Common Mistake: “to present yourself” VS. “to introduce yourself”
– B1+-C1 (intermediate to advanced) –
Practice Your Listening Comprehension
Practice Your Reading Comprehension
February in Canada is a month of get-togethers. From holidays like Valentine’s Day (see blog post: “Valentine’s Day In Canada”) and Family Day to the largest winter Carnival celebration in the world (see blog post: “10 Activities Canadians Do In the Winter”), this is a great month to meet people in, especially if staying indoors due to the frigid temperatures is making you feel lonely.
Knowing what to say when meeting new people is essential in establishing both informal and formal connections. Knowing what not to say is also pretty essential. After all, when one is learning a language it is can sometimes be easy to make a mistake and communicate something that we do not want to communicate in the slightest. If you have had this experience while meeting new people using English, then this post is for you.
Many English learners, particularly those whose native tongues stem from Romance (French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Romanian, etc.) or Slavic languages (Polish, Czech, Slovak, Ukrainian, Russian, etc.) often make the mistake of saying “let me present myself to you” or “I want to present myself to you” when they are expressing who they are to someone new. This can happen at a job interview, a conference, a presentation meeting, or even in an informal environment like a bar or party. Such an expression is unfortunately incorrect and will deliver a very different message than the one that is intended.
to present yourself typically has the following definition in North American English:
to put yourself on display, meaning to put your body somewhere it can be seen by people; this often refers to showing your naked body to someone
EXAMPLES
“The first time I went to Montreal, I went to a comedy festival. I was having a great time, but then there was this suspicious guy wearing a long coat who came up to me and my friends. As he approached us, he undid his buttons and quickly presented himself to us before running away. Did he seriously just flash us!? We definitely saw his naked body. I was so shocked!”
“There is a famous scene in the movie called, The Notebook, where the two main characters remove their clothing and present themselves to each other before making love. The audience does not see anything, but the nudity is implied.”
to introduce yourself is the expression that should be used in situations where one is meeting people, instead. In North American English, this verb phrase typically means:
to explain who you are by providing basic information (name, job, hobbies and interests, origin, age, etc.) to someone you are meeting, typically for the first time
EXAMPLES
“We thought it important to hold a meeting for all of our new employees so that they could get to know each other. As such, we went around the room and each introduced ourselves, stating our name, role in the company, and one interesting fact that we knew.”
“In some Canadian provinces, it is illegal to introduce yourself as a doctor if you are not a particular medical professional. This remains true even for those who hold a PhD.”
If you find yourself in a situation where you are wanting to use the verb “to present,” then it should be noted that this verb is generally used in formal contexts when you are introducing another person (not yourself) to someone. For example:
“May I present to you Sarah Thompson, a Harvard graduate and published author in business management. She will be heading the project with us.”
“The networking event was great. She was presented to so many CEOs. She said that she made some excellent connections.”
So, long story short:
to present yourself = to show your naked body
to introduce yourself (standard) = to explain who you are to someone
to present someone to someone else = formal synonym of “to introduce”, just don’t use this to talk about yourself
Have you ever made this mistake before? What situation were you in? Let me know in the comments below.
