English: Jobs & Professions

Level: B1. The question ‘What do you do?’ comes up in almost every first conversation. This lesson gives you the job titles, the three patterns for saying what you do, and the verbs to describe your daily work — so you can answer clearly and ask the same back.

By the end of this page you can…

…name common jobs with the right article, say where you work and what you do, describe your main duties, and ask someone about their job.

Saying what you do: three patterns

English has three fixed patterns, and learners mix them up more than almost anything else. Keep them apart:

• I’m a / an + job. → I’m a nurse. She’s an engineer.
• I work as a / an + job. → I work as a translator.
• I work in + field / place. → I work in marketing. He works in a hospital.

A fourth pattern names the employer: I work for + company. → I work for a small startup.

Common jobs

Modern English job titles have no gender — a woman and a man are both a doctor, a firefighter, an actor.

Note the word-building: many jobs end in -er / -or (teacher, actor), -ist (journalist, dentist), or -ian (electrician, technician).

The verbs of work

Describe your working life with this small set:

• work full-time or part-time; do shifts or overtime.
• earn a salary or a wage; get paid weekly or monthly.
• deal with customers; be responsible for a team or a task.
• apply for a job; get, start or leave a job.
• be unemployed (have no job) or be retired (have stopped working with age).

Describing your duties

To describe what you actually do, use the present simple and these frames:

• I’m responsible for + noun or -ing: I’m responsible for the schedule. / I’m responsible for training new staff.
• My job involves + -ing: My job involves meeting clients.
• I deal with + noun: I deal with complaints.
• I have to + verb: I have to travel a lot.

Example sentences

Press play and copy the rhythm. These are the exact sentences you will use to talk about work.

Quick recap before you practise.

A short conversation

Priya: So, what do you do, Tom? Tom: I’m an electrician. I work for a building company. What about you? Priya: I work in marketing — I’m responsible for our social media. Tom: Sounds interesting. Do you enjoy it? Priya: Most of the time. The hours are long, but I earn a decent salary.

Quick recap before the quiz.

Usage notes

• job vs work: job is countable (a good job, two jobs); work is usually uncountable (a lot of work, no work today). Do not say a work for a position.
• a / an depends on sound, not spelling: an hour (silent h) but a university (it starts with a y sound).
• what’s your job? is understood but the natural question is what do you do? — answer with the job, not with a full sentence about your day.
• boss, colleague, client: your boss or manager is in charge; a colleague (AmE often co-worker) works with you; a client or customer pays for your service.

Practice

How to say it

A few job words trip up English learners. Copy the audio rather than the spelling.

• engineer stresses the last part: en-ji-NEER, with a soft g.
• nurse has the ur sound of her: nurs, one syllable.
• colleague stresses the first part: KOL-eeg, with a hard g.
• salary squeezes to three light beats: SAL-uh-ree.

Quiz

Recap cheat-sheet

Next

• Previous lesson: English: School & Education
• Next lesson: English: At the Office
• New here? Start with Start Learning English Here
• Build the sounds: English Pronunciation Overview