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Course: French English Spanish Greek
Explanations in: Greek English Spanish French
C2

Politeness and indirectness

Would you mind…, I'm afraid…, it might be worth…, not very: the British art of understatement.

English politeness, especially British, relies on indirectness and softening. A direct sentence, grammatically correct, can sound rude.

Direct (may sound rude)Indirect (natural)
Give me the file.Could you send me the file, please? / Would you mind sending me the file?
No, that's wrong.I'm not sure that's quite right. / I'm afraid that's not correct.
You must check it.It might be worth checking it.
I want a coffee.Could I have a coffee, please? / I'd like a coffee.
It's a bad idea.It's not the best idea. / I'm not convinced it would work.

Test yourself

  1. Make it polite: Close the window.
    Show answer
    Would you mind closing the window? / Could you close the window, please?
  2. Make it diplomatic: Your report is bad.
    Show answer
    Your report could be improved. / I'm not sure the report is quite there yet.
  3. – Would you mind if I sat here? – (accept)
    Show answer
    No, not at all. / Of course not, go ahead.
  4. Announce politely: The flight is cancelled.
    Show answer
    I'm afraid the flight has been cancelled.