原汁原味商务英语播客 第38课:委婉地拒绝(上)

 　　This is the first in a two-part Business English Podcast lesson on softening² negative replies – saying “no” politely.

　　这是有关"缓和否定回答"2节课中的第一节——也就是委婉地说“不”。

　　“No” is one of the strongest words in any language. Because it carries so much force, “no” is hard to say politely. Yet giving a negative reply, disagreeing or refusing a request are all things we have to do on a daily basis. So it’s important to learn how to say “no” in a way that enables you to maintain good relationships. In many cases this requires you to take a softer and more indirect approach. So today we’ll work on ways to soften¹ negative replies in a variety of everyday situations.

　　“不”是任何语言中最有力的一个词，因为它很给力，“不”很难礼貌地表达。但是给出否定的回答，不同意或是拒绝要求是日常生活中我们必须做的事，所以学会如何说“不”并让你们保持良好的关系很重要。在许多场合，这需要你采用更委婉和间接的方法。所以今天我们来研究在各种日常情形中如何委婉地说“不”。

　　In the dialog we meet up again with Nicholas Fisher, the European sales director for Harper-Tolland6. He is flying into Kiev to support local sales staff by meeting with a large potential customer, Avitek. This is a Ukrainian company that manufactures cargo³ and firefighting aircraft. In our dialog, Nick is being met at the airport by Harper-Tolland’s sales manager in the Ukraine, Oksana Ivanchuk.

　　在对话中，我们会再次听到Harper-Tolland 公司的欧洲市场销售主管Nicholas Fisher。他正飞往Kiev去帮助当地的销售人员，他将会见一个潜在的大客户Avitek。这是一家生产货物和消防飞机的乌克兰公司。在今天的对话中，Nick将和Harper-Tolland的销售经理会面。

1 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

2 softening   

变软，软化

参考例句：

• Her eyes, softening, caressed his face. 她的眼光变得很温柔了。它们不住地爱抚他的脸。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）
• He might think my brain was softening or something of the kind. 他也许会觉得我婆婆妈妈的，已经成了个软心肠的人了。

3 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。