English at work
English phone call phrases for work (and how to practise them)
The short answer
The phone call English phrases that matter most at work are the ones for answering, asking someone to repeat or spell, checking numbers and email addresses, and ending the call politely. Learn one phrase for each moment and practise them out loud, because on the phone you can’t lean on gestures or lip reading.
By the Chappie team · Updated
Answering and introducing yourself
The first ten seconds set the tone for the whole call. Have your opening sentence ready, and the rest gets easier.
“Good morning, customer support, Dilini speaking. How can I help you?”
Team or company, your name, an offer to help. The standard way to answer a work phone.
“Hello, this is Kasun from the accounts team. Is this a good time to talk?”
When you make the call. Asking if it’s a good time is polite and gives them a chance to say no.
“I’m calling about your order from last week.”
Give the reason in your second sentence, so they know what the call is about.
“Could I speak to Mr Fernando, please?”
Asking for someone. “Could I” sounds politer than “I want”.
“May I ask who’s calling?”
When a caller asks for a colleague and doesn’t give their name.
“Speaking.”
When they ask “Is that Dilini?” and it’s you. Short and natural.
Asking someone to repeat, slow down or spell
On the phone, asking is professional. Guessing a name or a number and getting it wrong is what causes problems later.
“Sorry, I didn’t catch that. Could you say it again?”
“Didn’t catch” is gentle and very natural.
“Could you speak a little more slowly, please? The line isn’t very clear.”
Completely acceptable. People slow down happily when asked; they just needed telling.
“Could you spell that for me, please?”
For names, street names and email addresses.
“Was that B for Bravo or D for Delta?”
To check letters that sound alike.
“Let me read that back to you.”
After any important detail. It catches mistakes before they cost you.
“Sorry, the line is breaking up. Can I call you back?”
When the connection is really bad. Better than pretending you heard.
On a phone line, some letters sound almost the same: B and D, M and N, F and S, P and T. Give a word for each letter: “M for Mike, N for November.” The standard international set is Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, Delta and so on, but any clear word works, as long as the other person knows it.
How do I say numbers, dates and email addresses on the phone?
Details are where phone calls go wrong. Say them in small groups, slowly, and always read them back.
| What | How to say it | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| WhatPhone number: 077 123 4567 | How to say it“Oh-seven-seven, one-two-three, four-five-six-seven.” | TipSay it in the groups it’s written in, with a short pause between groups. |
| WhatRepeated digits: 455 | How to say it“Four-double-five” or “four-five-five”. | Tip“Double” is common in British and Sri Lankan English. If the listener sounds unsure, say each digit. |
| WhatTeens and tens: 15 or 50 | How to say it“Fifteen, one-five.” “Fifty, five-oh.” | TipThese sound alike on a bad line, so add the digits. |
| WhatDate: 05/10/2026 | How to say it“Monday, the fifth of October.” | TipSay the month as a word. In the US, 05/10 means 10 May. |
| WhatTime | How to say it“Three p.m. Sri Lanka time.” | TipWith overseas callers, always name the time zone. |
| WhatMoney: Rs 25,500 | How to say it“Twenty-five thousand five hundred rupees.” | TipConfirm it back: “So that’s twenty-five thousand five hundred?” |
| WhatEmail: kasun.perera_92@example.com | How to say it“Kasun dot perera, underscore, nine-two, at example dot com.” | TipSpell the name part letter by letter. Say “all lowercase” and “all one word” if it helps. |
| WhatSymbols | How to say it@ is “at”, . is “dot”, _ is “underscore”, - is “hyphen” or “dash”, / is “slash”. | TipRead the whole address back before you end the call. |
Taking a message and putting someone on hold
“Could you hold for a moment, please? I’ll just check that.”
Tell them why you’re putting them on hold.
“Thanks for holding.”
The first thing to say when you come back.
“I’m sorry, she’s in a meeting at the moment. Can I take a message?”
When the person they want isn’t available.
“Could I have your name and number, please?”
Then read both back.
“I’ll make sure she gets the message this afternoon.”
Tell them what will happen next.
“Let me put you through to the accounts team.”
“Put you through” means connect you to someone else.
How to speak English on the phone with an unhappy customer
An angry caller is stressful in any language. The English you need for it, though, is short and predictable, and the same four steps work every time.
- 1
Listen to the end
Let them finish. Don’t correct details yet. Small sounds like “I see” and “Okay” tell them you’re still there.
- 2
Acknowledge the feeling
“I understand why that’s frustrating.” You aren’t admitting fault; you’re showing you heard them.
- 3
Apologise for the experience
“I’m sorry this has happened.”
- 4
Say what you’ll do, and when
“I’ll check with the delivery team and call you back by 3 p.m. today.” A clear time calms people more than a long explanation.
“Let me see what I can do.”
Moves the call from the problem to the fix.
“Can I check a few details so I can help?”
When you need details from them and the call is turning into an argument.
“I’m not able to do that, but what I can do is…”
Saying no politely: always follow it with what you can do.
Practise it
Rehearse a phone call with a customer in Chappie, the English speaking app: answer out loud, see what to fix, and try again, with nobody listening.
Ending the call
“So, just to confirm: I’ll email the quote by Friday.”
Summarise the next step before you hang up.
“Is there anything else I can help you with?”
The standard closing question in customer calls.
“Thanks for calling. Have a good day.”
Warm and simple.
“Good to speak to you. Talk soon.”
For colleagues and clients you know.
Video calls
Video calls are easier than phone calls in one way: people can see you. Look at the camera when you speak, nod when you listen, and use the chat for anything with numbers or spelling.
Test your microphone and headphones before the call rather than during it. Put details in the chat: “I’ll put the email address in the chat” saves spelling it three times. Know the small phrases: “I think you’re on mute”, “You froze for a second”, “Can you see my screen?” And if the video is poor, turn it off and say so: “I’ll switch my camera off, the connection is better without it.”
If a call turns into a meeting and your mind goes blank, see what to do when you freeze in an English meeting. Phone and video job interviews use the same skills, so practise your interview answers out loud too.
Why do phone calls in English feel harder?
Plenty of people who speak English comfortably face to face still dread the phone, and it isn’t a sign their English is weak. The phone takes away help you normally get without noticing.
No lip reading: in person you watch mouths and faces, and they fill in the words you only half heard. No gestures, so you can’t point or nod or hold up the document; everything has to be in words. Thinner sound, so F and S, or B and D, blur into each other. Silence that feels longer: a short pause is normal in a room and feels like a dead line on the phone, so people rush. And an unfamiliar accent is harder to follow when you can’t see the speaker.
What helps is a ready phrase for each tricky moment, the habit of reading details back, and a few practice calls where nothing is at stake.
A 10-minute practice routine for phone calls
- 1
Write your first two sentences (1 minute)
How you’ll open your next real call: “Hello, this is… I’m calling about…”
- 2
Say them with your eyes closed (2 minutes)
No face to watch, just like a real call. Repeat until they come without looking.
- 3
Practise numbers and spelling (2 minutes)
Read your phone number, an email address and a date out loud. Spell your name with a word for each letter.
- 4
Do one practice call (4 minutes)
Ask a friend to call and play a customer, from another room so you can’t see them. Or use an AI voice partner.
- 5
Say the hard sentence again (1 minute)
Pick the one sentence that came out wrong and say it three times.
For more ways to practise without a partner, see how to practise speaking English alone. If explanations in your own language help, read about spoken English for Sinhala speakers or through Tamil.
Practise it
Do step 4 with Chappie: it has a phone call with a customer and a client call built in, and it’ll tell you which number you rushed or which letter got lost, in Sinhala, Tamil or Hindi if you want.
Questions people ask
How can I improve my English for phone calls?
Learn one ready phrase for each part of a call, practise saying numbers and spelling out loud, and do short practice calls where you can’t see the other person. Short, regular practice works better than one long session.
How do I politely ask someone to repeat on the phone?
“Sorry, I didn’t catch that. Could you say it again?” If the line is bad, add “The line isn’t very clear.” Asking is always better than guessing.
How do you say an email address in English?
Say @ as “at”, the full stop as “dot” and _ as “underscore”, for example “kasun dot perera at example dot com”. Then spell the name part letter by letter and read the whole address back.
What should I say to an angry customer on the phone?
Listen first, then say “I understand why that’s frustrating” and “I’m sorry this has happened”. Then tell them exactly what you will do, and by when.
Why is English harder to understand on the phone?
On the phone you lose lip reading, facial expressions and gestures, and the sound is less clear. The same English feels harder, even if you understand it well in person.