Make a proper Response to Compliments

by Tom Johns

by Tom Johns

In Chinese when people say compliments,it is common to refuse them;for example,if someone says,"You speak good English",the response may be"No,no,my English is very poor."And people may say this,even if they feel that their English is good.To accept a compliment might seem too arrogant in Chinese.However,English people can reply in a variety of ways.In the majority of circumstances,it is perfectly normal to accept a compliment,unless the compliment is very obviously untrue.So people frequently respond by simply saying:"Thank you."For example if a guest compliments the host on the food,it is common for the host to say "Thank you.I am glad you like it."in reply.Sometimes people may even express their agreement with the compliment.For instance,if someone says "What a lovely room you've got!",the other person could respond by saying"Thank you.Personally it's one of the best in the nicest in this block.I was fortunate to be able to get it."However.expression of agreement like this is normally only possible when talking about objects;it can not be used after a compliment om ability(such as ability in a foreign language).But "Thank you"can be used on most occasions.Sometimes.though,compliments are not simply accepted.One common strategy is to make a related comment,but one which neither directly accepts nor refuses the compliment.For example,if someone says,"That's a lovely blouse you're wearing!"the person could respond with"Well I went shopping on Saturday and happended to see it in one of the stores." Or if someone says,"What a beautiful vase!" The response could be "It comes from India.My Husband went there on business last month." Alternatively, compliments can be returned.For instance,if someone say,"You are looking smart today",, the response could be "Thank you,So are you." Another possible way of responding to compliments is partly to accept them and partly refuse them.For instance,if someone says to a foreigner "Your Chinese is very good",the foreigner in response ,"Well, my listneing isn't too bad, but i still have a lot of problems with speaking." On the other hand,if people feel a compliment is reallly not true,they might honestly refuse it.So if Chinese people compliment foreigners on their Chinese ,merely out of politeness, foreigners might respond with "Oh,I wish that were true!" or "Oh ,actually i can only say a few simple words." Yet another way of responding to complimnets is to discuss them honestly. For example ,if someone says,"Oh ,you've had your hair permed !It looks beautiful!"the person might respond with "Do you really think so?I wasn't sure whether it suited me or not." This would then usually be followed by a discussion of the matter. However,people would not normaly give this kind of response unless they genuinely wanted to talk about the issue honestly.

About the Author

Craig Willis is an associate staff writer. Upon graduation, he started a career in academic writing and has been working on college papers and essays. Visit their website at: http://www.solidpapers.com

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