 6 o'clock or 8 o'clock.
Caller 2: Oh, OK. Let's make the reservation for 8 o'clock.

Caller 1: Fine, 8 o'clock on Friday evening for four people. May I have your name?
Caller 2: Yes, it's Anderson.

Caller 1: Is that Anderson with an 'e' or an 'o'?
Caller 2: Anderson with an 'o.'

Caller 1: Thank you. Great. I have a table for four for the Anderson party at 8 o'clock on Friday evening.
Caller 2: Thank you very much.

Caller 1: You're welcome. We'll see you on Friday.
Caller 2: Yes, see you then. Goodbye.

Caller 1: Goodbye.

Telephoning the School About Your Child

Caller 1: Good morning, Washington Grade School, this is Chris. How may I help you?
Caller 2: Good morning, this is Alice Smith, I'm calling for my daughter, Judy. She's not feeling well today.

Caller 1: I'm sorry to hear that. I hope it's not too bad.
Caller 2: No, no she has a little fever and a cough. Nothing too serious.

Caller 1: Well, I hope she feels well soon.
Caller 2: Thank you. Do you think I could get her homework for today?

Caller 1: Is there any specific class?
Caller 2: I'm especially concerned about math and science.

Caller 1: OK, is it all right for me to give your email address to the teachers? They can then send the homework along later today.
Caller 2: That would be great. Do you have my e-mail on file?

Caller 1: Just a moment.. We have chrisp@gmail.com. Is that correct?
Caller 2: Yes, that is correct.

Caller 1: OK, I'll make sure Mr. Brown and Ms. White get your message and email.
Caller 2: Thank you very much.

Caller 1: I hope Judy feels well soon.
Caller 2: She should be fine by tomorrow. Thanks for your help.

Caller 1: My pleasure, have a nice day.
Caller 2: Thank you. Goodbye.

Caller 1: Goodbye.

Asking a Question about a Bill

Caller 1: Good afternoon, Northwest Electricity, how may I help you?
Caller 2: Good afternoon, this is Robert Tips. I have a question about my electricity bill this month.

Caller 1: I'd be happy to help you with that Mr. Tips. Can I have your account number?
Caller 2: I'm afraid I don't have that with me.

Caller 1: It's no problem. I'll just look your name up in our database.
Caller 2: Great.

Caller 1: Could you give me your address as well?
Caller 2: It's 2368 NW 21st Ave., Vancouver, Washington.

Caller 1: Yes, I have your account up on my computer. How may I help you?
Caller 2: The last bill I received seemed too high.

Caller 1: Yes, I see that it was considerably higher than last year. Did you use more electricity?
Caller 2: No, I don't think we used any more electricity than the year before.

Caller 1: OK, I'll tell you what I can do. I'll mark this and have a supervisor take a look at the account.
Caller 2: Thank you. When can I expect an answer?

Caller 1: We should have an answer for you by the end of the week. I'll give you an inquiry number.
Caller 2: OK, let me get a pen.. OK, I'm ready.

Caller 1: It's 3471.
Caller 2: That's 3471.

Caller 1: Yes, that's correct.
Caller 2: Thank you for your help.

Grade Level: 6th -8th; Type: Social Science

This project will explore how messages get lost from person to person. Using the telephone game and a voice recorder we can hear the progression from the original message to the final message.

• At what point(s) does the message deviate from the original?
• Does deviation increase with an increase in participants?
• Are some messages more memorable than others?

Before the days of computers and audio recording people would communicate through letters. However, only the wealthy, educated class had the means and intellect to write. Stories were often passed down through oral traditions from generation to generation. When the stories were written among the latter generations variations within those stories began to appear. Like in the classic game, “Telephone” players are given a phrase and are told to pass it down the line to the next person. At the end of the line the message is often transformed from the original. In this project we will track the progression of the message as it travels through the “telephone line.”

• Voice Recorder - Available at department stores, electronic stores.
• iPod voice recorder attachment

1. Find 5-20 subjects to participate in your game of telephone.
   1. You should designate an order so participants know who to tell the message to next.
2. Come up with your messages:
   1. Sentence with many numbers.
   2. Famous Quote
   3. Phone Number
   4. Sentence with many colors.
3. Give each participant the rules:
   1. The experimenter will tell the 1st participant the message and recording the message at the same time. The experimenter will then state the time.
      1. Experimenter turns on the recorder & tells the message to the participant: 'Four out of forty people who live on 5th street moved to in on Jan. 24, 2010.' The experimenter continues to record and states the time, '10:05am'.
   2. The first participant will pass along the message in the same way, recording and stating the time.
      1. Include instructions on how to operate the voice recorder.
   3. Participants are not allowed to write down any part of the message.
   4. The message can only be repeated if the listener could not hear the message clearly the first time. Participants cannot ask to have the message repeated to help them remember the message.
   5. Participants may not listen to the voice recordings.
4. Start with 5 people.
5. Relay the 1st message.
6. Once the telephone line is complete have the last person return the voice recorder to the experimenter.
7. Did the message change?
8. Repeat Steps 5-7 with 10 people, 20 people.
9. Repeat steps 4-8 with the other messages.
10. Organize your data in a chart.

    Name	Time	Message
    1	Jack	9:00am	Sue is going to …
    2	Jill	9:35am	Sue is going to… Honey singh video songs download.
    3	John	10:05am	Sue went to…
    4	Jane	11:00am	Sue was going to…
    5	Joe	12:15pm	Sue was going to…

Simple Sentences For Adults

Terms/Concepts: Telephone/Grapevine/Whisper Down the Lane Game; Oral Traditions vs. Written Traditions; Short Term Memory

Telephone Game Phrases Sentences For Adults

References:

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