Sorry, excuse me and pardon are three words which are used very commonly in English communication. Knowing the proper usage of these words is essential as they are used in our daily conversations.Although all three words have different meaning and usages,sorry and pardon can be used interchangeably sometimes.In this blog, we will learn the difference in the meaning and the usage of sorry, excuse and pardon in English language.



Sorry

Sorry is used to express apology, convey condolences, to give unpleasant news or to express regret, to ask someone to repeat something, to refuse an offer etc.

Examples:

I am really sorry, I didn’t mean that.
Sorry to hear about your loss.
We are sorry but all the flights are delayed.
I am sorry I couldn’t get you. Could you please repeat again?
Sorry Ritu, we can’t go out for a movie today.

Excuse me

Excuse me is used to grab someone’s attention, to move so you could walk past by, to go away from the place you are in etc.

Examples:

Excuse me, is this your wallet?
Excuse me… Can I go inside?
Excuse me for a moment. I’ll be right back.

Pardon

Pardon is not used as often as sorry and excuse me. Pardon is a very formal way of saying sorry. It is used to say sorry, to forgive someone for bad or wrong behavior.

Examples:

I beg your pardon, I didn’t see your dog coming.
The two criminals were pardoned.
John could never pardon Mona for her bad behavior.

Hope you have understood the difference between sorry, excuse me and pardon and their correct usage. We will list down some phrases that can be used instead of saying sorry and excuse me:

Please accept my humble apologies.
I would like to apologize for...
I can’t apologise enough for...
It was not my intention...
Please accept my deepest apologies.
Please accept my sincere apologies.
Please, forgive me for...
I beg your pardon
I regret to inform you that....
I am afraid....
Excuse me for …
Please excuse the mess in my office.
I am sorry to hear about....

Once your concepts are clear, you can speak in English fluently by using appropriate words. Learning English will become easy if you do it with the help of examples, as shown above. Join our online spoken English class and learn the nuances of English.

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