Practice English phone calls

For many learners, phone calls are the hardest English there is. There are no facial expressions or gestures to help you, the line can be unclear, and you have to respond right away. Even people who speak comfortably face to face often dread the phone.

What helps is rehearsing a call the way it really happens: with your voice and your ears. Airi runs in your browser rather than on a phone line, but the skill is the same. You speak, she answers out loud in real time. Rehearse booking an appointment, calling a company, leaving a message, or handling a call you can't quite hear before you have to make the real one.

A quick example with Airi

Thank you for calling. How can I help you today?

Hello, I want to book an appointment for next week.

Of course. What day works for you?

Maybe Wednesday, in the morning if is possible.

Small fix: "if it's possible." Wednesday at 10 a.m. — does that work?

Try a conversation like this, free600 free credits, about 8 minutes of speaking. No card.

Six stages of a typical English phone call

Most calls to a business, a clinic, or a landlord follow a similar pattern. Not every call has every stage (you will not always ask for a named person or be put on hold), but with one line ready for each you are less likely to be caught off guard. Sometimes the other person speaks first and sometimes you do, so the table shows both sides.

Stage	You say	The other person says
Opening	Hello, this is Ana Lima.	Good morning, Westside Dental. How can I help you?
Giving your reason	I'm calling to book an appointment.	Sure, I can help you with that.
Asking for a person	Could I speak to Mr. Grant, please?	May I ask who's calling?
Being put on hold	Yes, I'll hold. Thank you.	Can I put you on hold for a moment?
The person is not there	Yes, please. Could you ask him to call me back?	I'm afraid he's in a meeting. Would you like to leave a message?
Closing	No, that's everything. Thanks for your help. Bye.	Is there anything else I can help you with?

Phone phrases for when you can't hear or didn't understand

The other person cannot see that you are lost, so you have to say what went wrong. Ask about the exact piece you missed. "Sorry, what was the date again?" usually gets you just the date, said clearly. "What?" tends to get you the whole sentence again at the same speed.

The problem	Say
You missed one detail	Sorry, I didn't catch the last part. What time did you say?
They are speaking too fast	Could you speak a little more slowly, please?
The connection is bad	I'm sorry, you're breaking up. Can I call you right back?
You need a name spelled	Could you spell that for me, please?
You still don't understand	I'm sorry, I'm still not following. Could you explain that another way?

How to spell your name and say numbers on the phone

Letters such as B, D, P, and T, or M and N, can sound alike over a phone line, so a name or a number is easy to mishear. These habits make both clearer.

Give a word for each letter. "My last name is Lima: L as in London, I as in India, M as in Mary, A as in apple." Any common word that clearly starts with the letter works.
Borrow a standard set if you like. The ICAO spelling alphabet, widely known as the NATO phonetic alphabet, begins Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo. You do not need it for an everyday call, but it gives you one fixed word per letter.
Say phone numbers digit by digit, in groups. Zero can be "zero" or "oh." In British English you will often hear "double" for a repeated digit: "double nine" for 99.
Separate the teens from the tens. "Fifteen" and "fifty" are easy to confuse, so add the digits: "Fifteen. That's one, five."
Read an email address piece by piece. @ is "at," a period is "dot," _ is "underscore," and - is "hyphen" or "dash." So ana.lima@example.com is "ana dot lima at example dot com."
Read it back. "Let me read that back to you: five five five, zero one four two."

How to leave a voicemail in English

A voicemail is a short speech with no one to ask you questions, so plan it before the beep. Aim for about 20 to 30 seconds and follow this order.

Your name and who the message is for. "Hi, this is Daniel Reyes, calling for Ms. Carter."
Your reason, in one sentence. "I'm calling about the apartment on Oak Street."
What you would like them to do. "Could you call me back when you have a moment?"
Your number, slowly, and when to reach you. "My number is 555-0142. I'm free any day after three."
Your name and number again. "Again, that's Daniel Reyes, 555-0142. Thank you. Bye." The listener may be writing the number down, and the repeat lets them check it.

Phone call mistakes English learners make, and what to say instead

Instead of	Say	Why
Hello, I am Ana.	Hello, this is Ana.	On the phone, English speakers say who they are with "this is." With people who know you well, "it's Ana" also works.
Are you Mr. Grant?	Is this Mr. Grant?	The same pattern works for the person on the other end. In British English you will also hear "Is that Mr. Grant?"
Who are you?	May I ask who's calling?	Asked directly, the question can sound like a challenge. "May I ask who's calling?" is the usual polite form.
Wait a minute.	One moment, please.	"Wait" is a command, so it can sound impatient.
I call you back tomorrow.	I'll call you back tomorrow.	A promise or a decision you make as you speak takes "will."

A short phone call rehearsal to run with Airi

Look away from the screen while you do this. A real call gives you nothing to read, so practice with your ears only.

Set the scene: "Be the receptionist at a dental clinic. I'm calling to book an appointment. Answer the phone the way a receptionist would."
Give your greeting, your name, and your reason in one breath: "Hello, this is ... I'm calling to ..."
Say: "Ask me to spell my last name and give you my phone number." Spell it with a word for each letter.
When she offers a day and a time, confirm it before you accept: "So that's Thursday at 2:30. Is that right?"
Say: "Now pretend nobody picks up and play a voicemail greeting." Leave your message in the five-step order above.
Look back at the screen, say any fix she showed you out loud, then run the call again with a different business: a bank, a landlord, or a delivery company.

How to get the most from it

Practice the opening

Rehearse how you start a call and state your reason — the first few seconds are the hardest.

Ask people to repeat

Practice "Sorry, could you say that again?" so it feels natural when you really need it.

Leave a voicemail

Ask Airi to send you to voicemail, then practice leaving a clear, short message.

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Frequently asked questions

Why practice calls with an AI?

A phone call is listening and answering in real time. Airi answers out loud, so you rehearse exactly that, and you can run the same call again whenever you like, with nobody waiting on the line.

Can I practice calling a company?

Yes. Ask Airi to play a receptionist, a bank representative, or a store clerk, and rehearse the whole call from the greeting to the goodbye.

What if I don't understand her?

Use it as practice. Say "Sorry, could you say that again?" or "Could you speak a little more slowly, please?" You will need the same phrases on a real call.

How do I start a phone call in English?

Greet the person, give your name with "this is," and state your reason right away: "Hello, this is Ana Lima. I'm calling about my order." Those two sentences work for almost any call to a business.

What should I say when I leave a voicemail in English?

Your name, your reason in one sentence, what you would like the person to do, and your phone number said slowly. Then repeat your name and number before you say goodbye.

Is it free to try?

Yes. You get 600 free credits when you sign up with Google, about eight minutes of speaking, enough to rehearse one short call from start to finish. After that there are one-off packs of USD 5, 10 or 20, with no subscription.

Last updated: 2026-10-03