This tag is for questions regarding the polite use of words or phrases.
3
votes
4answers
375 views
Is it customary to call the former President George W. Bush “W.”, and Mrs. Bush “Bar”, in public?
Maureen Dowd deals with the comments of the former first lady, Barbara Bush in NBC’s the Today Show in her article titled ‘Silver Fox’s pink slip’ in New York Times (April 27):
“Asked on the ...
0
votes
0answers
45 views
Which form of address in motivation letter? [duplicate]
I am writing a motivation letter for a university in London, and I wanted to know which form of address is common?
Dear Sir or Madam
To whom it may concern
Thanks in advance.
1
vote
2answers
190 views
Telling someone that they are rude [closed]
I happened to tell a co-worker today "I'm sorry to say this, but I think you are being rude by asking me to do XYZ despite me telling you repeatedly that I'm not going to be able to do it".
I ...
1
vote
6answers
201 views
Polite/professional alternative to 'It turns out'
I have been tasked with coming up with a nicer phrase to use than 'It turns out'. It is to be used in situations like the below:
'It turns out' that we cannot...
'It turns out' that we ...
-1
votes
1answer
144 views
Is this a polite way to ask questions? [closed]
I want to send questions to someone, I want to ask you if this way is polite and if there are better ways:
I want to ask you questions, your answers would be appreciated
I want to ask you ...
1
vote
0answers
702 views
Is 'friendly reminder' a positive word? What is an alternative with a friendly undertone? [closed]
I send reminders to my customers all the time. And, I hesitate to use the word 'friendly reminder'. I interpret it as a soft reminders before aggressive reminders. It brings up an image of a thug ...
0
votes
2answers
134 views
What is a polite way to call something a conspiracy theory?
"Conspiracy" has acquired a negative connotation.
[Edit: As pointed out in the comments, it has always had a negative connotation.]
If you tell or even insinuate to someone that what they are saying ...
2
votes
1answer
282 views
Could I address someone by first name in business emails if he/she addresses me by first name?
I am really not sure about when it is appropriate to use someone's first name in business emails. If someone addresses me by my first name, but signs his email officially — full name, plus title, ...
2
votes
1answer
150 views
Is “pal” too informal when the other person is much older than me? [closed]
I have an online friend (here on StackExchange) and I happen to know that he is significantly "more experienced", he's a professor while I'm a student, and his contribution here is larger than mine. ...
0
votes
1answer
157 views
What should I say to people when I am passing them by?
I am talking about situations when you want to greet someone, without stopping to talk to them. In Russian, people usually say "добрый день" which means "hello." This is a greeting, not a valediction. ...
3
votes
3answers
201 views
British term for 'washroom'? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“Washroom”, “restroom”, “bathroom”, “lavatory”, “toilet” or “toilet room”
What is the British equivalent of the American 'washroom'? (Besides 'loo', of course, as it is ...
0
votes
0answers
10 views
“Could someone please” versus “Can someone please” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When do I use “can” or “could”?
Is either “can” or “could” more polite?
“Can” vs. “could” in asking a question
“Can I have one apple from your box?” vs “Could I have one ...
1
vote
3answers
259 views
“You got it” vs. “I got it”
When I watch TV drams or movies, I sometimes come across the expressions “I got it” and “You got it” meaning “I will do as you ask”. I am wondering if there is any semantic or pragmatic differences ...
-1
votes
1answer
500 views
How to politely ask to answer a question which has been ignored the first time? [closed]
Context: business email.
I asked two questions and only one was answered. The second one was completely ignored — I don't know if the question was ignored on purpose or it was just overlooked. ...
2
votes
2answers
203 views
Should personal pronouns always be placed at the end of a list? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“My friends and I” vs. “My friends and me” vs. “Me and my friends”
Is naming the first person last proper grammar or just proper manners?
“Julio and I” vs “I and Julio”
...
1
vote
4answers
379 views
“May I know your good name?” [closed]
“May I know your good name” is a typically Indian way of honouring the other person (who is previously unknown) by asking their name using an adjective like sweet, good, beautiful, et cetera — and of ...
1
vote
4answers
6k views
Is it correct to say “I kindly request you to…”?
Isn't kindness already implied when you say "I request you to..."?
When I say "I humbly request you to...", the word humbly helps me to label the state of my behavior during the request.
On the ...
1
vote
2answers
112 views
Can I ask a practical question like this “how am I supposed to know something”
Lets say I am working on a project with 2 other people and there is some information that I need to work, so Can I ask like this:
Can you please tell me "How am I supposed to run this script?".
...
5
votes
6answers
902 views
What do students call their teacher in class? [closed]
Well, years ago I was an English teacher in an English Teaching Institute. In the country I live, students call their teachers by saying "Mr. Teacher" or "Teacher" (literally translated) in schools. ...
2
votes
4answers
445 views
What is the formal way of saying “You have got something wrong”?
Let's say that I am working with my manager; he made some mistake which I have identified, and I want to point that out to him. So is there any polite way of saying "You have got it wrong."?
(By the ...
3
votes
5answers
460 views
Is there any reason why English doesn’t add respectful words in every sentence? [closed]
My mother tongue, Korean, and its neighbor Japanese have postpositions for expressing honoring the opposite in each sentence when we say to seniors or strangers if these are younger than the speaker. ...
5
votes
5answers
225 views
Is using the last name of a person without a title an accepted way of addressing?
I always heard people use Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms before people's names and that is how, I thought, it was done until I watched one of those Harry Potter films in which Malfoy (Sr) addresses Albus Dumbledore ...
1
vote
2answers
162 views
Present continuous form for a polite question?
Should we use use the present continuous form "would you mind if" to ask a polite question?
0
votes
2answers
896 views
polite way to ask someone to be patient? [closed]
I have seen the following line in mail replies from customer care executives -
Thanks for your patience
They write this when they are not yet ready with a desired solution. They write in the ...
0
votes
2answers
268 views
What is the courteous alternative of “Do you understand what I say?”? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“Does it make sense?” or “Do you understand me?”?
"Do you get me?", "Do you get my point?", etc?
What is the courteous alternative of "Do you understand what I say?"?
2
votes
1answer
272 views
How do words become derogatory or politically incorrect?
I know how words can become racist but I'm not sure how a word becomes derogatory or politically incorrect. If seems as though once one does, a new term is created to replace it that is not derogatory ...
4
votes
3answers
342 views
Bless your heart
Is "bless your heart" something only used by old women in the South (all I've ever heard)? Or is it ever appropriate for a man to use it without seeming unmanly? Does the term always have ...
7
votes
9answers
684 views
Is saying “who cares” impolite or rude?
Two people are talking about what tasks should be finished on time, and what tasks should be put off until later. The conversation was like below:
A: I don't think those tasks are important. We ...
1
vote
3answers
692 views
Dear Dr. vs Hi vs none in E-mail communication [closed]
I am in contact with the my doctor by email. We exchange about 3 messages per week, today we exchanged 2 messages. Now I have a situation where I think it is a bit silly to write each time Dear Dr. ...
2
votes
1answer
592 views
Condolence message: “I was sorry” vs. “I am sorry”
What is the difference in nuance between the following statements? Which would be more appropriate for a letter of condolence?
I was sorry to hear that your mother has passed away.
I am sorry ...
2
votes
3answers
666 views
Meaning of various valedictions or closing expressions
Related to, but I believe distinct from, the following questions:
What does the "yours" in "yours sincerely" mean?
What are some expressions that can be used to end an email?
...
11
votes
5answers
5k views
Popular alternatives to “thank you”
The context for my question might be a bit strange.
I have stuttering and therefore I have some difficulties pronouncing some words starting with particular phonetics. And I've found that if a ...
2
votes
2answers
2k views
Is it wrong to say “I hope this does not inconvenience you in any way”? [closed]
I recently had a dilemma regarding this. While the above sentence sounds okay to my ears, "I hope this does not cause any inconvenience to you" sounds more grammatically correct. Which one is correct?
...
1
vote
3answers
372 views
'Sorry, have you got the time, please?'
In this programme from BBC sorry is used in addition to excuse me to get one's attention:
Sorry, have you got the time (please)?
So I am wondering:
1) Is sorry common for a native speaker to ...
2
votes
3answers
2k views
Is the expression “see you when I see you” impolite?
Once, I have received feedback that using "see you when I see you" is not very polite.
Do you have the same opinion?
What other expression should I use in case I have no clue when I will see the ...
3
votes
3answers
243 views
I am afraid I look servile when I say “please” [closed]
In Korea, when I say "please", others think that I am servile.
In English, do I look servile when I use "please" in conversation? I want to know the intensity of the word "please" in servility.
7
votes
4answers
985 views
Is there a word to describe female between 'girl' and 'woman'?
I've been trying to find a word that describes someone that's older than a 'girl' but not yet a 'woman'. It seems the connotation of girl is an immature female that's still growing up. Whereas a woman ...
2
votes
2answers
249 views
How can I politely tell a customer that we only provide e-mail support? [closed]
I'm running an online e-commerce site but use only e-mails for customer service to cut the expense.
When a customer asks me by e-mail if he/she can call me for some questions, how can I politely ...
4
votes
3answers
884 views
What does “I'm sure you understand” mean? Is it rude?
This expression seems to be used even when the speaker does not expect the other person to agree with them.
What would the intention of the speaker be? Is the expression considered rude?
0
votes
0answers
762 views
Proper answer to “Excuse my bad English” [closed]
What is a proper reply for "Excuse my bad English"? I was waiting in a room and the interviewer, who is French, came in and said "Good afternoon and excuse my bad English". I just don't know how to ...
2
votes
1answer
336 views
Is it rude to say “how did you end up here”? [closed]
Is it rude to say, "how did you end up here?" to a teacher?
I said it to my English teacher, and then thought, "damn, I don't know if I'm supposed to phrase it that way or not."
So, is it?
2
votes
7answers
2k views
Polite phrase to ask for details [closed]
Usually, I send to a client "Cover Letter" with phrase "May I get the details?", if I need to get more information about his project. Suddenly, I have discovered that it is not very polite. And now I ...
-3
votes
1answer
2k views
“Thanks a lot for taking your time out for this” - is this correct? [closed]
I am not sure whether "for taking your time out for this" is correct? Basically I want to say thanks to a person who is spending his personal time to solve my problem at work. Kindly advise. Thank ...
1
vote
3answers
222 views
“thanks to (command)”
A friend who works in business says that she has been hearing a lot of polite commands worded as e.g. "thanks to ask any questions at the end of the presentation" (she has also seen this written a few ...
5
votes
2answers
2k views
Is “I'm screwed” a rude expression?
Is "I'm screwed" a rude expression, or can it be used when someone tries to say they made a mistake?
I overheard it from someone who seemed to have failed at his task.
0
votes
1answer
2k views
Etiquette of using the wrong sign-off in a formal letter? [closed]
I just sent a formal business correspondence to a company via email. The letter starts with "To Whom It May Concern", but I rather clumsily used the wrong sign-off (Yours sincerely). How much of a ...
1
vote
3answers
502 views
Addressing a former office-holder by that office's title [closed]
When is it appropriate to use an "expired" honorific to address or refer to a person?
In the U.S., former state governors are occasionally referred to as "Governor So-and-so", although they have not ...
2
votes
2answers
379 views
Should I use “the wife” or “my wife”?
I am not sure whether the best form when speaking of my spouse in everyday English is the wife or my wife.
I commonly read the wife (or the girlfriend) in reference to the author's significant other, ...
2
votes
3answers
227 views
“…and me” or “me and…” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“Me and my wife” or “my wife and me”
I keep seeing that it's just courtesy to put yourself last in a list of nouns. eg. "They went to the game ...
3
votes
6answers
723 views
Should one ever use the word “please” in an order or demand?
A police officer who pulls over a driver might ask to see his “license and registration, please.” Similarly, a border official might ask for a “passport, please.” However, in these situations, the ...
