Politeness in the English Language

Dies war unser Thema in der letzten „Peacock Chit-Chat“ Show auf Instagram. Du kannst die Live Show jeden Donnerstag um 19 Uhr auf https://www.instagram.com/peacock_school/ verfolgen. Anbei eine Zusammenfassung auf Englisch über die Höflichkeitsflosken in der englischen Sprache:

In some formal situations such as job interviews or meetings with clients & colleagues, or when requesting help or service, it is important to speak in a polite manner. If you ignore the little niceties and formalities of the English language, you might come across as rude or unprofessional. Here are some expressions to make you sound more polite in English conversations:

A. Polite phrases you can use when you don’t understand what your counterpart has said:
a) Pardon?
b) I beg your pardon?
c) I am sorry, I didn’t catch what you said.
d) Sorry, what did you say? Could you repeat that, please.
e) Would you mind repeating* that?
f) I am afraid, I didn’t catch that. Could you repeat that, please?
g) Sorry, I didn’t catch that. Can you repeat that, please?

        *ing= “Mind" is followed by an "-ing" form when it is followed by a verb.

          . . . and please, never say:  WHAT???  This is considered very rude!!

B. Making a request in a restaurant:
a) May I have a glass of red wine, please?
b) Could I have a glass of red wine, please?
c) Can I have a glass of red wine, please? (AmE.)

C. Making a request to close the window:
a) Would you mind closing* the window, please?
b) Would you be so kind to close the window, please?
c) Could you please close the window?
d) I would appreciate if you could close the window, please?
e) Can you please close the window?

*ing= “Mind“ is followed by an „-ing“ form when it is followed by a verb.

D. Disagreeing politely:

There are many situations in which you might not agree with your counterpart, for instance in a meeting. Try using these phrases to soften your tone and express your opinion without offending the person:

a) I see what you mean, but . . .
b) I’m afraid I don’t see it that way, because . . .
c) I understand what you are saying, but . . .
d) I respect your point, but . . .
e) I am not so sure about that . . .
f) You could be right, but don’t forget that . . .
g) I respect your point, but . . .

A funny story about politeness:
The story is told of two polite people who were having dinner together. On the table there was a dish with one big piece of fish and one small piece of fish. They politely said to each other: “You may choose first.” “No, you may choose first.” This went on for a while. Then the first person said, “OK, I’ll take first.” And he took the BIG piece of fish. The second person said, “Why did you take the big piece? That’s not polite!” The first person said, “Which piece would YOU have taken?” The second person replied, “Why, I would have taken the SMALL piece, of course.” The first person said, “Well, that’s what you have now!”

Apologies
Brits are the undisputed world champions in the sub-category of Sheer Volume of Apologies Per Capita.
Brits over-apologize, especially for things beyond their temporal control.
‚Sorry‘ is the best, if not the only, way to start a sentence. „Sorry, would you mind…“.

Stiff Upper Lip:
Someone who has a stiff upper lip does not show their feelings when they are upset:
He was taught to keep a stiff upper lip, whatever happens.

Idioms:
The done thing – what you are expected to do in a social situation.

Mind your p’s and q’s – to make an effort to be especially polite in a particular situation:
I have to mind my p’s and q’s when I’m with my grandmother.

Excuse my French – said when you are pretending to be sorry for using a word that may be considered offensive: Pardon my French, but that’s a damned shame!

Bow and scrape – to show too much politeness or attention to someone