英国人喜欢用一种婉转的说法来陈述和表达其思想

英国人喜欢用一种婉转的说法来陈述和表达其思想。这与美国人的“frank”(率直)形成鲜明对照。例如，对于“好”和“坏”英国人常常避免直接说“good” or “bad”，而说：“It's not terribly good.”(不太好。)“not too bad” = very good indeed;“not bad” = rather good.

“I am afraid”是英国人喜欢的表达方法。这是用礼貌的方式表达可能令人不快的信息。因此，“I am afraid”可以译成“抱歉”、“遗憾”、“对不起”。如：“I'm afraid we can't come.”(很抱歉，我们不能来。)“I can't help you, I am afraid.”(我帮不了你的忙，对不起。)“Have we missed the train? I'm afraid so.”(我们误了火车吗？很遗憾，是误了。)“Have you any milk? I'm afraid not.”(有牛奶吗？对不起，没有。)

在表态时，很少直接用“反对”一词，而是说：“I have strong reservation about saying yes.”“I am not very keen about something.”

在表达数量或程度时，不直接说“多”或“少”。如：“He expends a not inconsiderable amount of labour on something.”“Malta has played a not inconsiderable part in the Council of Europe.”

指责别人“说谎”，英国人避免直接用“lie”，而有几种其他说法，如“You flirt with truth.”(你玩弄真理。)“You are guilty of terminological inexactitude.”(你用语不确切。)等等。

用“肯定”的词语表示“否定”的意见，如“This is the last thing he would do.”(这是他绝不会做的事。)

还有一种修辞法，叫做Litotes(希腊字，意为反叙法或曲意法，即用否定的词语来表示肯定的修辞法。)如：“He is not a bad player.” = He is a very good player. “She was not a little upset.” = She was extremely upset. 又如，“It wasn't easy.”(此事不易。)意为：It was difficult.

When the British say "I hear what you say. " They mean "I disagree and do not want

to discuss it further." But what others understand is "He accepts my point of view."

当英国人说“我听到你所说的了”时，他们的意思是“我不同意也不想就其做进一步讨论”，而其他人却理解成了“他接受了我的观点”。

When the British say "With the greatest respect... " They mean "I think you are an idiot." But what others understand is "He is listening to me."

当英国人说“出于最大的尊重…”时，他们的意思是“我觉得你太二了”，而其他人却理解成了“他正听我说话呢”。

When the British say "That's not bad. " They mean "That's good." But what others understand is "That's poor."

当英国人说“不算太糟”时，他们的意思是“太好了”，而其他人却理解成了“太差了”。

When the British say "That is a very brave proposal. " They mean "You are insane." But what others understand is "He thinks I have courage."

当英国人说“那真是一个非常有勇气的提议”时，他们的意思是“你真是疯了”，而其他人却理解成了“他觉得我很有胆识”。

When the British say "Quite good. " They mean "A bit disappointing." But what others understand is "Quite good."

当英国人说“很不错哦”时，他们的意思是“有点小失望”，而其他人却理解成了“真心不错”。

When the British say "I would suggest... " They mean "Do it or be prepared to justify yourself." But what others understand is "Think about the idea, but do what you like."

当英国人说“我想建议的是……”时，他们的意思是“去实践或者做好准备证明你自己”，而其他人却理解成了“考虑一下他的点子，但还是做我想做的”。