Front Desk Basics: Asking About Jobs
🎧 Read/Listen first
At reception, you can ask about a job with What do you do. You can answer with I am a nurse or I am an engineer, then add I work in an office or I work in a hospital, and I work for a company name.
⚡ Learning goals
- Ask someone about their job in a polite way.
- Say your job with I am a or I am an.
- Say where you work: place and company.
🔑 Key language
- What do you do? I am a cashier.
- I work in a an + place. I work in a supermarket.
- I work for at + company. I work for SPR Computing.
⚙️ Rules & Grammar
🟣 Ask about a job
Rule: Use What do you do to ask about a persons job.
Examples: What do you do, Lynn. / What do you do for a living.
Common pitfall + fix: Saying What is your work — Say What do you do.
🟣 I am a or I am an
Rule: Use I am a before consonant sound, and I am an before vowel sound.
Examples: I am a secretary. / I am an engineer.
Common pitfall + fix: I am a engineer — Say I am an engineer.
🟣 Work in a place
Rule: Use I work in a an + place to say where you work.
Examples: I work in an office. / I work in a hospital.
Common pitfall + fix: I work at an office — Say I work in an office.
🟣 Work for a company
Rule: Use I work for + company name to say the employer (or I work at + place name).
Examples: I work for Shop Market. / I work at General Hospital.
Common pitfall + fix: I work in SPR Computing — Say I work for SPR Computing.
✍️ Vocabulary
occupation — A persons job.
colleague — A person you work with.
secretary — A person who helps in an office.
engineer — A person who designs or builds things.
introduce — To say who someone is to another person.
🧩 Guided practice
Mini-dialogue:
Hello. Let me introduce you to my colleague. This is Lynn.
Nice to meet you. What do you do?
I am a secretary. I work in an office. How about you?
Why this matters:
At reception, you often meet visitors and colleagues. Asking about jobs helps you make small talk and be polite. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
Verb & Adjective Pack:
introduce, work, help, design, manage, friendly, polite, professional