Whether you bump into someone or hurt your friends’ feelings by mistake, apologizing with a simple sorry is the least you can do. In this case, knowing how to say sorry in Chinese, can become handy in your relationships with Chinese people. In this blog post, you are going to learn the most commonly used eight phrases to apologize in the Chinese language. Let’s get started by learning some situations in which you need to apologize!
Page Contents:
- Know When To Say Sorry In China
- How To Say Sorry In Chinese
- Formal Ways To Say “I’m Sorry” In Chinese
- How Do You Say “My Bad” In Chinese
- Summary
- Start Learning Chinese With Ling
Know When To Say Sorry In China
You are expected to say sorry in Chinese when…
1. You’ve made a mistake by accident or not.
2. You feel sorry for someone. If someone shared the bad news that happened to them. It’s always polite to express your sympathy with an apology.
3. You want to interrupt someone while they are speaking or you need to ask them a question or favor while they are working or on vacation.
4. You feel embarrassed about something. For example, if you meet someone you have met before but forgot their name, you would apologize.
How To Say Sorry In Chinese
If you want to sincerely apologize in Chinese, keep it short but mean it! The phrases below are very short and simple but they are guaranteed to work.
1. 对不起 (Duìbuqǐ)
Meaning: Sorry.
对不起 (duìbuqǐ) literally translated to the “inability to face someone.” It’s still used in this sense today. Meanwhile, it is also the most popular phrase to say sorry in Chinese. So, if you’ve done something wrong say 对不起 (duìbuqǐ)!
2. 不好意思 (Bù Hǎo Yì Si)
Meaning: Sorry about that.
The literal translation of this phrase is something like “not good meaning.” I know it doesn’t make any sense this way because it is difficult to directly translate into English. You can also say this phrase when you’re embarrassed or feeling shy.
However, this phrase conveys the slightest degree of feeling sorry in Mandarin Chinese. That’s why it’s only used to apologize for minor mistakes. Additionally, 不好意思 (bù hǎo yì si) is a polite way to get someone’s attention, similar to the phrase “excuse me” in English.
3. 抱歉 (Bàoqiàn)
Meaning: I sincerely apologize.
The term 抱 bào literally means “to embrace,” “to hold,” or “to carry,” while 抱歉 bàoqiàn literally means “to hold regret.” Given its deep meaning, this became one of the go-to expressions of the locals for expressing intense apologies in a formal manner.
Formal Ways To Say Sorry In Chinese
Here are the Chinese phrases to apologize in formal situations.
4. 我跟你赔礼道歉 (Wǒ Gēn Nǐ Péilǐdàoqiàn)
Meaning: Let me offer my sincere apologies.
赔礼道歉 (péilǐdàoqiàn) literally translates as “to make a formal apology.” This is one of the sincere ways to say sorry in Chinese. It is mainly used in formal situations and when your actions caused a negative outcome.
5. 下次不会再发生了 (Xiàcì Bùhuì Zài Fāshēng Le)
Meaning: It won’t happen again.
You can intensify your apologies by promising not to make the same mistake again. In this case, you can say 下次不会再发生了 (xiàci bùhuì zài fāshēng le).
How Do You Say “My Bad” In Chinese
Here are some phrases to accept your mistake and offer an apology for your mistake.
6. 是我的错 (Shì Wǒ De Cuò)
Meaning: It’s my fault.
When you’ve hurt someone’s feelings, admitting your faults is the first step in apologizing. In the Chinese language, you can say 是我的错 (shì wǒde cuò) to admit your shortcomings and take responsibility for them.
7. 我错了 (Wǒ Cuò Le)
Meaning: My bad.
The phrase 我 错 了(wǒ cuò le) means “I was wrong.” You can use this phrase when you realize your mistake. The closest meaning to this Chinese phrase would be “my bad” in English.
8. 我不是故意的 (Wǒ Bùshì Qùyì De)
Meaning: I didn’t do it on purpose.
If you want to apologize in Chinese for something that you’ve done accidentally, you can say 我不是故意的 (wǒ bùshì gùyì de). It means “I didn’t do it on purpose.” Even if something wasn’t intentional, it is still your fault and hence you owe an apology.
Summary
To sum up, let’s see what we’ve covered so far in the vocabulary list below.
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