Reviews

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  Dave - 2008-04-26 04:49:31

  Hello,
  Any comment I make is from US English viewpoint.  I try to learn about UK deviations as I can, but I do not always notice them.
  
  {May I have | I {[want]:[would like] note A} a cup of coffee and {[1]:[a] note B} sandwich, please.
  
  Technically there is no syntax errors, so as a written statement, the original is ok.  All the discussion is about usage and etiquette.(The "may I" form turns the sentence into a question however and that would need a question mark at the end)
  
  "May I have a cup of coffee and  a sandwich, please?
  
  "I would like a cup of coffee and a sandwich, please."
  
  If you do not want to read about usage but just need the proper way to order in the U.S. in a correct sentence this is all you need to read. The  remaining discussion is more involved with usage and etiquette (USA)
  (...continued in next submission...)

   

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  Dave - 2008-04-26 04:51:31

  (continued from last submission)
  B: This is a usage issue rather than syntax. 
  A seems more natural in the US.  If you use the digit 1, you are putting a focus in your writing on the number, rather than what you want.  It just did not seem right to have a digit when the theme is descriptive rather than numerical.
  In a sit-down restaurant where you are ordering only for yourself,  it would be odd to say "one" instead of indefinite article "a".  They would think it odd that you are keeping a numerical count if only one sandwich came with that menu item anyway.    I suppose if the same waitperson sees you many times and you usually order two sandwiches and THIS time you suddenly want to order one, then you could say "one".  Another case is when someone is taking your order at a window or for a "to-go" order. Then you might say a numerical count.
  
  

   

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  Dave - 2008-04-26 04:52:54

  (continued from last submission)
  So you may decide what the situation really was for the scene in which you are involved. A cafe implies sit-down rather than mass to-go ordering .
  If you continue to use one there, it should be spelled out "one".  Those cardinal numbers are fine if it is sentence involving counts of many things.  But for this situation, it just is not appropriate to have a single digit "1" distracting attention from the rest of the sentence.
  
  A : You can always say "want", but in the US it is considered a little demanding and sets a harsh tone for the interaction.  I do hear people say "want" but it is not very polite.
  "would like" softens the tone done and is considered polite....it is like saying "as you wish" (e.g.  "would like" = I want something but you can feel free to decline") .  But one would never literally say "as you wish" in the U.S...."would like" is the correct term.
  So that produces:
  
  "May I have a cup of coffee and  a sandwich, please?
  
  "I would like a cup of coffee and a sandwich, please."
  
  Of those two, "May I" is the most courteous, but would I (as described earlier is fine)
  
  Since you might be a native Russian, it might be tempting to say the closest  English literal translation of [можно/пожалуйста]:
  "Please to have."...that is really not going to work in the US. It is not rude and it is polite, but the waitperson may look at you for a second...it would surprise them.  "If you please," might occur in Europe, but it is not American. But at least it is polite, so it is not an etiquette mistake.  It just is not said in the US.  Try not to directly translate from the Russian into the English from this; it is better than saying "I want" but it just will sound very alien.

   

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• 

  John - 2008-08-19 18:53:27

  Good job. 

   

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