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AI image: a woman laughs at her laptop – small talk just before an online meeting.
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Simmonds · live on simmonds.onlineB15 min · English

Small talk before meetings in English: vocabulary, dialogue and conversation questions

Editorially responsible: James Simmondspublished 28 Sept 2026AI-generated text (learn more – how we use AI on these pages)

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Allow the microphone – Theo asks the first question.

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Small talkB1 – Practise speaking English: a conversation about small talk before a meeting (level B1)Deadlines and delaysB1 – Practise speaking English: a conversation about missed deadlines (level B1)International teamsC1 – Practise speaking English: a conversation about working in international teams (level C1)

Question of the day

What did Anna do at the weekend?

  1. She went hiking.
  2. She watched football.
  3. She worked in London.
Show the answer – Open the answer to the question of the day

Correct answer: She went hiking.

You can find the answer in the English introduction.

Listen to the introduction

Speed

Transcript

Small talk – Jump to the vocabulary entry for Small talk before a meeting. It's five to ten. The video meeting – Jump to the vocabulary entry for video meeting starts at ten, but Mark from the London office joins early – Jump to the vocabulary entry for early. Hi Anna! How was your weekend – Jump to the vocabulary entry for weekend? Good, thanks. We went hiking – Jump to the vocabulary entry for hiking in the Harz. And yours? Quiet. I watched the football. A minute later, two more colleagues – Jump to the vocabulary entry for colleagues join. Mark smiles: Great, everyone's here. Shall we get started?

Vocabulary

Small talk/ˈsmɔːl ˌtɔːk/
Meaning: Friendly conversation about everyday things.
Example: Small talk can help colleagues feel comfortable before a meeting.
video meeting/ˈvɪd.i.əʊ ˌmiː.tɪŋ/
Meaning: An online meeting where people can see and hear each other.
Example: Our video meeting starts at ten.
early/ˈɜː.li/
Meaning: Before the expected or planned time.
Example: I joined the call early to say hello.
weekend/ˌwiːkˈend/
Meaning: Saturday and Sunday, when many people do not work.
Example: How was your weekend?
hiking/ˈhaɪ.kɪŋ/
Meaning: Walking long distances in the countryside.
Example: We went hiking in the hills on Sunday.
colleagues/ˈkɒl.iːɡz/
Meaning: People you work with.
Example: I asked my colleagues about their weekend.

Dialogue

  1. AnnaHi, Mark. How was your weekend?
  2. MarkQuiet, thanks. I watched the football. And yours?
  3. AnnaI went hiking with a friend.
  4. MarkThat sounds lovely. Where did you go?
  5. AnnaTo the Harz. We had good weather too.
  6. MarkLucky you! It rained here all Sunday.
  7. AnnaOh dear. Everyone's here now. Shall we get started?
  8. MarkYes, let's look at the first item on the agenda.

Questions for your conversation

Partner A

Easier: Do you like talking about your weekend? Why or why not?

What do you usually talk about before a meeting starts?

More challenging: How can informal conversation influence trust between colleagues who rarely meet in person?

Partner B

Easier: Would you rather talk about the weather or your salary? Why?

Which topics do you avoid in small talk?

More challenging: How would you respond if a colleague introduced a personal topic that made someone in the meeting uncomfortable?

Partner A

Easier: Is it easy to end a friendly chat? Why or why not?

How do you move from small talk to the meeting?

More challenging: How could a chairperson move a lively informal conversation onto the agenda without making people feel dismissed?

Useful phrases

  • How was your weekend?
  • Shall we get started?
  • Sorry, I didn't catch that.
  • That sounds lovely.
  • And yours?
  • Let's look at the first item on the agenda.

Topic quiz

Five quick questions check vocabulary and listening comprehension.

All conversations – Back to all English conversations

Questions

Who is Theo?

Theo is an AI conversation partner for warming up, not a teacher. The voice is synthetic. In the live rounds, a trainer talks with you.

Is my conversation stored?

We store neither audio nor a transcript. During the conversation, your voice is sent to Google (Gemini) for processing. The conversation ends after no more than five minutes.

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