Welcome back to a new video, everyone. Today we’ll be learning polite English to sound respectful and confident anywhere you go. At the end there will also be real speaking practice to use what you learned today.

This video is part of my 3,000 most common English words series, designed to help you understand up to 95% of spoken English. I’ll be speaking slowly and clearly, so make sure you watch the whole video to get the most out of it.

The Polite Phrases You’ll Hear Today

Excuse me. Sorry. Please. Thank you. No worries. You’re welcome. Could you? Would you? May I? I appreciate it. These phrases make you sound instantly more polite when speaking English, and we’ll be using every one of them today. Let’s get started.

So we are going to be learning polite phrases and how to talk politely in English.

A Short Example Conversation

“Can you please take a video of me looking at this mosque?”

“Of course. You can also take a picture too, once you’re done.”

“Please. Thank you. How does it look?”

“Looks super good. You took a video and a photo.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. Would you like a photo?”

“I would.”

Okay. So that is one short example conversation using polite English. Usually, you want to be polite when you ask for things in English. I was asking Leon to take a photo and a video of me here, and then once he did that, I said thank you. Then I offered him a photo as well. That’s just a nice thing to do to exchange that service.

Walking Toward the Palace

Let’s continue walking down this way. So now I’m walking up these stairs and we are going to go to — do you know what that area is?

“MCA. It’s like a palace.”

I think it’s like an old government building. So it’s like a square. There’s a big grass area where they hold events — like a park. Exactly. Yeah, so that’s where we’re heading to right now.

And today is very sunny. Super sunny. I can see you’re covering your face from the sun. Did you put on sunscreen today?

“I did put on sunscreen, but the sun is in my eyes. So I’m kind of using my hand as a makeshift hat to cover my eyes. But now, the sun isn’t in my eyes anymore, so I don’t need to put my hand over my eyes to create shade.”

That was water. I thought that might have been bird poop that fell on me, but it was just water. There was a dangerous area back there for bird poop, right? Yeah. We weren’t recording, but we were walking and a big piece of bird poop fell right beside us. And I was like, “Oh my gosh, I do not want to get bird poop on me first thing in the morning.”

Oh, here’s Luckin Coffee. Let me know if you guys are from China. This, I believe, is a Chinese coffee. Oh, look at the cat. The cat is just chilling. I’ve never had it before. Should I get another coffee?

“We can get a coffee on the way back, or you can grab one right now. It’s up to you, really, because I think we might walk back this way.”

I don’t drink that much coffee, so one is enough for me. You already had one. I don’t drink coffee. I just drink water. But let’s keep going.

Arriving at the Palace

So this is that mosque. Oh no — this is not a mosque. It’s like a palace would be the closest thing. So kings used to live here, or royalty, I believe. Don’t quote me on it, but it’s across from the main mosque, which we saw on the way over here. Right now the royalty lives closer to where we’re staying, on that mountain that we see.

I actually was watching a YouTube video and apparently there are like dozens of royal families in Malaysia. There’s like one for every province or so, and then there’s like a main king. Every couple of years — I don’t know how it exactly works — the main king changes. It changes between each family, the main position, which I think is super interesting. So there are a lot of royals in Malaysia.

It’s super beautiful — the architecture, the brick. I like how it’s all a lighter color. But I think it looks too clean, don’t you think? I believe this is an old building, but it doesn’t feel like it. Everything’s freshly painted and the bricks are freshly washed.

“I don’t mind it, to be honest. The color is nice and it just looks clean.”

Yeah, I’ve never seen bricks this light, if I’m being honest. It just looks really clean to me. It doesn’t look fake. If the bricks were those deep orange bricks, I would not like it. But this color is quite nice, actually. Look at this tower — it’s a spiral staircase, right? Yeah, that would be cool to go up there, honestly.

The Five-Step Polite Framework

So this is a simple polite framework when speaking in English: attention, request, reason, thanks, and exit. Only five steps.

Step one: get attention politely. You can do this by saying phrases like “Excuse me,” “Sorry,” or “Hi, sorry to bother you.”

Step two: make the request. Some common phrases are “Could you,” “Would you,” “Can you,” and “May I.” For example: Could you help me? Would you take a photo of me? Can you tell me where this is? May I sit here?

Step three: add a reason. This makes you sound softer. Some example starters are “I’m not sure,” “I’m trying to,” and “I’m a bit lost.” So: I’m not sure where to go. I’m trying to find the entrance. I’m a bit lost. Usually, people want to help you if you show a little bit of vulnerability. For example: “Excuse me, I don’t know where to go. I’m a bit lost. Can you help me?”

Step four: say thanks. After they’ve helped you, it’s important to say thank you and to be polite. Some examples are “Thank you,” “Thanks a lot,” “I appreciate it,” and “I really appreciate it.” My favorite is “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

Step five: exit politely. Whether they help you or not, it’s important to still be polite when you leave. So if they don’t want to help you, you can say “No worries,” “No problem,” “That’s okay,” or “Have a nice day.” An example sentence is: “No worries, have a nice day,” or “That’s okay, don’t worry about it.” Then you can just go ask another person for help, and hopefully they help you.

How to Refuse Politely

Now, if someone asks you to do something and you can’t, you can refuse politely. For example, you can say:

  • “Sorry, I can’t.”
  • “Not right now. Sorry.”
  • “Maybe later.”
  • “I’d rather not. Sorry.”

Those are four examples you can say to politely refuse someone’s request.

Shadowing Practice

Okay, guys. Now we’re going to go through three shadowing practice scenarios. The first one, my brother and I will speak. And the second two, I will speak and you will read the yellow caption and speak back to me.

Scenario 1

“Excuse me. Could you take a photo of me, please?”

“Sure.”

“Thank you. I really appreciate it.”

“No worries. The photos look really good.”

“Thank you. I’m glad. Have a nice day.”

Scenario 2

“Hi. Sorry to bother you. I’m a bit lost. Could you help me? Could you tell me where the entrance is, please? Thank you very much. Bye.”

Scenario 3

Now you guys go first.

“Sorry, not right now. You too. Bye.”

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Now, let’s talk about some common mistakes.

Mistake one: “Give me something.” “Give me” can sound too direct with strangers. Use “Could you” or “Can I” instead. For example: “Could you help me?” or “Can I have this, please?”

Mistake two: “I want.” “I want” is okay with friends, but in public with strangers it can sound very strong. Use “I’d like” or “Could I have.” For example: “I’d like a coffee, please,” or “Could I have a coffee, please?” or “May I have a coffee, please?” Those are all a lot softer and more polite than simply saying, “I want a coffee.”

Mistake three: “You must.” “You must” sounds like an order. Use “You should” for advice, or “Could you” for a request. For example: “Could you speak slowly, please?” or “You should try this place.”

However, there are circumstances where “you must” makes sense and it’s honestly better to use. For example, if something is so good and you say to someone, “You must try this restaurant because it’s so good,” in that case it’s fine, because you are just talking about how good the restaurant or that place is. But if it sounds like an order — “You must try this, you must go there, you must do this” — then that could come off as rude and it sounds like you’re ordering them. If you’re using it more to express how good something is — “Oh, you must try this” — then it’s okay. It just depends on how you say it.

One Final Tip: Add “Please”

And one final tip you can add to make it sound even more polite is to add “please” at the end. This makes it sound more polite and softer. For example: “Could you help me, please?” or “Could I sit here, please?”

Pronunciation Practice

Now let’s practice the pronunciation of some difficult words.

  • The first word: excuse me. Excuse me.
  • The second word: would you. Would you help me, please?
  • The third: could you. Could you help me? Could you help me?
  • The fourth: appreciate. Appreciate. Appreciate. I appreciate it.

Three Review Questions

Now, I will ask you three questions, and I want you guys to answer out loud.

Question 1: How can you ask someone to take a photo for you politely?

Answer: “Excuse me. Could you take a photo of me, please?”

Question 2: How can you ask someone for directions politely and give a reason?

Answer: “Hi, sorry to bother you. Could you help me find the entrance, please? I’m a bit lost.”

Question 3: How can you refuse someone politely?

Answer: “Sorry, not right now.”

Closing

If you guys like this video and you want to see more videos like these — where it’s a mix of talking to the camera but also live comprehensible input vlogs — then let me know in the comments.

If you’re serious about becoming fluent in English, I’ve built a full speaking, shadowing, and pronunciation course you can follow step by step. You get instant access to over 60 video lessons right away, and I add three to five brand new lessons every week to keep the content fresh. You’re not just getting videos — you also get an exclusive ChatGPT prompt to help you master the pronunciation of any word, plus a step-by-step structure to follow so you know exactly how to practice and get the most out of every lesson. Inside, we train pronunciation, accent, rhythm, and natural speaking, so you stop hesitating and start speaking with real confidence.

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And remember, guys — you will become fluent in English.