{"id":1001,"date":"2014-08-02T22:03:42","date_gmt":"2014-08-02T17:03:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mdi.com.pk\/management\/?p=1001"},"modified":"2016-02-22T21:21:19","modified_gmt":"2016-02-22T16:21:19","slug":"what-the-british-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mdi.com.pk\/management\/2014\/08\/what-the-british-say\/","title":{"rendered":"What the British Say"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"SayThis piece was published in one of the English dailies or magazines (not sure now) but it is an amazing testament to the idiosyncrasies of the English language and an even more obvious demonstration of the bewilderment of the foreigners who have had the fortune to engage in this strangest of languages. Perhaps this was the secret weapon that the British used to conquer the world…<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What the British Say: I hear what you say<\/strong>
\nWhat the British Mean: I disagree and do not want to discuss it
\nWhat We Foreigners Understand: Good. He accepts my point of view.<\/p>\n

What the British Say:\u00a0With the greatest respect<\/strong>
\nWhat the British Mean:\u00a0You are an idiot
\nWhat We Foreigners Understand:\u00a0He is listening to me<\/p>\n

What the British Say:\u00a0That is a very brave proposal<\/strong>
\nWhat the British Mean:\u00a0You are insane
\nWhat We Foreigners Understand:\u00a0He thinks I have courage<\/p>\n

What the British Say:\u00a0Very interesting<\/strong>
\nWhat the British Mean: That is clearly nonsense
\nWhat We Foreigners Understand:\u00a0He is\u00a0impressed as I expected<\/p>\n

What the British Say:\u00a0I’ll bear it in mind<\/strong>
\nWhat the British Mean: I’ve forgotten it already
\nWhat We Foreigners Understand: He\u00a0will probably do it<\/p>\n

What the British Say:\u00a0I’m sure it’s my fault<\/strong>
\nWhat the British Mean:\u00a0It’s your bloody fault
\nWhat We Foreigners Understand:\u00a0 Why does he think it was his fault?<\/p>\n

Now here is the really interesting part. This is the way most bureaucrats speak and the way most politicians speak and the way most managers speak and the way you speak and the way I speak. The English were good teachers and we were great learners.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What the British Say and Mean are Not the same<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,19],"tags":[41],"class_list":["post-1001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-communication-skills","category-learning-and-engagement","tag-language","post-preview"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t