Sorry or I'm sorry.

[popri]

Today, I’m writing this because I’d like to know about European and American culture.
Let’s suppose you are a junior high school kid and you need to answer his/her teacher’s question in class. What do you say when you don’t know the correct answer? I’d be really appreciate it if you write sentences like a playscript writer does.

An English conversation book written in Japanese says ‘Sorry, I don’t know’. But I feel a kind of awkward because I wonder if junior high school kids would say ‘sorry’ to his/her teachers, which I understand the phrase a casual way to say I’m sorry. It would be sort of rare in Japanese culture. Many Japanese students would say ‘I’m sorry’, not ‘sorry’. At the same time, I wonder if students would apologize for their not knowing the correct answers in class. What do you think about it?

 

[probus]

Although you have asked only about Europe and America, I can tell you that in Canada we would use either, but just plain "sorry" without the "I'm" is probably more common. (In fact, Canadians are famous in America for saying "Sorry").

 

[teechar]

I’d [STRIKE]be[/STRIKE] really appreciate it ...

.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Today, I’m writing this because I’d like to know about European and American culture.

Let’s suppose you are a junior high school kid and you need to answer his or her teacher’s question in class. What do you say when you don’t know the correct answer? I’d [STRIKE]be[/STRIKE] really appreciate it if you would write sentences like a playwright does.

Teacher:

What's the primary natural resource exported from Rura Penthe?

Me:

I don't know.

An English conversation book written in Japanese says ‘Sorry, I don’t know’.

That's fine, too.

But I feel a kind of awkward because I wonder if junior high school kids would say ‘Sorry’ to their teachers. [STRIKE]which[/STRIKE] I understand the phrase to be a casual way to say I’m sorry. It would be sort of rare in Japanese culture. Many Japanese students would say ‘I’m sorry’, not ‘Sorry’.

They mean exactly the same thing. Both are good.

At the same time, I wonder if students would apologize for their not knowing the correct answers in class.

I wouldn't, but there's nothing wrong with it.

What do you think about it?

That's what this American thinks.

 

[Tdol]

You have to learn not feel awkward when adopting the customs of another language. You could say Sorry, I don't know to anybody.

 

[jutfrank]

I can't imagine any schoolkid saying sorry for not knowing an answer. They'd just say I don't know.

 

[Tdol]

Good point, but I could say Sorry, I don't know to the Emperor of Japan. There's nothing "common" about omitting I am.

 

[popri]

Since I don’t have a good impression of saying ‘Sorry’ to bosses and elderly people, I would never say the same thing to the emperor of Japan.

 

[tedmc]

Since [STRIKE]I don’t have a good impression of[/STRIKE] am not used to saying ‘Sorry’ to bosses and elderly people, I would never say the same thing to the emperor of Japan.

You have used " don't have a good impression of" incorrectly.

 

[tzfujimino]

Since I don’t have a good impression of saying ‘Sorry’ to bosses and elderly people, I would never say the same thing to the emperor of Japan.

What would you say instead?

 

[jutfrank]

I'm a little surprised that some of our members are on speaking terms with the emperor of Japan. He rarely talks to me these days.

 

[GoesStation]

I'm a little surprised that some of our members are on speaking terms with the emperor of Japan. He rarely talks to me these days.

A friend in Paris was an ichthyologist. She actually did have a rendezvous with the previous emperor when he visited her city. Getting into his quarters involved a series of encounters with security guards who were all doubtful about her story.

 

[Tdol]

I'm a little surprised that some of our members are on speaking terms with the emperor of Japan. He rarely talks to me these days.

We zoom once a fortnight. :-D

 

[Tdol]

Since I don’t have a good impression of saying ‘Sorry’ to bosses and elderly people, I would never say the same thing to the emperor of Japan.

That may well be perfect in Japanese, but in English we handle things a bit differently. Saying Sorry rather than I am sorry is not disrespectful to older people for us. It's not that we're disrespectful, but that we show respect in other ways,

 

[Tdol]

A friend in Paris was an ichthyologist. She actually did have a rendezvous with the previous emperor when he visited her city. Getting into his quarters involved a series of encounters with security guards who were all doubtful about her story.

He was a PhD in that area.

 

[popri]

That may well be perfect in Japanese, but in English we handle things a bit differently. Saying Sorry rather than I am sorry is not disrespectful to older people for us. It's not that we're disrespectful, but that we show respect in other ways,

Thank you so much for telling it to me. That’s what I wanted to know.

 

[GoesStation]

Thank you so much for telling [STRIKE]it to[/STRIKE] me. That's what I wanted to know.

See above.