Point 84 ”I’d rather not say.” 初級ビジネス英会話

初級者向けビジネス英会話 Bizmates for beginners 第84弾は、”I’d rather not say.” です。

質問されて、答えは知っているけれど答えたくないことってありますよね。
今回はそんな場面で使えるフレーズを紹介します。

例えば、ヒカは同僚のタロウのスマートフォンが壊れたと聞き
“How did you break your smart phone?”「どうしてスマホ壊れちゃったの？」とタロウに聞きました。
「言わないでおくよ。」と返答したい場合、あなたがタロウなら英語で何と言いますか？

“I don’t want to tell you.”「あなたには教えたくありません。」
でも伝わりますが、直接的すぎて相手を不快な気持ちにさせてしまうかもしれません。

そこで、
“I’d rather not say.”「言わないでおくよ。」
と言ってみましょう。よく使われる自然なフレーズです。

発音もビデオでチェック！
ぜひこの表現を使ってみてください。

Hello and welcome to this Bizmates

for beginners video series and today's

phrase is I'd rather not

say. I'd rather not say. What does this
mean? We will find out but first

let's do our test. Okay so

I say to you I read

that happier people live longer.

Isn't that silly? You say, that's right.

It's been scientifically proven. really?

I didn't know. I hope you got that. OK,
let's go

to today phrase, I'd rather not say.

Okay so this is what I often hear though.

So let's imagine Taro and I are
colleagues

and Taro has a new smartphone.

Yeah, a new smartphone. And he says yeah my

other, my old smartphone broke.

It was broken. So I say Taro

how did you break your smartphone? What
happened?

And he's a little bit embarrassed.

He doesn't want to tell me. And he says

yeah I, I don't want to tell you.

You don't tell me? Why?

Why is it a secret? Why me? Okay?
So

this is kind of direct. I don't want to
tell

you. Maybe I will tell other people but
not you.

It has that kind of meaning okay. So

I don't feel so good. Okay so in this
case,

Taro can say this. So I say how did you
break your smartphone? What happened?

And he says yeah I I'd rather not say.

Very natural. Okay.

So if someone asks you a question.

It's a little bit sensitive or personal.

You don't want to answer, you can say yeah, I'd rather not say.

It's very polite. Okay.

But I don't want to tell you, is a little
bit direct.

You see the difference? Okay so let's
practice pronunciation.

It's not I'd rather not say.

But it's I'd rather not say. I'd rather
not say.

That "T" is really soft, almost silent.

Okay you try it. I'd rather not say.

Good with my question.

So how did you break your smartphone?
Okay.

No problem. All right for homework. Next
time I'm going to ask you

how did you break your smartphone. And you don't want to answer.

You say I'd rather not say.

Please remember this and we will see you
next time.

Thank you.