Wedding Speech Opening Lines: 50 Ways to Start Your Toast

A good wedding speech opening line tells the room who you are, sets the tone and earns you a smile in the first ten seconds. Pick one that matches the speech that follows: a light joke if you are about to tell funny stories, a warm line if you are going to get emotional.

Below are 50 original opening lines you can use or adapt, grouped into funny, heartfelt and speaker-specific lines, followed by a quick guide to choosing yours. Swap in your own names and details, because a specific line will always beat a generic one.

What a great opening line does

Your first sentence has three jobs:

1. Introduce you. Half the room probably does not know who you are. “For those who don’t know me, I’m the bride’s cousin” is not boring, it is useful.
2. Set the tone. Guests decide in the first few seconds whether to relax and laugh or lean in and listen.
3. Settle your nerves. A line you know by heart gets you through the shakiest moment of the speech: the start.

You do not need to be a comedian. A clear, warm opening delivered slowly works better than a clever one delivered in a rush.

Funny wedding speech opening lines

1. “Good evening everyone. For those who don’t know me, I’m Ben’s best man. For those who do know me, I apologise in advance.”
2. “I’ve been asked to keep this short, so I’ll just say the important part: the bar is still open.”
3. “Hello everyone. I’m Sarah, and I’ve known the bride for twenty years, which means I have exactly twenty years of material and three minutes to use it.”
4. “Before I start, could everyone please check under their chairs? No reason. I just wanted a moment to collect myself.”
5. “I’d like to thank the couple for this incredible honour, and for the free dinner, which was a big factor in saying yes.”
6. “I was told the best speeches come from the heart, so I didn’t write anything down. That’s a lie. I have eleven pages.”
7. “Good evening. I’m the groom’s brother, which means I’ve known him longer than anyone here, except Mum, and she’s agreed not to heckle.”
8. “When they asked me to give a speech, I said yes immediately. Then I spent three months regretting it. So let’s do this.”
9. “If you don’t know who I am, I’m the person who introduced these two. So if this goes well, you’re welcome. And if it doesn’t, I was never here.”
10. “I’ve been to a lot of weddings, but this is the first one where I’ve been trusted with a microphone. Let’s see how long that lasts.”
11. “Hi everyone. I promised Priya I wouldn’t tell any embarrassing stories, so this will be a very short speech.”
12. “Good evening. My name is Tom, and I’ve been asked to say a few words about the groom. So here goes: tall, punctual, mostly house-trained.”

Heartfelt wedding speech opening lines

13. “Looking around this room tonight, I can see every chapter of Emma’s life, and I feel very lucky to have been in so many of them.”
14. “There are moments in life you know you’ll remember forever. Watching my daughter walk down the aisle today is one of mine.”
15. “Good evening everyone. Before I say anything else, I want to say how happy I am to be standing here for two people I love so much.”
16. “I’ve written a lot of things in my life, but nothing has been as hard to write, or as easy to mean, as this speech.”
17. “Some people come into your life and quietly make everything better. Tonight we’re celebrating two of those people.”
18. “Hello everyone. I’m Jade, the bride’s sister. I have loved her for my whole life, and tonight I get to tell you why.”
19. “When I think about Hamish and Leah, the word that comes to mind isn’t ‘perfect’. It’s ‘home’.”
20. “Good evening. It’s not every day you get to stand up in front of everyone you love and say what’s in your heart, so I’m going to make the most of it.”
21. “Weddings remind us that love is something you choose every day. These two have been choosing each other for nine years, and tonight they make it official.”
22. “Thank you all for being here. I don’t think there’s a single person in this room who hasn’t been made to feel welcome by Nic at some point, and that tells you everything.”
23. “I want to start with a thank-you: to Mia and Josh, for letting me be part of a day I’ll never forget.”
24. “Good evening. I’ve known the groom since the day he was born, and I have never seen him smile the way he smiled today.”

Father of the bride opening lines

25. “Good evening everyone. I’m Peter, Kate’s dad, and on behalf of Kate’s mother and me, welcome to the happiest day of our lives so far.”
26. “Thirty-one years ago I held my daughter for the first time. Today I walked her down the aisle. I’m still not sure where the years in between went.”
27. “Welcome, everyone. I’ve been told the father of the bride gets to speak first, which I think is fair, considering who’s been paying the deposits.”
28. “Good evening. I’m Sunil, and I am the very proud father of the most beautiful bride I have ever seen. I may be slightly biased.”
29. “Before I begin, I’d like to welcome Daniel’s family, who as of this afternoon are officially our family too. I hope you like long lunches.”

Mother of the bride opening lines

30. “Hello everyone. I’m Jenny, Lucy’s mum. I promised her I wouldn’t cry, so if you see me stop, please clap loudly.”
31. “Good evening. Being a mother has been the greatest joy of my life, and tonight, being the mother of this bride, is one of its proudest moments.”
32. “Hi everyone. I’ve been planning parts of this wedding since Amelia was about four, so you’ll have to forgive me if I’m a little overexcited.”

Groom opening lines

33. “Good evening everyone. On behalf of my wife and me, and I’m going to enjoy saying that, thank you all for being here.”
34. “I’d like to start by thanking everyone for coming, and Hannah for showing up. There was a moment at the altar where I wasn’t sure.”
35. “Hi everyone. I’m the lucky guy. If you’re wondering how I managed it, so am I.”
36. “Good evening. I’m told the groom’s speech is mostly thank-yous, so get comfortable, because I have a lot to be thankful for.”
37. “Before I say anything else: Grace, you look absolutely incredible, and I’m still trying to take it all in.”

Bride opening lines

38. “Hi everyone! I wasn’t sure I’d speak tonight, but when else will I have every person I love in one room, with a microphone?”
39. “Good evening. I’ll keep this short, because I’ve waited a long time to dance with my husband and I’m not waiting much longer.”
40. “Hello everyone. I’m the one in the white dress, in case there was any confusion.”
41. “Thank you all for being here. Today has been better than anything I imagined, and I’ve imagined it a lot.”

Best man opening lines

42. “Good evening. For those who don’t know me, I’m Josh’s best man. I’ve known him since Grade 2, so I’ve had a long time to prepare.”
43. “I’d like to start by saying how beautiful the bride looks. Then I’d like to say the groom looks fine. Clean, at least.”
44. “Hello everyone. Being asked to be best man is a huge honour, and also a huge risk. Let’s see which one it turns out to be.”
45. “I was told to keep this speech PG. So I’ve cut it from twelve minutes to two.”
46. “Good evening. I’m Liam, the groom’s brother and best man. He asked me to say a few words, so: congratulations, mate. Thanks, everyone.”

Maid of honour opening lines

47. “Hi everyone. I’m Ella, and I’ve been Sophie’s best friend since we were seven, which means I’ve seen every haircut, every crush and every bad decision. Don’t worry, Soph, I’m only telling them about one.”
48. “Good evening. I’m the maid of honour, which mostly means I’ve spent the past year answering texts at midnight about napkin colours.”
49. “Hello everyone. When Rach asked me to be her maid of honour, I cried. When she told me I had to give a speech, I cried again, for different reasons.”
50. “Good evening. I’m Tara, the bride’s big sister. I’ve been looking out for her for twenty-six years, and tonight I officially hand that job over.”

The couple your speech is really for.

How to pick your opening line

Choose the opener after you have written the rest of your speech. It is much easier to find the right first line when you know where the speech is going.

If your speech is…	Choose an opener that…	Try lines
Mostly funny stories	Gets a small laugh and tells the room to relax	1, 6, 12, 43
Emotional or sentimental	Is warm and slow, with no joke to undercut it	14, 16, 19, 26
A mix of both	Starts light, then turns warm in the next sentence	3, 30, 47
Very short (under a minute)	Introduces you and gets straight to the point	15, 23, 39
From a parent	Welcomes guests and the other family	25, 29, 31
From someone nervous	Is easy to say and acknowledges the moment kindly	20, 30, 49

Four quick tests

• Can you say it without looking down? If not, simplify it.
• Will everyone get it? Grandparents, colleagues and the partner’s family should all understand the line without background.
• Is it kind? A gentle tease is fine. Anything at the couple’s expense that you would not say to their face is not.
• Does it lead naturally into your next sentence? Read the first three lines aloud together to check.

Opening lines to avoid

• The dictionary definition. “The Oxford Dictionary defines marriage as…” Guests have heard it many times.
• The apology. “I’m not very good at this” makes the room nervous for you. Just start.
• The inside joke. If it needs a minute of explanation, save it for the after-party.
• The ex. No opening line should mention anyone’s previous relationship.
• The long thank-you list. Thank-yous belong after you have introduced yourself, not as your opener.

Nailing the first 30 seconds

• Wait for quiet. Let the MC finish, stand still, smile and count to two before you speak.
• Hold the microphone close and a little below your chin, and keep it there.
• Say your name slowly. It is the one part of your speech everyone needs to hear.
• Pause after a joke. If it lands, the laugh needs room. If it doesn’t, the pause still looks intentional.
• Know the first three sentences by heart so you can make eye contact with the couple while your nerves settle.

Where to go next

Once your opener is sorted, the rest is easier. Find your place in the night with our wedding speech order guide, borrow structure from 20 short wedding speeches under 3 minutes, or go straight to examples for your role: father of the bride, mother of the bride, best man, groom, bride or maid of honour.

Speeches are only one way guests share their words on the night. With an audio guestbook, every guest can leave a voice message for the couple, and a photo booth captures the faces that go with them. If you are planning a Melbourne wedding, tell us your date and we will confirm availability.

Wedding speech opening line questions