Why do the British say 'sorry' so much?
英國人為什么那么愿意說“對不起”？

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獲得16.6k好評的回答@Lee Ballentine：

It means something different over there. In the United States, “sorry” has a few widely used meanings.
“sorry”這個詞在英國的含義和別處完全不一樣。在美國，“sorry”這個詞有幾個廣泛應(yīng)用的含義：

(1) As a form of apology. I’m sorry I kicked your shin.
（1）用來道歉。很抱歉踢到你腿了。

(2) As an expression of sympathy. I’m sorry for your loss.
（2）表達同情。對你的損失我深感遺憾。

(3) As an adjective meaning inadequate. You are a sorry specimen.
（3）形容“不合適”。你這個家伙不合適。

To these, the British add
說到這兒，英國人要補充一句

(4) As an interjection meaning “I didn’t hear you, could you repeat that?”
（4）用作插入語“我沒聽清，你能重復(fù)一下嗎？”

A: "Lie nuff cacophany?"
“謊話連篇？”

B: "Sorry?"
“抱歉能再說一遍嗎？”

A: "I said, would you like another cup of coffee?"
“我說，你再來杯咖啡嗎？”

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獲得70好評的回答@Nicholas Hayes：

I’m terribly sorry but we’re just doing it to be polite. Much like Japan, when your country develops it’s sense of manners under a system where armed warriors are the norm (knights/samurai), you tend to establish patterns of speech designed to reduce aggression.
我特別抱歉我們這樣說只是為了表達禮貌。這一點跟日本人很像，當(dāng)你們國家的禮儀是在武裝力量常規(guī)化的體制（騎士和武士）下發(fā)展出來的話，你們就傾向于利用語言來降低攻擊性。

At this point the swords are more or less gone, but the speech patterns are traditional and cultural so we carry on carrying on.
現(xiàn)在武力幾乎已經(jīng)消失了，但語言模式仍保留著傳統(tǒng)和文化特點，所以我們繼續(xù)說著“sorry”。

Sorry if that doesn’t illuminate it for you.
如果沒解釋明白我深感抱歉。

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（翻譯：菲菲）