So maybe you have met someone.
A boy or a girl who you find attractive and you like to be in their company.
This person could be your new boyfriend or girlfriend…
After some time, you might talk about this person with your best friend.
And once you begin to talk about them, the friend inevitably has many questions and wants to know everything.
How to talk about a new boyfriend or girlfriend?
How to answer all the questions?
In this guide, I will show you how to talk about a new boyfriend or girlfriend in English.
Let’s not waste time and dive right into it now…
I’ve Met Someone
You meet up with your friend and maybe you tell them about a new girl or guy that you have met.
You might just say the following:
I’ve met someone.
I met someone.
Both of these have the same meaning. That you have encountered a person and you are getting to know them.
When people say this phrase, it usually means that they have met a guy or girl that they are romantically interested in.
You could also use these phrases:
I met this guy.
I met this girl.
Again, this means that you have met a person that you are attracted to. Someone with whom you have some romantic interest.
When we say ‘this guy’ or ‘this girl’ we usually mean a young man or a young woman.
It sounds very casual, but that is how we say it.
Then the questions begin…
Let’s look at how to answer these questions next.
Who Is He/She?
So the first question your friend may ask is this one.
Who is he?
Who is she?
They might use the word ‘So’ at the beginning:
So, who is he?
So, who is she?
The word ‘so’ in this context implies that your friend wants to know everything.
How To Answer?
This is how you can reply.
Well, his name is Dan. And he’s a student in my English class at college.
At this stage, you just introduce the person’s name and some other details. Like where you first met or how you met.
Well, her name is Sarah, and I bumped into her at my gym.
In this sentence, the speaker is saying the new girlfriend’s name and where he met her. In this case, at his gym.
So for the first question, all you have to tell your friend is the name of the boyfriend/girlfriend and where you met or how you met.
But your friend is now interested and wants to know a lot more information…
While you are here, check out these other great guides:
How To Talk About Chores And Housework In English
Where Did You Meet?
So, they ask this question.
You may have already briefly answered this question, but your friend wants to know all the details.
This is what you can say:
So, I was in my English class and in the class is this guy Dan. I would see him all the time there.
Or:
I always go to my gym in the morning. And I often saw this girl Sarah. I saw her a few times in the gym.
Now you are giving a little more information about where you met for the first time.
But these places are regular places where we often meet people and get to know them.
Sometimes we can meet a new boyfriend or girlfriend in a different environment.
Let’s look at some other examples below:
So, I was just getting on the subway, and it was packed with people. And as more people crammed on the train, I found myself face-to-face with this guy. His name is Joe.
Or:
I was rushing into the sandwich store to grab something to eat.
The person in front of me was this girl. Her name is Claire.
Now your friend wants to know how you got talking…
How Did You Meet?
So with this question, the friend might want to know how you got talking to this potential boyfriend or girlfriend.
For two people to meet, they usually exchange words.
What words did you exchange?
How did you get talking?
Let’s look at some things we can say below:
Well, I was in my gym, and this girl was also there. I had seen her a few times before.
Then, I wanted to use the running machine just as she was also about to use it.
I said ‘After you’ and we got talking at that point.
Or:
So, I had seen Dan in my English class many times before. And then one time, the teacher put all the class in pairs to do some work together. And he paired me with Dan.
Then we got talking about the English class and about college.
So here are some examples of how people ‘break the ice’.
Break the ice means to first start talking to each other.
But then the guy might ask the girl for her phone number or some contact details.
(Usually, it is the man who asks the woman for this information. But it could be the other way around.)
Here are some examples of that situation:
Just as I was l about to leave the gym, I saw Sarah. We had already introduced ourselves to each other. So, I asked her for her phone number and she said yes.
Or:
We finished our English class and as we were leaving, Dan caught up with me and asked me if I wanted to go to the canteen and grab a cup of coffee. He said we could talk some more about the English assignment.
But in the more unique situations, the conversation might go something like this:
As I got talking to this guy on the subway, I came to my station. He just blurted out: Could I grab your phone number?
Usually, I don’t give my number to strange guys I just meet, but he seemed all right. He seemed harmless. So I said yes and gave it to him.
Blurted out means to say something in a rush, sometimes in an awkward or embarrassed way.
To grab your phone number means to take or make a note of your phone number.
When the woman says: He seemed harmless — This could be a little joke. A way of saying that this new guy that she met is not dangerous. He seemed safe to her. An acceptable choice.
Or in the sandwich store:
So, I got my sandwich and rushed out of the store and I bumped into Claire outside. She was just finishing a phone call.
I said hello and asked her which direction she was going.
Then I plucked up the courage to ask her for her phone number.
Rushed out means to move quickly. Maybe the person doesn’t have much time or is late for something.
Bumped into means to see or meet someone that we know. In this case, the man had spoken to the woman, Claire, inside the store.
Plucked up the courage means to take strength and have the confidence to do or say something. In this case, asking the woman for her phone number.
Often, it can be a nerve-wracking experience for the man to ask a woman he has just met for her phone number!
But the questions don’t stop there!
What Does She/He Look Like?
So, your friend knows where you met and how you met this new boyfriend or girlfriend.
Now they want to know more details.
The next most obvious question could be about the boy’s or girl’s physical appearance.
How to reply to this question?
You don’t need to give a full physical description of your new boyfriend or girlfriend.
You can just give general details.
But of course, you like this person, so the brief descriptions will be positive!
This is what you can say:
Dan is a little tall. Not that tall, but tall enough.
And he has longish hair and green eyes.
He’s good-looking, but not too much.
In this description, the young woman introduces Dan briefly.
She gives some minor details and then says: He is good-looking, but not too much.
In this context, she might mean that he is a little handsome but not so handsome that he might have a high opinion of himself!
This is a clue of the kind of person that the young woman is.
Maybe she would not be interested in a guy who has too high an opinion of himself!
How about the guy in the gym?
So Sarah has blonde hair and blue eyes. She has a nice smile.
And of course, she has a great physique from spending so much time in the gym!
In this case, the guy in the gym gives a brief description of Sarah — the colour of her hair and her eyes.
Then he mentions something in more detail about her physique.
Remember: we must be very careful when talking about people’s physical descriptions of their bodies. This can be overly personal.
So please show respect and common courtesy!
Let’s look at the woman who met the guy on the subway.
Joe is quite tall. And he looks good in a suit.
He has short, dark hair and brown eyes. He has a nice smile!
I think that’s why I trusted him and gave him my phone number.
In this case, the woman talks about Joe’s smile.
Clearly, this gave her a strong impression that Joe could be trusted.
People can reveal a lot in the way they smile at others.
Then the guy in the sandwich store:
Claire is petite, and she has shoulder-length black hair.
She has a way of looking at me like she knows what I am thinking!
So the man talks about Claire being petite — this means that she is slim and not so tall.
But then the man says: She has a way of looking at me, like she knows what I am thinking!
Of course, Claire can’t know what the man is thinking. But she may look at him in a certain way, and that makes him believe she can.
And clearly, he finds this an attractive quality or engaging.
Then the friend continues with the next line of questioning…
They want to know what this person is doing in their life in terms of working or studying. This can reveal a lot about your new boyfriend or girlfriend!
What Does He/She Do?
In English, usually this question means what is the person’s job.
But it could also mean something about what they are studying.
If the friend asks this question, you only have to provide a little information.
You should never answer questions about the boyfriend’s or girlfriend’s salary!
This is private information only.
The guy in the gym might say this about Sarah:
Sarah is a trainer. But she does business training in the evenings mostly.
She works all over the city. She has to travel a lot for her work.
Then the young woman in the English class, talking about Dan:
Well, of course, he’s a student. His major is English, just like me.
He wants to be a writer when he graduates.
So the woman says what Dan is doing at college and his aspirations when he graduates. This is simple and clear.
How about the man who met Claire in the sandwich store?
Claire works in logistics. She’s done this all her working life. She works for a big export company in the city.
And the woman who bumped into Joe on the subway…
Joe is a real estate agent. So he works long hours. And his work takes him all over the city. Plus, he has to work at the weekend.
This is more than enough information about work and study.
The next line of questioning from your friend could be more about your feelings about the new boyfriend or girlfriend.
What is it exactly that attracted you to this person?
What do you like about them?
What Do You Like About Him/Her?
With this question, you can say about the new boyfriend’s or girlfriend’s personality.
Yes, you can talk about their physical appearance!
But you can also talk about their personality or other qualities too.
The young woman in the English class could say this:
Well, we both really like the same writers. I love Margaret Attwood and so does Dan.
We talk about her books for hours.
And sometimes when he talks about certain books he has read, he has this dreamy look on his face…
So, of course, boyfriends and girlfriends should have a few things in common. They often want to talk about things they both like.
And in this case, it is reading and books.
When the young woman says: And sometimes when he talks about certain books he has read, he has this dreamy look on his face…
She might mean that Dan has a special expression on his face when he talks about books.
Clearly, the girl likes this expression! She likes that he is interested in reading too.
And how about the man when talking about Sarah from the gym?
So, we have similar interests in music. I started talking about how I liked Imagine Dragons and her face lit up.
She is a huge fan!
And when she eats something, she has this way of tilting her head. Like she is thinking about the ingredients or something.
Here the man talks about their common interest in music. The American band Imagine Dragons.
Her face lit up, which means her face shows an expression of surprise or happiness. It is a positive expression.
And he also talks about her mannerisms when eating. Saying she tilts her head to one side.
It may be meaningless to anyone else, but for the man, he may be falling in love with Sarah. So this gesture has a big impact on him!
Now the woman who met Joe on the subway…
Joe has a way of smiling but looking down at the same time. It’s quite a shy quality. Kind of boyish…
And he has a really great sense of humour. Very observational. He always makes me laugh.
So, the woman talks about Joe’s smile and the way he looks down when he smiles. This gives him a shy quality, and the woman is clearly attracted to this.
Then she talks about his sense of humour.
A good sense of humour can be vital to a relationship. The woman says his sense of humour is very observational. This means that he may be able to observe situations or other people and see a humorous element in what is happening.
And then finally the man in the sandwich store and Claire.
I like the way she taps the side of her mouth when she is thinking.
But also the different looks she gives me. Like she is a mind-reader!
Here the man talks about a gesture that Claire makes when thinking. He finds this attractive.
And he mentions again about her looking at him as if she can read his mind.
This is also an attractive quality that he likes!
A mind-reader is a person who can see another person’s thoughts.
After this line of questioning, the friend may want to know how you spend your time together.
What do you like to do together?
What do you do when you go on dates?
What Do You Like To Do Together?
With this question, you don’t have to give exact information about what you do together.
Some things are very private!
But you can show the shared interests that you have.
And the things you do when you are on a date together.
First, how about the man in the gym and his new girlfriend, Sarah?
Well, of course, we like to go to the gym. We go to the gym together now.
And as she is a huge Imagine Dragons fan, we are planning to go and see them in concert together.
We’re not really into nightclubs or bars, so we like to spend a lot of time in, and just watch movies or good TV shows.
The man outlines very clearly what they like to do together.
A huge fan is someone who really likes a particular singer, band or movie star.
Not really into means to not have any interest in something.
To spend time in means to stay at home and do things at home.
And what does the girl like to do with Dan from her English class?
Neither of us has much money because we are students and broke!
So we spend time in the library reading. Or go to the park.
Sometimes I go to his place and we stay up till all hours just talking about books and writers we like.
As they are both English majors, they like to read a lot.
Their main interests are reading, books and writers.
Broke means to have no money.
His place means Dan’s home or room.
Stay up till all hours means to stay up until the early hours of the morning or to stay up all night.
Then we have the man in the sandwich store and his girlfriend, Claire.
Claire often has to work overtime. But when she is free, we like to eat out a lot.
She is a foodie and so am I. It’s just a really great coincidence that we both love food so much.
Last week we went to this really great Thai place. The food was just amazing!
So in the case of the couple here, they both love to eat.
They are foodies. This means they love to try different kinds of food from all over the world. They like to go to restaurants and try all kinds of food together.
Overtime means to work beyond the normal working hours.
A great coincidence in this context means a situation where two different people have a common interest in something.
And then finally, the woman on the subway and Joe.
Unfortunately, Joe has to work a lot. He is always working at the weekend.
But when we do have free time, we go to see a movie together.
Joe loves action movies. And I love romantic comedies.
So we take it in turns to see movies we like.
And for this couple, they are both movie fans. Joe likes action movies, and the woman likes romantic comedies.
One week they might see an action movie, and the following week they will see a romantic comedy.
And then the most important question of all. The big one.
Is there a future for the two of you?
This implies the idea that the two people may get married together in the future.
What Are Your Plans For The Future?
Quite often, people feel reluctant to talk too much about their future with a new boyfriend or girlfriend.
This is because the romance is still very fresh and new, so no one knows what the future might hold.
But here are some common things people might say;
It’s early days yet, so we don’t know.
Early days means the relationship is still at the very beginning, so they cannot confirm what the future may hold.
We are taking it one step at a time.
One step at a time means to move slowly. They don’t want to rush into the relationship.
We’re just enjoying getting to know each other right now.
And this means that the couple are only having fun and gradually finding out about each other.
We’re just seeing where things go for now.
This means we are only looking a very short distance into the future. So there are no long-term future plans.
And some other similar phrases can be found below…
We’re focused on the present and having fun together.
We’re taking things slowly and seeing how it develops.
We’re taking it day by day and seeing what happens.
Taking it day by day means that the couple are only looking at each day as it comes. One day at a time.
We’re not rushing anything and just enjoying the moment.
Not rushing anything means to move slowly.
Most couples at the beginning of a relationship want to move slowly. Few people want to rush things.
So that is why most of these phrases emphasize going slowly and taking simple steps.
That should cover all the questions from your friend!
Conclusion
I have not covered every possible question you could be asked by any friend.
When starting a new romance, people often have no idea what the future may hold.
And sometimes people may be too shy to talk too much about the new love of their life.
Other times, they may want to say everything about their new love!
As always, go over all the phrases I have outlined above regularly.
The more you practice speaking out loud, the better it is for you.
Keep practising! And keep studying!
If you have any thoughts or opinions of your own, let me know in the comments below…
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