Do you feel guilty if you are late for work? One in ten workers said that they arrive late to work at least once a week and about 24% said they arrive late at least once a month.

情景对话 1：

王萍和客户汤姆约好时间见面，但因事迟到，她表示歉意。

Wang Ping: I'm sorry to have kept you waiting so long. 真抱歉让您久等了。

Tom: That's OK. What made you so late? 没关系，你怎么来这么晚?

Wang Ping: I was tied up with some urgent business. 有急事脱不开身。

Tom: I see. 我明白了。

Wang Ping: You've visited some places of interest in Beijing during the last few days, haven't you? 您已经参观了北京的许多名胜古迹，对吗?

Tom: Yes, we've visited many places such as the Imperial Palace, the Temple of Heaven and the Great Wall. Well, during my visit to Xi'an, I suddenly got an idea that we should build a synthetic fiber works there. It will be a joint venture. 是的。参观了许多地方，比如说故宫、天坛和长城。对了，在西安参观时，我突然产生了一个想法：我们应该在那里开办一家合资性质的合成纤维厂。

Wang Ping: That's a great idea. We'll surely try our best to cooperate with you. We have many favorable conditions to run a joint wenture there. You can get full support from the local government there.那太好了。我们一定尽全力与贵方合作。我们有许多有利条件。贵方可以得到当地政府方面的全力支持。

Tom: That sounds really attracting. And what about the details? 听起来确实很有吸引力。那么，有哪些细节?

Wang Ping: If it is convenient for you, we can go and visit the local government for those details. 如果你有时间，我们可以去拜访一下当地的政府，了解一下细节。

Tom: All right. Let's make it 9 o'clock tomorrow morning. 好的，就定在明天早上九点钟吧。

情景对话2：

珍妮迟到了，她不得不向她的主管马林做解释。

Jane: Sorry, Ma Lin, I'm late. 对不起，马林，我迟到了。

Ma Lin: Jane, that's the second time this week, isn't it? 珍妮，这是本星期的第二次了，是吧?

Jane: Yes. My bus was late again. 是的，公共汽车又来迟了。

Ma Lin: Is it possible for you to take an earlier bus? 你能搭乘一班早一些的公汽吗?

Jane: I think so. I'm going to do that tomorrow. 我想是可以的，我打算明天就这么办。

Ma Lin: Perhaps we can change your working hours a bit if you wish. 如果你愿意，也许我们可以改一下你得工作时间。

Jane: No, thanks. I can manage. 不用了，谢谢。我能设法应付的。

Ma Lin: All right. If there's anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to let me know. 好的，如果有什么事我能为你做，请尽管告诉我。

Jane: That's very kind of you. Ma Lin. 你太好了，马林。

Notes：

向别人表示歉意时，首先要承认自己做错了事，或做出了不礼貌的行为，并且通常要说明原因，表示遗憾。最简单的道歉方式是说I'm sorry。但这往往不够，还需要对你所做的错事做出解释之后，做出改正和改进的许诺，表示不会让错误再次发生。如果你真的做错了事，给对方造成伤害或带来不利的影响，这时做无谓的解释，只能欲盖弥彰，效果相反。