You just came home from work a few minutes ago. You say this to start a conversation with your wife:
How was your day?
conversation starters, family, home 
You haven't seen your friend Matt for a few months. You're not sure why he hasn't been in touch. Now you're having a conversation with another friend of yours who also knows Matt. You remember that you wanted to ask about him, so you say:
I've been meaning to ask you: do you know what's up with Matt?
You're in charge of a committee at your church that is planning a fundraising event. You're having a lunch meeting with the other members of the committee. Everyone has had time to order their food, make small talk, and start eating. Now you want to start talking about the event, so you say:
OK. Let's get down to business.
You're studying in a coffee shop by yourself. You want to get up to use the bathroom, but you're worried that someone will take your books or move them. You ask a woman who's sitting next to you:
Excuse me. Would you mind watching over my stuff for me for just a minute?
coffee shop, conversation starters, gerund, request, strangers, theft You've organized a party at a restaurant for a friend of yours who's moving to another part of the country. You've gotten everyone's attention, and now you want to officially say some nice things about your friend. You say:
I'd just like to say, on behalf of everyone here, good luck in your new home.
You organized a going-away party at a restaurant for your friend who's moving to another area of the country. Everyone has been eating and talking, but you want to say some nice words about your friend to the whole group. To get everyone's attention, you say:
(Clear your throat) Can I have everyone's attention for a moment?
You're eating lunch with a friend. After you finish eating, your friend has a piece of food that's showing on her teeth. You want to tell her that it's there. You say:
Hey, um, you've got something stuck in your teeth.
"So" is a word with a lot of different uses. It's basically a way to mark the beginning of a conversation or a change in the topic. People often start a sentence with "so", especially when asking questions like in the example above. Other examples of "so" include:
casual, conversation starters, decision, planning, set phrase You're a doctor. Your friend tells you that her daughter, who's a high school student, has started to say that she might want to be a doctor when she grows up. When you see your friend's daughter, you say:
I hear you're considering going into medicine.
advice, career, conversation starters, doctor, gerund, hearsay, job, plans, progressive aspect You babysit a couple's child in the afternoons. They usually pay you at the beginning of each month, but it's the 5th and they haven't paid you yet. You think they haven't paid because they just forgot, so you want to remind them. When you see them, you say:
Hey, I just wanted to remind you that, um, you haven't paid yet for this month?
conversation starters, hesitant, intonation, money, nervous, remind, yet, 日本語サポート 