English For Everyday Situations

Encouraging someone

We can use the expression Hurry up! to encourage someone to do something more quickly.

• Hurry up! They’re all waiting for us.
• Hurry up! We’ve got to be there in less than twenty minutes.
• Hurry up! We’re already late.

The expression Come on! is also used to encourage someone to do something.

• Come on! We’ll be late.
• Come on, Jenny, take a bite.
• Come on! We’re going to be late for the film.

In a very informal style, we use the expression Go for it! to encourage someone to do something.

• ‘I’m going to try my luck in the stock market.’ ‘Go for it!’
• ‘I’m going to buy that car.’ ‘Go for it!’
• ‘I’m going to apply for that job.’ ‘Go for it!’

Asking about people’s names and ages

Here are some expressions you can use to ask about people’s names and ages.

• ‘What’s your son’s name?’ ‘He’s called John.’
• ‘What’s your daughter’s name?’‘She’s called Nancy.’
• ‘What are their names?’‘They’re called Martin and Sonia.’
• ‘How old is your son?’‘He’s ten.’
• ‘How old is your daughter?’‘She’s four.’
• ‘How old are your kids?’ ‘They’re ten and four.’
• ‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m thirty-nine.’ / ‘I’m thirty-nine years old.’
• ‘When’s your birthday?’ ‘It’s 18 May.’ (= It’s the eighteenth of May OR It’s May the eighteenth.)
• Notes

While talking about our age, we do not usually say the words ‘years old’ after our age. It is possible, but not very common.