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Tuesday
Apr062010

“Yes, I just wanted to verify that my payment has been received?”

There's a loan payment that you have to pay before a certain date. You sent your payment for the bill, but you're not sure that the bank received it yet. So you call the bank to confirm. You start the phone conversation by saying:

Yes, I just wanted to verify that my payment has been received?

Yes.

This is a way to start a polite phone conversation with a business when you don't know the person you're talking to.

I wanted to (do something)

In very polite speech, you say why you are emailing, calling, or visiting a person using the phrase "I wanted to ___". The phrases that can be used in the blank include:

I wanted to ask...

I wanted to tell you...

I wanted to check to see if...

just (do something)

Using the word "just" before an action makes it sound like you're going to do something simply and quickly.

verify that (clause)

To "verify" that something is true means to make sure. "Verify" is a more formal word and usually used in business situations where you don't know the person you're talking to.

You verify "that ___". You can also replace the clause with a word like "something":

Can I just verify something?

(something) has been (done)

Use this form when you don't want to say who did something (or you don't know who). In the example at top, it's not clear who receives the payments at the bank. So you say "the payment has been received".

receive (something)

You "receive" something that has been sent to you. It has the same meaning as "get" but "receive" is more formal and better for business situations when talking to people you don't know well.

?

Even though the example above is not formed as a question, it would probably be spoken with the intonation of a question. When you're asking a question, your voice gets higher (in pitch) at the end of the sentence.

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