Talking About Your Job in English

Talking About Your Job in English
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Lesson 09 Beginner

Talking About Your Job in English

In this lesson, you will learn how to talk about your job or studies in English — one of the most common topics in everyday conversations and professional introductions.

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Lesson Explanation

“What do you do?” is one of the first questions people ask when they meet someone new. It means: What is your job? Knowing how to answer this question — and how to ask it politely — is essential for any English conversation.

You can talk about your job using simple sentences with “I work as…” or “I am a…”. If you are a student, you say “I am a student” or “I study…”. And if you are not currently working, there are polite ways to say that too.

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Pro Tip: When someone asks “What do you do?” — do NOT say “I do nothing.” Instead say “I’m currently looking for work” or “I’m a student.” This sounds much more professional.
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Key Vocabulary — Jobs & Work

Expression Meaning Example Note
What do you do? ماذا تعمل؟ Nice to meet you! What do you do? Most common way to ask
What is your job? ما هي وظيفتك؟ Can I ask — what is your job? More direct
I am a teacher. أنا معلم/ة. I am a teacher at a primary school. Use “a” before job title
I work as a nurse. أعمل كممرض/ة. I work as a nurse at the hospital. Use “as” not “like”
I work for / at … أعمل في / لدى … I work for a tech company in Algiers. Mention employer
I am self-employed. أعمل لحسابي الخاص. I am self-employed — I run my own academy. Freelancer / business owner
I am a student. أنا طالب/ة. I am a student at the University of Annaba. For students
I study medicine / law / English. أدرس الطب / الحقوق / الإنجليزية. I study English at a language academy. Mention your field
I am retired. أنا متقاعد/ة. I am retired but I still love learning. For retirees
I am looking for work. أبحث عن عمل. I just graduated and I am looking for work. Polite way to say unemployed
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Common Job Titles

Job Meaning Sentence
Teacher معلم / أستاذ I am a teacher at a language school.
Doctor طبيب She is a doctor at the local hospital.
Engineer مهندس He works as a civil engineer.
Nurse ممرض / ممرضة I work as a nurse in the ER.
Accountant محاسب I am an accountant at a private company.
Lawyer محامي My brother is a lawyer in Guelma.
Translator مترجم She works as a translator for an NGO.
Freelancer عامل حر I am a freelancer — I work from home.
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Example Dialogues

Dialogue 1 — At a professional event

Karim Hi! Nice to meet you. I’m Karim. What do you do?
Ahlem Hi Karim! I’m Ahlem. I run a language academy in Guelma.
Karim That’s interesting! What languages do you teach?
Ahlem We teach English, French, Spanish, and more. And you — what do you do?
Karim I work as a software engineer for a startup in Algiers.

Dialogue 2 — Casual conversation

Nadia So, are you still a student?
Omar No, I just graduated. I’m looking for work now.
Nadia What did you study?
Omar I studied computer science. I want to work as a developer.
Nadia Good luck! I’m sure you’ll find something soon.
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Practice Exercise

1. What is the most natural way to ask about someone’s job?
2. Which sentence is correct?
3. Someone just graduated and has no job yet. What do they say?
4. You own your own business. What do you say?
✅ 1. B — What do you do?  |  ✅ 2. C — I work as a teacher.  |  ✅ 3. C — I am looking for work.  |  ✅ 4. B — I am self-employed.
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Listen and Repeat

Listen to the pronunciation of the key expressions:

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