This article is part of our Business English Guide — explore phrases and vocabulary for meetings, emails and the workplace.
Few situations test your English like a phone call. You cannot see the other person, you cannot rely on gestures, and you often have only a few seconds to understand and reply. No wonder telephoning makes even confident speakers nervous.
The good news is that telephone English is highly formulaic. Most calls use the same set of fixed phrases for greeting, asking for someone, taking a message and saying goodbye. Once you have learnt these phrases, you can handle almost any call. This guide gives you the vocabulary you need, grouped by what happens at each stage of a call.
Key Takeaways
- Telephone English is formulaic — learn the fixed phrases for each stage of a call and you can handle most situations.
- Answer a business call with your name and company or department: “Marketing Department, Sarah speaking.”
- Use the NATO phonetic alphabet (Alpha, Bravo, Charlie…) to spell names clearly.
- Say phone numbers digit by digit, with “oh” for 0 and “double” for repeated numbers.
- Blame the connection, not the person, when you cannot hear: “Sorry, you’re breaking up.”
Answering and Introducing Yourself
How you open a call sets the tone. In a business setting, you usually give the name of your company or department first, then your own name. On a personal call, a simple “Hello?” is enough.
| Situation | Useful phrases |
|---|---|
| Answering a business call | Good morning, Sales Department, Tom speaking. / Hello, Bright Design, how can I help? |
| Making a call | Hello, this is Anna Reyes from Brightline. / Hi, it’s Mark here, calling about… |
| Finding out who is calling | Who’s calling, please? / May I ask who’s calling? |
| Stating your reason | I’m calling about… / I’m phoning to ask about… |
Notice the verb speaking after a name (“Sarah speaking”) and the use of this is rather than “I am” to identify yourself. These are fixed telephone conventions in English.
Asking for and Connecting to Someone
Most calls involve reaching a particular person. The phrases below cover asking for someone, putting a caller on hold and transferring the call to the right place.
| Situation | Useful phrases |
|---|---|
| Asking for a person | Could I speak to Mr Brown, please? / Is Anna there, please? |
| Putting someone on hold | Could you hold the line, please? / One moment, please. |
| Returning to the caller | Thanks for holding. / Sorry to keep you waiting. |
| Transferring a call | I’ll put you through now. / Let me transfer you to the right department. |
| Person not available | I’m afraid she’s not available at the moment. / He’s on another line right now. |
Phrases like I’m afraid, I’m sorry to bother you and bear with me make requests and bad news sound gentler. They are a key feature of professional telephone English — use them often.
Taking and Leaving Messages
When the person someone wants is not available, you offer to take a message — or, as a caller, you leave one. Always confirm the details so nothing is lost.
| Situation | Useful phrases |
|---|---|
| Offering to take a message | Can I take a message? / Would you like to leave a message? |
| Asking for details | Could I have your name and number, please? / Can I just check the spelling of that? |
| Leaving a message | Could you ask her to call me back? / Please tell him I rang. |
| Reassuring the caller | I’ll make sure she gets your message. / I’ll pass that on. |
If you reach an answering machine, your voicemail should be short and clear. Give your name, the reason for your call and your number — and repeat the number slowly at the end.
“Hi, this is David Lee calling for Maria. I’m phoning about Thursday’s meeting. Could you call me back on oh-seven-seven-double-oh, nine-hundred, one-two-three? Thanks very much.”
Spelling Names and Giving Numbers
Letters and numbers cause the most misunderstandings on the phone, because many sound alike. To spell a name clearly, English speakers use the NATO phonetic alphabet, where each letter has a code word.
| Letter | Code word | Letter | Code word |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Alpha | N | November |
| B | Bravo | O | Oscar |
| C | Charlie | P | Papa |
| D | Delta | R | Romeo |
| E | Echo | S | Sierra |
| H | Hotel | T | Tango |
| I | India | V | Victor |
| M | Mike | W | Whiskey |
So the name SMITH becomes “Sierra, Mike, India, Tango, Hotel.” Introduce it with “Let me spell that for you” or “That’s S for Sierra, M for Mike…”.
For numbers, say each digit on its own and group them with short pauses. In British English the digit 0 is usually “oh”, and a repeated digit can be said with double.
| Written | How to say it |
|---|---|
| 020 7946 0823 | oh-two-oh — seven-nine-four-six — oh-eight-two-three |
| 07700 900 077 | oh-seven-seven-double-oh — nine-hundred — double-seven |
| £14.50 | fourteen pounds fifty |
Asking to Repeat and Poor Connections
You will not understand everything first time, and that is completely normal. The trick is to ask for a repeat politely and, when the line is bad, to blame the connection rather than the speaker.
Instead of a blunt “What?”, use softer phrases: “Sorry, I didn’t quite catch that — could you say it again, please?” or “Would you mind repeating the last part?” These keep the call friendly and professional.
| Situation | Useful phrases |
|---|---|
| Asking for a repeat | Sorry, I didn’t catch that. / Could you say that again, please? |
| Checking understanding | So that’s …, is that right? / Let me just check I’ve got that. |
| Poor connection | The line’s a bit faint — could you speak up? / You’re breaking up. |
| Call cut off | Sorry, we got cut off. / I’ll call you straight back. |
Making Arrangements and Ending the Call
Many calls finish by agreeing a time to meet or speak again. Use clear time phrases, confirm the details, and then close warmly. Compare how the same call sounds in formal and informal English.
Formal phone phrases
- Good morning, how can I help you?
- Could I speak to Mr Jones, please?
- May I ask who’s calling?
- Would Thursday morning suit you?
- Thank you very much. Goodbye.
Informal phone phrases
- Hi, what’s up?
- Is Tom there?
- Who’s this?
- Shall we say Thursday morning?
- Thanks — speak soon, bye!
To make an arrangement, suggest a time and confirm it: “Shall we say Tuesday at three?” → “So that’s Tuesday the tenth at three o’clock.” To end, signal you are finishing (“Right, I think that’s everything”), confirm any actions (“So I’ll send that email this afternoon”) and then say goodbye.
A: “Right, so I’ll email the quote this afternoon and you’ll confirm by Friday.”
B: “Perfect. Thanks very much for your help.”
A: “You’re welcome. Speak soon — goodbye.”
Practise Telephone Phrases
Learn and revise the key telephoning phrases with flash cards and instant feedback.
Flash CardsExercises to Practise on LexFizz
- Flash Cards — memorise key telephoning phrases by function
- Quiz — multiple-choice questions on phone vocabulary
- Complete the Sentence — fill in the missing telephone phrase
- Cloze Dropdown — choose the right phrase from a dropdown
- True or False — spot natural and unnatural phone English
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Frequently Asked Questions
In a business context, answer with your company or department name followed by your own name, for example: “Good morning, Marketing Department, Sarah speaking.” On a personal call you can simply say “Hello?” To find out who is calling, ask “Who’s calling, please?” or, more formally, “May I ask who’s calling?” These phrases sound polite and professional and immediately tell the caller they have reached the right place.
Use “Could I speak to Mr Brown, please?” or, more directly, “Is Anna there, please?” In formal English you might say “I’d like to speak to someone in the accounts department.” If you do not know the right person, explain your reason: “I’m calling about an invoice — could you put me through to the right person?” Always include please to keep the request polite.
Offer to take a message with “I’m afraid she’s not available at the moment — can I take a message?” Then confirm the details: “Could I have your name and number, please?” and “Can I just check the spelling of that?” Finish by reassuring the caller: “I’ll make sure he gets your message” or “I’ll ask her to call you back this afternoon.” Reading the message back avoids mistakes.
Use the NATO phonetic alphabet, where each letter is represented by a word: A for Alpha, B for Bravo, C for Charlie, and so on. So SMITH becomes “Sierra, Mike, India, Tango, Hotel.” You can introduce it with “Let me spell that for you” or “That’s S for Sierra, M for Mike…”. This avoids confusion between letters that sound similar, such as M and N or B and P.
Say each digit separately and group them naturally, pausing between groups. The number 020 7946 0823 is read “oh-two-oh, seven-nine-four-six, oh-eight-two-three”. The digit 0 is usually said as oh in British English, and repeated digits can be said as double — “77” becomes double seven. Speak slowly and clearly, and offer to repeat the number for the listener.
Be polite and blame the connection rather than the person: “I’m sorry, the line’s a bit faint — could you speak up, please?” or “I’m afraid you’re breaking up — could you repeat that?” If the call drops, you can say “Sorry, we got cut off.” To ask for a repeat without sounding rude, use “Sorry, I didn’t quite catch that” or “Could you say that again, please?”
To put someone on hold, say “Could you hold the line, please?” or “One moment, please — I’ll just check.” Always thank them when you return: “Thanks for holding.” To transfer a call, use “I’ll put you through now” or “Let me transfer you to the right department.” If you are not sure the person is free, add “I’ll just see if she’s available — bear with me.”
Formal telephone English uses full phrases and modal verbs: “Could I speak to Mr Jones, please?” or “May I ask who’s calling?” Informal English with friends is shorter and more relaxed: “Is Tom there?” or “Who’s this?” Business calls also use softeners such as I’m afraid and I’m sorry to bother you, while personal calls are more direct. Matching your level of formality to the situation makes you sound natural.
Start with a greeting and your name: “Hi, this is David Lee calling for Maria.” State the reason briefly: “I’m phoning about our meeting on Thursday.” Then give a clear action and your number: “Could you call me back on 07700 900 123? Thanks very much.” Keep voicemails short, speak slowly, and repeat your phone number at the end so the listener has time to write it down.
Signal the end with a closing phrase such as “Right, I think that’s everything” or “Thanks very much for your help.” Confirm any actions: “So I’ll send that email this afternoon.” Then say goodbye warmly: “Thanks for calling — speak soon” or, more formally, “Thank you, goodbye.” Rushing to hang up can seem abrupt, so a short, friendly closing leaves a good impression.
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