Knowing how to apologize is an important part of being polite. You probably already know "sorry", but there are many other ways to apologize in English.
Apologizing for small mistakes
Simply saying "sorry" is most
common with small mistakes, like bumping into someone or saying someone’s name
wrong. In these situations, people often say:
Whoops! Sorry!
Oh! Sorry.
Sorry ‘bout that.
There are a few slang phrases
that you can also use for slight mistakes:
Oh, my
bad.
In a very informal text
message, a young person might even abbreviate "sorry":
wanna meet up
later?
sry, cant. busy.
Apologizing when you make a more serious mistake:
For a more serious mistake,
especially in customer service situations, you might say:
I’m so sorry.
I apologize.
Sometimes people say "oh
my goodness" or "oh my gosh" before they apologize in
these situations:
Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry. I should have watched
where I was going.
Apologizing for incorrect information
If you cause a problem with
communication, or give incorrect information, you might say:
My mistake.
I had that
wrong.
I was wrong on
that.
My apologies.
Sometimes you can say two of
these phrases together, and you can say "sorry" at the beginning or
end:
Sorry, my apologies. I had that wrong.
Making a formal or serious apology
If you make a serious mistake
with a friend, loved one, or coworker, you shouldn’t use casual language to
apologize. Try a more formal apology, such as:
I’d like to
apologize.
I want to
apologize.
I wanted to tell
you I’m sorry.
After these phrases, you can
add "for (doing something/ how I… / what I…)":
I'd like to
apologize for how I reacted yesterday.
If you want to, you can also
say:
I hope you can
forgive me.
That was wrong of me.
...if you’re very serious
about your apology.
Writing a formal apology
We use the most formal English
in writing. In this situation, you could use these phrases:
I sincerely
apologize.
You may want to complete the
sentence with one of these phrases:
...for any
problems I may have caused.
...for my
behavior.
...for my
actions.
Other contexts for ‘sorry’
There are a few situations
where English speakers (especially Canadians) say sorry, but they aren’t really
apologizing. For example, when you need to pass someone in a crowded place,
it’s common to say sorry, but you can also say:
Pardon (me)
Excuse me
You can also use
"Sorry?", "Excuse me?", and "Pardon?" (or
"Pardon me?") to ask someone to repeat what they said. In this case,
you should use a rising question intonation.