40 Different Ways To Say YES and NO in English

Yes and no are two of the first words you learn in an English class, but native English speakers don't always say that. Instead, we might say, absolutely, you bet, I'd rather not, or no way. And each expression communicates something a little different. Today you'll learn 40 different ways to say yes and no in English. We'll look at when to use each one, whether it's formal or informal, and the extra meaning Everything it can express. By the end of this lesson, you'll have lots of natural alternatives to a simple yes or no. Make sure to download your lesson guide to review and remember all of today's expressions. Click on the link in the video description and enter your email address to get that free PDF. Let's start with these 20 ways to say yes. Instead of just showing you a big list of words, I'm going to show each one inside a little situation. Do you have a dog? Yeah. Yup or yep. Those all simply mean yes, with no additional meaning. They're all pretty informal, so you should avoid them in more professional situations like job interviews. Have you bought the tickets? Mm-hmm. Uh-huh. Those sounds both mean yes. Sometimes people use these when they are distracted and not completely paying attention to the person asking the question. Are you going to the party? For sure. You bet. These both express enthusiasm, like saying definitely yes. They're both more informal expressions. Are you interested in working with our company? Definitely. That's a more professional way to express an enthusiastic yes. Will you have this report done by Friday? Absolutely. Without a doubt. Those express 100% certainty. You are guaranteeing that the answer is yes. Can you give me a ride? Sure. No problem. I'd be happy to. We can use sure to mean yes when responding to a request for a favor, like can you give me a ride, or in response to an offer, like do you want some ice cream? Sure. You can use it in both formal and informal situations, again, in reply to favors and offers. We don't use sure when replying to questions about facts, like do you have a dog or are No problem and I'd be happy to are also common replies when you want to say yes to someone asking you a favor. Can you put me in touch with the director of marketing? Of course. Certainly. Those are more formal or professional ways to agree to a request or favor. Want to join us for lunch? I'd love to. I'd love to is a way to give an enthusiastic yes, specifically to an invitation. Someone invites you to a party or to a meal or to participate in an activity. I'd love to can be used in both formal and informal situations. Can I borrow your pen? Go ahead. Be my guest. Those phrases are used to say yes when someone asks your permission to do something. For granting permission, we could also say sure. Should we order some pizza tonight? Why not? The expression, why not, means yes. More specifically, it means there's no good reason not to do this action. It's often used to reply to suggestions and ideas for future plans or possibilities. It's raining. Are you going to cancel the picnic this afternoon? I guess so. The phrase, I guess so, expresses a reluctant yes. When you are saying yes, but you don't really want to say yes, or you're somewhat sad about the yes. As you can see, native English speakers use many different expressions beyond a simple yes. If you want to transform basic or simple English phrases into more natural, more fluent expressions, check out my Say This, Not That Challenge. You'll find the link in the video description. In the 10-day challenge, you'll turn 100 simple phrases into 200-plus natural expressions that native speakers use in day-to-day life. Let's continue with different ways to say no. These are especially important to learn because we often want to be polite when declining an invitation or request. It sometimes sounds a little rude to just say no. Or maybe you want to add some additional information to the simple answer of no. A lot of today's expressions include extra meaning. Again, I'll show you each one in context. Are you from Canada? Nope. Nope is simply an informal way to say no. Do you like to read? Nah is another informal way to say no, and we typically use it for replying to questions about our preferences, opinions, or plans, not to questions about facts, like are you from Canada or is the bank still open? Nah sounds a little bit like you don't care, so I'd avoid it in situations where someone is inviting you to something or asking if you like their work. Have you seen this movie? Uh-uh. Mm-mm. Those sounds both mean no. Those sounds both mean no and they're often accompanied by a little head shake. Sometimes people use those when they're distracted and not completely paying attention to the person asking the question. Did you take out the trash? Not yet. Replying not yet expresses that something is not true in the past or present but probably will be true in the future. So you'd say not yet if you haven't taken out the trash but you will do it later. Are you taking any classes? Not right now. This answer expresses that something is not true in the present but maybe was true in the past or will be true in the future. So if you took classes in the past but stopped, you could say not right now. Or if you aren't taking classes currently but you plan to do so in the future, you could also say not right now. Is the bank open on Sunday? I don't think so. Probably not. Those are ways to say no when you are not a hundred percent certain. It's more common and natural to say, I don't think so, instead of I think not. Do you want something to drink? No, thanks. No, thank you. Those are both polite ways to say no when someone offers you something. Are you going to buy those $200 shoes? No way. Absolutely not. Those express a strong no. The phrase no way is more informal. Want to come to our barbecue this weekend? I'm afraid I can't. I wish I could, but... Maybe another time. Those are all polite ways to say no to an invitation. Want to go surfing with us? I think I'll pass. It's not really my thing. I'd rather not. Those are ways to say no when someone asks you to join an activity that you don't enjoy. Can you deliver the products tomorrow? Unfortunately, that's not possible. I'm afraid not. Those are more formal and professional ways to express that you won't be able to do what someone is requesting. Have the customers been informed about the problem? Not to my knowledge. Not as far as I know. Those expressions mean that according to what you currently know or you're currently aware of, the answer is no. It's possible the answer is yes, but you don't know it. Not to my knowledge is more formal. As you can see, these different expressions all add slightly different meanings. A lot of them are commonly used in some situations, but don't sound natural if used in another situation. Again, you can learn more than 200 natural, fluent, everyday expressions inside the short and sweet Say This, Not That Challenge. It's 10 days of daily lessons and every day you will learn the phrases, Practice them in a worksheet, and then try using them in conversation with Shaina AI. Make sure to download today's lesson guide before you go, and then I'd love to see you take the next step and join the Say This, Not That Challenge to express yourself even better and more naturally in English.