Different kinds of English...

Ok, this week I was reminded of all the levels of politeness in Japanese and that in English it is not really the same.

In English, we don't have special pronouns(watakushi, sama, ore, kimi, anata, etc.) to show levels of politeness. I think it is a bit less complicated in English but it is still a bit tough. What happens in English when people want to be more polite or formal is that they stop using contractions(It's==> It is), start using bigger words and more old fashioned styles of speaking.

Wanna go out for dinner tonight?

becomes

I would be honored if you would accompany me to dinner this evening.

In the formal example, it is not even a question but a statement and it is up to the person being invited to say(I would love to or I would be delighted).

So in today's lesson I would like to present a list of synonyms, words with similar meanings which I feel change how formal or polite you are speaking.

Formal -----------------------> Casual

challenging ----> difficult ----> hard ------> tough

tedious --------------> dull ---------------> boring

entertaining -------> enjoyable -----------> fun

fascinating --------------------------------> interesting

costly ---------------> expensive ----------> pricey

gorgeous ------- ----> beautiful ------------> pretty
(this can also show how strong the adjective is)

disheartening(adj) --> depressing (adj) ---> a downer (n)

revolting ---> disgusting -----> gross ------>yucky (kid's English)

frightening -----------> terrifying ----------> scary

delectable -----> delicious -----> tasty ----> yummy (kid's English)

So this will give you an idea of how using these different words will change the level of formality or politeness when you are speaking.

This apple is delectable~! (formal)

This apple's delicious~! (normal)

This apple's tasty~! (casual)

This apple's yummy~! (really casual and a bit childish)

Notice the use of contractions.

That movie was entertaining. (very formal)

That movie was enjoyable. (formal)

That movie was fun. (normal/casual)

In this case, the situation is casual so using a more formal adjective makes them WEAKER. It is strange to speak formally about a movie with your friends so it sounds like you didn't like the movie so much...

You also have certain phrases which may change like:

I don't understand. (normal)

becomes

I don't get it. (casual)

Ok, that is it for today. I hope you enjoyed the lesson if you have any questions just ask~~!

Phil