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Study in the app →English · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 37
Could you help me? Podias ajudar-me?
Orientar-se na cidade e pedir com delicadeza. Vocabulário: city centre, street, corner, traffic lights, crossing, ticket, platform, queue, menu, excuse me. Gramática-chave: pedidos delicados. Uma ordem seca ("Give me a coffee") ou "I want…" pode soar mal-educada a um estranho em inglês. O inglês delicado usa formas de pergunta com "can / could / would" mais "please": "Could you help me?", "Can I have a ticket, please?", "Could I have the menu?". "I'd like…" (a coffee) e "I'd like to…" (order) são a forma delicada de dizer "I want". O coreano e muitas línguas permitem um estilo mais direto, por isso os alunos soam bruscos: "I want two tickets" ✗ → "Could I have two tickets, please?" ✓. Canto cultural: circular numa cidade anglófona — fazer fila, "excuse me", e "please" e "thank you". Canto da pronúncia: o som ligado de "Could you" /ˈkʊdʒə/.
Dialogue
I want two tickets or Could I have two tickets? — I want two tickets ou Could I have two tickets?
- Emma Here's the ticket office. Do you know what to say? Aqui é a bilheteira. Sabes o que dizer?
- Minsu Yes. I want two tickets. Give me two tickets to the city centre. Sim. Quero dois bilhetes. Dê-me dois bilhetes para o centro. (deslize: com um estranho soa muito brusco — "Could I have two tickets to the city centre, please?")
- Emma That's too direct for a stranger. Make it a question with "could" and add "please": "Could I have two tickets, please?" É demasiado direto para um estranho. Torna-o pergunta com "could" e acrescenta "please": "Could I have two tickets, please?"
- Minsu Could I have two tickets to the city centre, please? Pode dar-me dois bilhetes para o centro, por favor?
- Emma Perfect! It sounds much friendlier. And don't forget "thank you" at the end. Perfeito! Soa muito mais simpático. E não te esqueças do "thank you" no fim.
- Minsu Could I have two tickets, please? … Thank you very much! Pode dar-me dois bilhetes, por favor? … Muito obrigado!
Dialogue
Asking the way — Perguntar o caminho
- Jack Excuse me, could you help me? I'm looking for the station. Com licença, podia ajudar-me? Procuro a estação.
- Emma Of course. Go straight down this street and turn left at the traffic lights. Claro. Siga em frente por esta rua e vire à esquerda no semáforo.
- Jack Left at the traffic lights. Is it far? À esquerda no semáforo. É longe?
- Emma No, it's near — about five minutes. The station is on the corner, next to a café. Não, é perto — cerca de cinco minutos. A estação fica na esquina, ao lado de um café.
- Jack Thank you so much! You're very kind. Muito obrigado! É muito simpática.
Vocabulary
| 汉字 | Pinyin | POS | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| city centre | n. | centro da cidade | |
| street | n. | rua | |
| corner | n. | esquina | |
| traffic lights | n. | semáforo | |
| crossing | n. | passadeira | |
| ticket | n. | bilhete | |
| platform | n. | plataforma, cais | |
| queue | n. | fila | |
| menu | n. | menu, ementa | |
| excuse me | phr. | com licença |
Grammar
Polite requests: "Could you…?" and "I'd like…" Pedidos delicados: "Could you…?" e "I'd like…"
In English, a bare command like "Give me a coffee" or a blunt "I want a coffee" is fine with close friends but sounds rude to a stranger, a waiter, or a shop assistant. To be polite, turn the request into a QUESTION with a modal verb and add "please": "Could you help me?", "Can you tell me the way?", "Could I have a ticket, please?", "Can I have the menu, please?". "Could" is a little more polite than "can". For things you want, use "I'd like" (= I would like): "I'd like a coffee", "I'd like two tickets, please", and "I'd like to" + verb: "I'd like to order". These are the polite version of "I want". "Would you like…?" offers something to someone else: "Would you like some tea?". Korean and many languages can sound direct with a plain statement, so learners forget the softeners: "I want two tickets" ✗, "Tell me the way" ✗ → "Could I have two tickets, please?", "Could you tell me the way?" ✓.
Em inglês, uma ordem seca como "Give me a coffee" ou um brusco "I want a coffee" serve com amigos próximos, mas soa mal-educada a um estranho, a um empregado de mesa ou a um lojista. Para ser delicado, transforma o pedido numa PERGUNTA com um verbo modal e acrescenta "please": "Could you help me?", "Can you tell me the way?", "Could I have a ticket, please?", "Can I have the menu, please?". "Could" é um pouco mais delicado do que "can". Para o que queres, usa "I'd like" (= I would like): "I'd like a coffee", "I'd like two tickets, please", e "I'd like to" + verbo: "I'd like to order". É a versão delicada de "I want". "Would you like…?" oferece algo a outra pessoa: "Would you like some tea?". O coreano e muitas línguas podem soar diretos com uma simples afirmação, por isso os alunos esquecem os atenuadores: "I want two tickets" ✗, "Tell me the way" ✗ → "Could I have two tickets, please?", "Could you tell me the way?" ✓.
- Excuse me, could you tell me the way to the city centre? Com licença, podia dizer-me o caminho para o centro?
- Can I have two tickets, please? Pode dar-me dois bilhetes, por favor?
- I'd like a coffee, please. And I'd like to see the menu. Queria um café, por favor. E gostava de ver o menu.
- Would you like some tea? — Yes, please. Thank you. Queres um chá? — Sim, por favor. Obrigado.
Culture
Getting around an English-speaking city Circular numa cidade anglófona
Em cidades como Londres, Nova Iorque ou Sydney, alguns pequenos hábitos fazem a vida diária correr bem. As pessoas esperam a sua vez numa fila, suavizam os pedidos com "please" e "could you", e dizem "excuse me", "sorry" e "thank you" muitas vezes por dia. Estas palavrinhas não são vazias — são o óleo que mantém delicada uma cidade movimentada e cheia.
A fila: espera a tua vez
In Britain especially, the queue is almost sacred. At a bus stop, a shop, a ticket office or a coffee bar, people form a neat line and everyone is served in order. Pushing in — going to the front instead of the back — is one of the rudest things you can do. If you are not sure where the line ends, just ask "Are you in the queue?" or "Is this the end of the line?". Then wait. When it is your turn, make your polite request: "Could I have…, please?".
As palavras mágicas
"Please", "thank you", "excuse me" and "sorry" appear constantly. Use "excuse me" to get someone's attention or to pass by, and "sorry" if you bump into someone — even lightly. Add "please" to every request and "thank you" to every answer, even a small one. Speakers of more direct languages sometimes sound cold in English simply because they leave these words out. Say them a little more than feels natural, and you will sound warm and polite.
No autocarro e no comboio
Public transport has its own quiet rules. Let people off before you get on. Keep a little space around others, and keep your voice low — long, loud phone calls are frowned upon. Offer your seat to someone who needs it more. In London you will hear "Mind the gap" between the train and the platform. A card like an Oyster or a contactless tap pays for most journeys. And if you need to reach the door, a simple "Excuse me, this is my stop" is all it takes.
Em resumo: numa cidade anglófona, entra na fila, baixa a voz e embrulha cada pedido em "could you", "please" e "thank you". A gramática deste capítulo — as perguntas delicadas — é na verdade a gramática de conviver com estranhos. Diz as palavras mágicas, e uma cidade inteira fica mais simpática.
pronunciation
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