Polite expressions for communicating with British people

The English you learn in China is written language, but the English you actually use in daily life is completely different. In China, written English is basically used as spoken English, so when you come to the UK, you must learn polite expressions to communicate with British people.

Cheers mate!

Take the word "Thank you" that is most commonly used by the British. It is absolutely rare to hear "Thank you" here, like "Thank you very much" It is rarely mentioned. How do British people say thank you? They say "Cheers". Doesn't Cheers mean "cheers"? What do British people say when they toast? They also say "cheers" when they toast. . . The reason is that the British think Thank you is too formal and too old-fashioned. Young people say Cheers! and they will add Mate at the end. Mate means partner in British colloquialism. When I first came here, I heard people say "Cheers" every day. Plum, cut plum, I don’t know what it means, but later I found out it means thank you!

In addition to saying Cheers, the British also say "Lovely" to mean thank you, but it does not mean that you are cute! They also say " Brilliant”, “Cool”, “Excellent” and “Nice one”. In recent years, it has been popular to say “Ta” to mean thank you. Yes, it means “Ta”, which is a simplification of thanks. It is equivalent to an understatement of “Thank you”. UK How lazy people are...

There are also some British girls who like to say "Merci" in French and "Danke" in German.

Even if someone says thank you, there is no need to say "You are welcome!" to others. I have rarely seen foreigners say this sentence. Saying this seems to be doing others a big favor. In Chinese, it is too much. Take yourself seriously.

To summarize the British colloquial thank you:

Thank you (used by British old men and old ladies);

Thanks/Thanks a lot (a slightly formal occasion)

Thank you very much/Thank you so much (don’t say anything if it’s okay);

I do appreciated/Much appreciated (if you really want to thank others) ;

Cheers/Cheers mate/Cheers bro (the most commonly used term);

Lovely/That's great/All right/okay/Brilliant/Excellent/Super/Awesome (very authentic statement);

Cool/Nice one/Wicked/You star/Fab/Ace/Ta (very authentic statement);

Merci/Gracias/Danke (British young female pretentious ).

The British will use all the good words as thank you, and they will not feel out of place. These can only be understood in actual communication and can never be learned in books.

See you later!

British people rarely say "Good bye." or "Bye-bye." when saying goodbye. The first one seems too formal. , the second one is too childish. They will say: "See you/See you later!" and also directly say "Bye!" If the other party is going to travel far, they will say "Take care!"

Usually when getting off work on Friday, many people say goodbye: "Nice weekend!" to express the upcoming weekend.

See you/See you later (most commonly used);

Bye (less commonly used);

See you around/See you soon/Catch you later (if we can see you soon);

Take care/Be careful (if the other person is going on a long trip);

Cheers (can also be used as goodbye).

Are you alright?

Students who have experienced nine years of compulsory education must be deeply impressed by the classic dialogue between Li Lei and Han Meimei.

"How are you?"

"I'm fine, and you?"

"I'm fine too."

< p>Looking back now, this was an unimaginable conversation. In reality, foreigners would never have such a conversation when meeting each other. It doesn’t mean that foreigners don’t say “How are you?” but that they don’t ask others if they are okay. Generally speaking, if They know you. When they see you, they will say "Hello" or "Hi", and then ask "Are you alright?" If they are familiar with you, they will say "You alright?" or just one word "Alright?" At this time, you can answer "I'm fine/ I'm great," be sure to add "Thanks." If you are not very good today, you can say "Not too bad, could be better." In addition, "How ('re) you doing today?" is also a common saying.

Basic polite expressions

Although the British do not behave like gentlemen everywhere, it can be said that the British are extremely gentlemen when it comes to speaking.

For example, when you want to buy a cup of coffee, you usually say "I want a cup of coffee." It often becomes "I want to have a cup ofcoffee." This is very rude to a foreigner. Foreigners who want a cup of coffee will say: "Can I have a cup of coffee?" It should be "Can I have a cup of coffee please?" Not only should it start with an honorific, but it should also be followed by an all-purpose please.

Similarly, it is very impolite to ask someone's name by saying "What's your name?", especially for girls, you must use "May I have your name please?"

In When making certain requests to the other party, avoid using declarative sentences, try to use questions and negative sentences, and use a suggestive, requesting, and humane tone instead of a direct, arbitrary, and commanding tone. This may seem humble, but it is a basic courtesy in the UK.

"Can I...please?" (basic politeness)

"Could I...please?" (very polite)

"May I...please ?" (very polite)

"Would you please...?"/ "Could you please...?"/ "Is there any chance to...?" (asking for help)

Foreigners The way of thinking

There is a big difference between the way foreigners think and our way of thinking, which is reflected in their language which is very different from that in China.

When a British person thinks something is very good, he will not say: "It's very good!" He will say: "That'not bad." People will think that they are not too bad when they say this thing. Oops, it seems like it’s forced, but actually they mean it’s too good. On the contrary, they said "Quiet good." It meant that it was not very good, and it felt a bit disappointing.

When a British person disagrees with a point of view, he will say "That's a very good try." or "That's a brave attempt." It sounds like we are praising us, but in fact they mean to say " You are insane." or "You are an idiot."

When a British person hears a lot of things that he thinks are nonsense, he will say "Very interesting." if he thinks they are true. If you are interested, that is wrong, they want to say that you are talking nonsense.

When the British are angry, they will say "I was litter bit disappointed with that." We sound like it doesn't have much to do with it, but in fact they are really angry.

Other common expressions

Toilet toilet/restroom (do not say WC);

Girl bird/ chick (do not say girl);

Boy lad (not said boy);

Lovely cute (not said lovely);

Yellow hair blonde (not said yellow hair);

pound quid (Do not say pound)

Pants/jeans (do not say trousers);

Nice/tasty (do not say delicious);

Well known (Don’t say famous);

Here you are (Don’t say give you);

Sick/freaky (Don’t say niubility);

It's a shame (don't say it's a pity);

That's OK/it's alright (don't say so-so).

　

How do British people curse?

Although British people are very gentlemen in front of strangers, they often curse in front of acquaintances or friends. This is the most classic "Fu*k!" is a bit similar to the catchphrase "Holy shit!" But the British obviously use this word starting with F vividly.

If they encounter bad luck, they will say "What the Fu*k!/Fu*king hell!/Fu*k me!"

If they say "Fu* k you!/Fu*k off!/Motherfc*k!” is a very serious situation, and there is a chance that someone will take action, so it’s better to say less.

But if this word is used in front of some good descriptive words, it is not a curse, but an expression of being too awesome, such as "Fu*king Great!" "Fu*king fantastic!" "Abso- fu*king-lutely!"

If men are scolding each other, they will call each other pussy/cunt/twat/piss off!

If it is women scolding each other, listen The one I hear the most is bitch!

It’s just a few words that British people curse. Sometimes when I hear idiot/nerd/asshole/stupid/bloody hell, it’s not that serious. They can also joke among acquaintances. Put it this way

The most unforgettable thing is the British curse word "wanker!" The British special pronunciation method makes this curse word extremely flavorful. If you hear someone say "wanker!" in a bar, "You must look back and see that he is just that kind of authentic old British gangster.