「恐れ入りますが」は英語で？

日本語のような敬語、謙譲語の言い回しは、英語には無いという話を聞くことがあります。本当にそうでしょうか？

■出演 ・カーラ先生(ETCマンツーマン英会話)

■聞き手 ・青樹洋文

☆番組の中で紹介した書籍

『その英語、ネイティブにはこう聞こえますSELECT』
(David A.Thayne、小池信孝 著、主婦の友社 刊)　

(※ 出演者が話した言葉をそのままテキストにして掲載しています。)

Well actually it is very useful like you say. For example, if a friend of yours ask you for some help or some advice or for something. It doesn’t have to be touchable. It can be an advice or some help with some mater or trouble. But it also can be like if a friend ask you for money to lend, to borrow. So you could always say I am afraid I can’t help you. I am afraid I won’t be able to do it this time. I am afraid I don’t have any money myself now.

So that’s also another way to, you know, basically when you say I am afraid, you say it from the heart. It’s not only about being polite or being correct or being nice. It’s very sincere.

It’s like you wish you could be able to help you or help this situation or to do something about it, it doesn’t have to be extremely hard situation, you can be just a very tiny thing like, for example, a shop is closed because it’s time to close. So this is not their fault. But they wish they could help.

Q So we can feel sincerity.

Sincerity, honesty. The person good will in this situation.

☆　☆　☆

Well, that’s also of course. The word “afraid” is to be scare of something, be apprehensive. Apprehensive is that you are not very comfortable in that kind of situation. The word, afraid, can have many levels. You can be very scared about something, but you also can’t just help it, if you can do it like you wish. Basically if you say I am afraid of water, it’s not that you hate for water. OK. You could go into the sea and you would love to. You wish you could go into the water. But you are afraid that you can’t do it. It’s above your good feeling, maybe in your past childhood, you had some problem with the sea water.

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“A nice world” of Electric grocery from DOGMAZIC