Country or nationality?
Use the country after “from” or “in”: “I’m from India.”, “Our office is in Poland.” Use the nationality as an adjective: “I’m Indian.”, “It’s a Polish company.” In English, both countries and nationalities start with a capital letter.
Some country names need “the”: the UK, the USA, the Netherlands. The nationality never takes “the”: “He’s from the UK. He’s British.”
- India – Indian
- Japan – Japanese
- Poland – Polish
- Portugal – Portuguese
- the UK – British
- Spain – Spanish
Checking facts about people and companies
Before a meeting you often check what you know: who someone is, what they do and where their company is. Ask with “Are you …?” or “Is …?” and reply with a short answer: “Yes, I am.”, “No, she isn’t.”
In this conversation, Owen checks Maya’s details at a supplier meeting. As you listen, notice that the company is “it” and the woman is “she”.
- “Are you …?” – “Yes, I am.” / “No, I’m not.”
- “Is she …?” – “Yes, she is.” / “No, she isn’t.”
- “Is your company …?” – “Yes, it is.” / “No, it isn’t.”
Owen Are you Maya Cole?
Maya Yes, I am. I'm an operations coordinator.
Owen Is your company Portuguese?
Maya Yes, it is. Its head office is in Porto.
Owen Is Keiko from Poland?
Maya No, she isn't. She's Japanese, but her company is in Poland.
His, her or its?
Use “his” for a man, “her” for a woman and “its” for a company, office or product. “Our” is for you and your team: “Our manager is Indian.” Many languages use one word for all three, so this takes practice.
“Her company” means the company she works for, not one she owns: “She’s Japanese, but her company is in Poland.” Don’t mix up “its” and “it’s”: “its” shows belonging, and “it’s” means “it is”.
- “His name is Owen. He’s British.”
- “Her company is Polish.”
- “Its head office is in Leeds.”
- “It’s a Portuguese company. Its office is in Porto.”
Saying goodbye after a meeting
You introduce a colleague with “This is my colleague, Keiko.”, and the other person replies “Nice to meet you, Keiko.” When you leave, the phrase changes: “Nice meeting you.” – “You too. Have a good journey.”
A five-line profile before a meeting
A short profile helps you keep person and company details apart. Fill in the lines, then say each one as a full sentence.
- Name: Maya Cole – “This is Maya Cole.”
- Job: operations coordinator – “She’s an operations coordinator.”
- Nationality: Portuguese – “She’s Portuguese.”
- Company: Portuguese – “Her company is Portuguese.”
- Head office: Porto – “Its head office is in Porto.”
Common mistakes
People will understand you, but these mistakes are easy to hear:
- “She’s Japan.” After “she’s”, use the nationality: “She’s Japanese.” Or use “from”: “She’s from Japan.”
- “He’s from UK.” Some countries need “the”: “He’s from the UK.”
- “japanese”, “polish”. Nationalities start with a capital letter: Japanese, Polish.
- “Keiko is from Poland?” In a question, “is” comes first: “Is Keiko from Poland?”
- “Yes, it’s.” The short answer is “Yes, it is.”; use “it’s” only when more words follow.
- “It’s head office is in Leeds.” For belonging, write “its” with no apostrophe.
A 10-minute daily practice routine
The goal is to say these sentences without thinking. Do it out loud, in the same order each day.
- 3 minutes: say five country–nationality pairs out loud, then make one sentence for each: “I’m from … I’m …”
- 2 minutes: describe three colleagues: “This is … She’s … Her company is in …”
- 2 minutes: ask yourself three yes/no questions about your company and give short answers: “Is your company …?” – “Yes, it is.”
- 3 minutes: play the conversation above, pause after each line and repeat it, then answer the questions with your own details.
What comes next
When people and places feel easy, move on to what your company does: describing its products and services and answering a simple order enquiry. After that comes taking a phone order with a product code and a delivery address.