I met somebody for the first time two days ago and the next day he sent a message on Facebook in which he said, "Thank you" and I replied "You're welcome! It was pleasure to meet you." Although it is a very simple construction, I've become confused after research I've done and because I will probably use it very often in the future, I would like to ask which one is more appropriate for this situation, and is there any difference in terms of meaning they suggest?
And as far as I know we can also say:
It was a pleasure to have met you.
But besides that, it is used in more formal writing? I have also read: "Do not use 'have met' unless they were your host and you are writing a thank you note." Is this correct?
pyobum
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asked May 3, 2015 at 18:46
Well, the first thing I must point out is that neither of these sentences are correct without an 'a' in them.
It was a pleasure to meet/meeting you.
As for whether you should use "to meet" or "meeting", it makes no difference. The meaning and usage is completely interchangeable.
I would not recommend using "to have met you" except for specific situations (like thanking a host). The meaning is subtly different. The first sentence means "I enjoyed meeting you." But the second means "I enjoyed that I got to meet you." It doesn't say anything about whether the actual meeting was a pleasure, although this is implied.
Lucian Sava
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answered May 3, 2015 at 19:39
DJMcMayhemDJMcMayhem
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I would not use either phrase, to my ear both need an "a", thus:
It was a pleasure to meet you.
It was a pleasure meeting you.
When the "a" is added then either can be used.
Other related phrases include:
It was pleasing to have met you.
The consensus of comments suggests that "It was pleasing to have met you" is not commonly used. It seemed OK to me, but maybe other phrases are better.
I am pleased to have met you.
answered May 3, 2015 at 19:29
AdrianHHHAdrianHHH
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They're both grammatically correct. The situations in which they're used are different though.
I would use "It is a pleasure meeting you." or "It is a pleasure to meet you." at the beginning of when seeing someone for the first time.
And I use "It was a pleasure meeting you" or "It was a pleasure to meet you." when I'm about to leave.
When to use which of your example sentences is all up to what tense the verb is in. If the verb is in the present tense, it's not going to be used when the event is almost over or after it is finished. When the verb is in the past tense, it's not going to be used at the beginning of the event because you're not done with talking with that person. I personally think using either of them during the conversation might be a bit strange.
From the second time I see that same person, I would use the verb "see" rather than "meet" as in "(It was very) nice seeing you!" only at the end of the conversation, and a reply to this would be something like "(It was very nice seeing) you, too!".
it's a pleasure to meet you: it's lovely, an honor, great to meet you idiomDefinition
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