7/12: Please / Could you
Pleaseはちょっと命令っぽくて強いので、Could youにしたほうがソフトになる。
There's a slight difference between the following two sentences.
- Could you tell me when the film will be ready?
- Please tell me when the film will be ready.
Both are ways to make a request, but the first is a bit more polite in this case. "Please 〜" can sound a bit like a command if it isn't offered in response to a request for direction. I'll show you an example.
A: What date should I schedule the meeting for? Q: Please schedule it for Wednesday, the 18th.
7/6: 電車の遅延
調整中な場合は、under maintenanceで良い。 When trains are delayed because they're being maintained, we say that they are under maintenance.
7/4: on hand / make sure that 〜
手元にない。 On hand
---
〜するわー、って言うとき。 When we want to express that we'll definitely do something, we use "make sure that〜".
ex) I'll make sure to bring spares next time.
7/3: スケジュールの調整について
(c)は時間割を変える場合。 (d)は日程の変更。
c) Could you change the schedule? d) Could you reschedule 〜?
If we use (c), we're asking someone to make changes to an existing schedule. We use this if we are talking about the schedule in the sense of "timetable". Changing it could mean adjusting the time of certain events or rearranging their order.
We can only use (c) if the schedule has already been defined.
6/28: different "include" and "contain"
材料について話をするときは、containを使うらしい。 When asking about ingredients, we do not use "include". We use "contain".
6/27: you can find 〇〇
〜はXXXにありますよー、という表現をする場合。 場所の指定。
- These dumplings are located in the frozen foods section behind me.
- You can find these dumplings in the frozen foods section behind me.
Both sentences tell the customer where the dumplings are located. The second is a bit more natural in this context: we use "you can find 〇〇" to invite someone to go find 〇〇. We frequently use this when selling things!
