Michelle Kaplan (3:09)

Yeah, I love Rome, too. I really do. And one of my favorite places that when I visited Rome, I couldn't believe how beautiful the Spanish Steps were. Like, yeah, I, I was just, I could have been there all day. It's so nice, especially in the evening. And it was gorgeous when we were there.

Lindsay McMahon (3:28)

It was really crowded, I'm not going to lie. A lot of. A lot of people on vacation in the week between Christmas and New Year's. Right. And so we were around crowds a lot, which is not my favorite thing, but still, the Spanish Steps are beautiful. And we just took a break and we sat down right on the steps. Right. So we're sitting there for about 10 minutes, you know, And a lot of other tourists were also sitting on the steps or sitting on the little blocks of cement next to the steps. So it seemed like an okay thing to do. We thought we were okay.

Sponsor/Advertisement Voice (4:01)

We were tired tourists, you know, that

Lindsay McMahon (4:03)

kind of thing, deciding where to go next. And then a cop, a policeman came up to us and said, it's not possible. Right. So, Michelle, what comes to your mind when you. So he said, it's not possible. And then he kind of gestured for us to move, to stand up and kind of walk away or just stand up, to not sit there. What comes to your mind when you imagine this scenario?

Michelle Kaplan (4:32)

Like a, like kind of confusion and awkwardness? Because it's not possible. It's. It's just. It's not it, you know where. I guess what we would have said is something, you can't sit here or you're not able to sit here. Something like that. Rather than just, it's not possible.

Lindsay McMahon (4:50)

Yeah.

Michelle Kaplan (4:51)

I will say I really think I sat on the steps and no one bothered me.

Lindsay McMahon (4:55)

I don't know, maybe things have changed. Maybe because it was so busy and so crowded. Or I. Who knows?

Michelle Kaplan (5:00)

Maybe I'm wrong. Yeah. Cuz I got some nice pictures there anyway. Yeah.

Lindsay McMahon (5:05)

But I.

Michelle Kaplan (5:05)

But yeah, yeah, yeah. Did it feel like a little awkward for you?

Lindsay McMahon (5:10)

And I'm really interested in language and I think mo. The thing is, like, we understood and we got up and we walked away. Right. Like we got it, no problem. But because we're, you know, you and I, we're. We're linguists here. We love looking at language and making sure our listeners are speaking really accurately in the most clear way possible. We want to do today's episode on this tiny, tiny mistake, just so it's really clear, you know, because I have a feeling this is another false friend translation, right. From Italian. So the first thing my partner and I said to each other as soon as we got up and walked away, we kind of chuckled a little. We said, actually it is possible because we were just doing it. We were just sitting there. It is physically Possible to sit on the steps.

Michelle Kaplan (5:51)

Yes. That's what. That's what's in. Yes. That's why it's so.

Lindsay McMahon (5:55)

Yeah.

Michelle Kaplan (5:55)

Interesting. Because. Yeah. Something being possible. It's like, can it be done?

Lindsay McMahon (5:59)

It can. It's not.

Michelle Kaplan (6:00)

Is it allowed? There's a difference.

Lindsay McMahon (6:03)

Exactly, exactly. So again, what should the cop have said to us if we were not maybe not translating from Italian? Or if we want to say it exactly correctly, what could we have said?

Michelle Kaplan (6:14)

He could have just said, you can't sit here.

Lindsay McMahon (6:16)

Right. Exactly. Or if you want to elevate that a little bit and sound more professional, you could say, it's not permitted to sit here. So puts that more in the passive voice. Puts a little distance between us and the cop. Right. But saying it's not possible is actually incorrect. Subtly incorrect. Because of course it is possible. We were just doing it for ten minutes. Right. Okay.

Michelle Kaplan (6:39)

But this reminds me of the whole. And we've talked about this before, the can I go to the bathroom or may I go to the bathroom? Right. I think we've talked about this before. You know how kids, they always say, oh, can I go to the bathroom?

Lindsay McMahon (6:50)

Oh, I don't know.

Michelle Kaplan (6:51)

Can you? Right. And when adults want them to say may I? Even though I think that's ridiculous, because I think it's just conversational to say, can I? Anyway, I feel like when I was

Lindsay McMahon (6:59)

a kid, I heard that snapback. Some adults would snap back to kids when they would ask, and I didn't get it. Like, I didn't know why the adults were saying that. Right.

Michelle Kaplan (7:07)

It's because.

Lindsay McMahon (7:07)

Yeah, but I get it now, obviously.

Michelle Kaplan (7:09)

Right? You get. Lindsay, let me tell you. No, but guys. So it's because can is about ability. So it's the same idea as, like, if something's possible. Well, yeah, it's. Yeah, it's possible. I'm doing it. Right.

Lindsay McMahon (7:19)

Yeah, yeah. At the same time, don't let that throw you off, guys, because we do. You. You know, I go to a restaurant and I order all the time. I, you know, can I have Mac and cheese? Right?

Michelle Kaplan (7:28)

Oh, yeah. Well, that's why I think it. That's why I think it was so, like, ridiculous to, you know, to pick on. Especially to pick on kids about that. It'd be like, may. You know, I. I feel like may I is just kind of antiquated and agree. Yeah. So I. I just, like, this is like, I don't know, really picking.

Lindsay McMahon (7:46)

So at.

Michelle Kaplan (7:47)

Nothing.

Lindsay McMahon (7:47)

Nothing. So this is. Anyway.

Michelle Kaplan (7:49)

But that's a whole conversation for another day, guys. We Also want to remind you that we have an excellent app that is available on Android. Right, Lindsay?

Lindsay McMahon (7:58)

It is. It is available on Android. So, guys, our app is on Android. And I want to call out some listeners who reviewed our app in the Android. Thank you to our listener, Riik Roshan. Thank you to Peter Sarak. Thank you to Ali Ishag. Thank you to Maid Osaini, Jidu Mayra Waringer Lem. Guys, you all left us some amazing reviews. We super appreciate your reviews. So come on over if you are an app user and let us know what you think of the show. Or even if you're just a listener on Apple or Spotify, leave us a rating and review. Tell us what you think of our show. All right.

Michelle Kaplan (8:38)

Absolutely.

Sponsor/Advertisement Voice (8:39)

Yes.

Michelle Kaplan (8:39)

Thank you so much.

Lindsay McMahon (8:41)

Yes.

Michelle Kaplan (8:42)

So, yeah, so we're gonna, we're gonna get more into this today. Yeah. Again, maybe, maybe you realize, oh, I've said it's not possible. Right. So we're going to talk about, you know, these more natural ways to say that something is not okay to do. And guys, this is part of a series. So today we're focusing on saying you can't do something. The second part of the series is going to be over on the business English podcast. So if you are not following that, make sure you hit follow so that you don't miss the next episode in the series.

Lindsay McMahon (9:15)

Good. I'm so excited for this series. So important, you know, looking at these subtle translation mistakes where we want to learn the language from the language. The original link right from. We want to learn in an immersion. Sorry, I'm having a hard time speaking today. We want to learn in an immersive sense. So we're learning directly English through English instead of translating from our native language. Because I do think this is where this cop probably got into trouble a little bit. And by the way, like, it's only because we are language people, most other people wouldn't worry about it. It's great. But we, we're here for you guys. We want you to feel that you're speaking as accurately as you can for the best connection. Okay.

Michelle Kaplan (9:54)

Exactly.

Lindsay McMahon (9:55)

Good.

Michelle Kaplan (9:55)

So, yeah, as we talked about already, one thing the cop could have said was, you can't X. So in this case, you can't sit here. This is very direct. It's very blunt. Yes. And it's really good for a person of authority to you. So, you know, it could sound rude, but this is a cop. He's. He's just getting things done. There's a lot of people you can't Sit here. Right. And it's good for these short interactions. You're on the step, you can't sit here.

Lindsay McMahon (10:23)

Yeah, yeah. It gets a little more complicated if you're with your friends who are at your same level and you're starting to say things like that. Right. Because then you might seem kind of bossy and that sort of thing, but a cop is allowed to sort of say that kind of thing. So here's an example. You can't use these bags without paying for them. Did you bring your own bags?

Michelle Kaplan (10:41)

So, like when you go in and there's the reusable bags.

Lindsay McMahon (10:44)

Yes.

Michelle Kaplan (10:45)

And you're. Maybe you don't realize you have to pay for them or you can't use this phone. It's meant for emergencies.

Lindsay McMahon (10:54)

Good. Yeah. So just straightforward. This is the most, I guess, casual and kind of direct way of saying it, wouldn't you say, Michelle? Yeah.

Michelle Kaplan (11:04)

And the next one was the other one you were talking about, which is a little more formal sounding and more passive. So it's not permitted to sit here or something. Is not permitted. Yeah.

Lindsay McMahon (11:17)

Going into the passive voice, getting formal, putting distance, formalities. It's not permitted to use your cell phone here. Right. So maybe if I feel a little awkward saying this to someone if I'm not in a. I don't know. I don't know. Would you say this if you're not in a position of authority, do you think, Michelle? I mean, it feels very fancy.

Michelle Kaplan (11:40)

I don't know that I. Yeah, that's the thing is I don't know that I would say this.

Lindsay McMahon (11:43)

Right.

Michelle Kaplan (11:44)

Unless I was. I mean, perhaps like in the classroom I might say, oh, it's permitted to use your cell phone. You know, this is like really about, like a formal rule. I don't know that I would just say if I'm. If I'm like, okay, like I'm imagining a situation where I'm maybe, you know, maybe it's. We're like in a. Like, it's like a parade route and there's. There's like gates up. You know, they put up gates in the street and, you know, you're standing and there's somebody who's trying to get back and you just want to let them know, like, oh, you're not supposed to. Right. Go be. Go beyond here. I don't think I would turn to the person next to me and say, oh, it's not permitted.

Lindsay McMahon (12:24)

Right, right. Good point. Yeah. I think this could be used also if the person of authority feels awkward saying this. It's like yeah. Kind of hiding behind the rule a little bit. Right. Because it is so formal the way you're saying it. So you're kind of blaming the rule or the law.

Michelle Kaplan (12:40)

Right, right, right, right.

Lindsay McMahon (12:42)

So say something like, it's not permitted to go beyond this line or going beyond this line is not permitted. So you could put it in.

Michelle Kaplan (12:50)

Right, right, right. Exactly. And then another one is just you're not allowed to. Or saying something is not allowed. So you're not allowed to sit in

Lindsay McMahon (13:00)

this section or you're not allowed to enter this area without a ticket. And you hear kids use this, you hear adults use this. It's all over the place. Allowed is a very common word, I think.

Michelle Kaplan (13:11)

Yes, exactly.

Lindsay McMahon (13:12)

Yeah.

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Lindsay McMahon (14:32)

Okay. And that's not it, Michelle. There's more. So what else? What else can we say?

Michelle Kaplan (14:38)

Well, you know, those ones are like a little bit more on the direct side. So let's talk about some ways that we might soften this. Yeah, so you could soften this by saying, I'm sorry, but. And then give your explanation. Explanation. So I'm sorry, but you're not allowed to X. I'm sorry, but you're not allowed to sit in this section. It's reserved for premium ticket holders.

Sponsor/Advertisement Voice (15:02)

Yeah.

Lindsay McMahon (15:02)

And the interesting thing is whether you feel the need to soften this or not can depend on, well, number one, personality, but number two, culture. Right. I mean, some cultures are much more rules based and there's less of a need for maybe politeness or saving face, whereas other cultures really is. Saving face is very important. So it really think about your own culture and what you feel would be necessary. And of course, it depends on your position in society. Like are you a cop or are you an authority figure or are you just talking to someone at your level, like a peer or a family member. Right. There's a lot here, culturally speaking, Michelle.

Michelle Kaplan (15:42)

Yeah. Oh, my gosh. Exactly. Or I'm sorry, but you're not allowed to use these bags unless you pay for them. They cost $1. So going to that B bag example.

Lindsay McMahon (15:53)

Yes. Oh, geez. Or I'm sorry, but it's not permitted to sit here. Okay, so here we're using the old structure we just taught our listeners, but we're, we're, we're making, we're softening it a bit, padding it. Right. It is only for our premium members, right?

Michelle Kaplan (16:07)

Yes. And another one you could say is, I mean, this is really softening it. And you might need to, you might need to use this. I apologize for the inconvenience, but. So I apologize for the inconvenience, but it isn't permitted to purchase this at this time.

Lindsay McMahon (16:26)

Yeah. Now you might hear this too, on. From someone coming over a loudspeaker. Right. We apologize for the inconvenience, but this line is off limits. This is only for first class passengers, that kind of thing. Right. I apologize for the inconvenience, but you're, you aren't able to purchase more than one bottle of this medication right now.

Michelle Kaplan (16:46)

Yeah, sometimes they have limits. You know, I'm thinking Covid times. Oh, you're not, you know, but yeah, saying something like this. Let's just highlight this. You aren't able to.

Lindsay McMahon (16:58)

You aren't.

Michelle Kaplan (16:59)

Right.

Lindsay McMahon (16:59)

Able to.

Michelle Kaplan (17:00)

Which is kind of funny because it, it is kind of more the. It is or isn't possible. Right? You aren't able to. Well, I, I mean, but it's saying that there's a rule like.

Lindsay McMahon (17:09)

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, it's funny, Michelle, this makes me think of. Do you know where you can learn the most about the politeness culture of a city? Let's just say within the U.S. the airport security line. Because.

Michelle Kaplan (17:22)

Yes.

Lindsay McMahon (17:22)

If you go to Boston, Logan, oh man, watch out. They will be complete. I can't say the words on the show because we don't swear on the show, but they will be jerks to you. Whereas here in Denver, like, people are pretty smiley. You write the smile at you. Hey, have a Nice day. They don't snap at you.

Michelle Kaplan (17:38)

Yes.

Lindsay McMahon (17:39)

What do you think?

Michelle Kaplan (17:40)

And I'm very used to the New

Lindsay McMahon (17:41)

York airports and even worse, even worse

Michelle Kaplan (17:44)

than they're screaming and, you know, I mean, I understand where they're coming from because it's hard and they're repeating the same thing over and over and people don't hear and there's so many people. Yeah, but you're just. It's like. It's like you're terrified.

Lindsay McMahon (17:59)

You really. So. So we should prepare our listeners if you're traveling to the US And I'm sure this is probably true around the world, too, but I notice it really in the US because we can compare cities and the language that we know. Exactly. The language that's being used. Right. And there's a stark difference between certain cities. The security lines entering. Airport. Super interesting to learn about a city. Yeah. Just don't let it get to you. You don't take it personally. In New York, Boston, Philly maybe. Just don't.

Michelle Kaplan (18:25)

Philly was actually. I was surprised. Okay. It was kind of like a dream. Everybody was very nice. Good.

Lindsay McMahon (18:32)

Okay. City. Yeah.

Michelle Kaplan (18:34)

I don't know. It's also like the smaller. It's a. It's. It's not. I mean, yeah, it's a big airport, but it's not quite as big. It's not quite. I don't know. I've had a good experience there so far. Also, Florida, you know, anywhere in Florida is generally happy.

Lindsay McMahon (18:47)

Yeah. Maybe it just depends on the amount of sunshine in that city. Right. Directly. Yeah. Who knows?

Michelle Kaplan (18:53)

I wonder if there are studies about this in la.

Lindsay McMahon (18:56)

I didn't have an issue. People are pretty nice, too. So.

Sponsor/Advertisement Voice (18:58)

Yeah.

Lindsay McMahon (18:59)

It just. But just don't let it get to you. If you're visiting these more gruff east coast cities, just don't take it personally. Right. Because you are going to encounter people screaming and people being short with you. But it's not about you. Right.

Michelle Kaplan (19:11)

It's about what they're going to be done. Done. Like just, just on moving it. Don't get offended.

Lindsay McMahon (19:17)

Don't get offended. Yeah, exactly. So.

Michelle Kaplan (19:19)

But. But yeah. I mean. And then, you know, finally, you could also say just like, please don't. Right. And if you're not making the, you know, ple. Please don't. Please don't speak too loudly in this library.

Lindsay McMahon (19:32)

Please stand up on the airplane when the, the. The seat belt lights are on.

Michelle Kaplan (19:36)

Right, Exactly. Exactly. So. So then let's see. Let's do a role play.

Lindsay McMahon (19:43)

Okay, Michelle, here we go. So you are Working at a museum, and I'm visiting this museum. All right.

Michelle Kaplan (19:49)

Okay, here we go. I'm sorry, but touching the paintings is not permitted.

Lindsay McMahon (19:55)

Oh, okay.

Michelle Kaplan (19:55)

I'm sorry and I apologize for the inconvenience, but eating here is not allowed. You can eat in the cafeteria.

Lindsay McMahon (20:02)

Oh, okay. Thank you. Gosh, I'm ashamed of my museum manners here. Why. Why would I be touching a painting? Let me just see how this 300 year old paint feels, you know? Yeah.

Michelle Kaplan (20:15)

Lindsay, you gotta really, you gotta get.

Lindsay McMahon (20:18)

Who does that? Who does that? So here, Michelle, you said, I'm sorry, but touching the paintings is not permitted. So here's a. A context where you're. You're a museum attendant. You're probably going to want to be a little more polite because you're probably going to see that person for the next five minutes wandering around the room. It's not a gruff city feeling. Right. It's a different. So we're dressing it up a little bit with a little more politeness. Yeah.

Michelle Kaplan (20:41)

Yes, yes. So, yeah, I'm sorry, but touching the paintings is not permitted.

Lindsay McMahon (20:46)

And then what did you say?

Sponsor/Advertisement Voice (20:48)

Day?

Michelle Kaplan (20:49)

Well, then you said, I. Oh, okay, I'm sorry. And then I. Yeah, so, yeah, right. So then I said, and I apologize for the inconvenience, but eating here is not allowed. You can eat in the cafeteria. So I could have also said, you're. I. I apologize for the inconvenience, but you're not allowed to eat here. That would have been fine too.

Lindsay McMahon (21:04)

Yep. So again, you've chosen in this context to be a little bit more polite. If we were in an airport security line. Right. If that were our role play, you may have been.

Michelle Kaplan (21:12)

No eating. Throw away your bottles. No.

Lindsay McMahon (21:17)

Sometimes I'm so embarrassed for people just on both sides that they're being so rude and that they're receiving that rudeness. It's just. Yeah, but again, don't take it personally. Yeah. So, guys, look out. For the second episode in this series, it's going to be over on the business English podcast. So if you're not subscribed to that. Not following it. Open your search bar, type in business English. You'll see our yellow come up. And that is us. So hit follow.

Michelle Kaplan (21:40)

All right. Yes. And guys, check out episode 2562 of the Allers English podcast. That was. We're watching your English like a hawk.

Lindsay McMahon (21:48)

Was a fun one. Yeah. And for today's takeaway, I mean, guys, don't get me wrong, we understood this cop on the Spanish Steps. We walked away. Yo, he got the job done right. And that is connection on some level. That's what we talk about on that show. But if we want to fine tune our English, if you guys are at the C1, you know, B2, C1 level, and you want to know if you're making certain translation mistakes, maybe from your native language or just not saying something quite right, then this is what we're highlighting today. All right, so there are levels of achievement here, but connection can happen even at the basic level. Like connection already happened.

Sponsor/Advertisement Voice (22:21)

We got.

Lindsay McMahon (22:21)

We left, right? We got the job done, right?

Michelle Kaplan (22:23)

Yeah. Accomplished. Yes.

Lindsay McMahon (22:26)

Good stuff. Yes. All right, Michelle, you have a good rest of your day. I'll see you back on the show very soon.

Michelle Kaplan (22:31)

All right. All right. Bye, Lindsay.

Lindsay McMahon (22:33)

All right, bye.

Podcast Host (22:38)

Thanks for listening.

Lindsay McMahon (22:39)

To all ears.

Sponsor/Advertisement Voice (22:40)

English.

Podcast Host (22:41)

Would you like to know your English level? Take our two minute quiz, go to allearsenglish.com fluency score. And if you believe in connection, not perfection, then hit subscribe now to make sure you don't miss anything. See you next time.