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EFE learning modules / Complaints, Apologies & Requests

Complaints, Apologies & Requests @ Expressing regret through apologies, making polite requests, and filing formal complaints when necessary.

Common Expressions Back to Catalog

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Eat humble pie

/ኢት ሃምብል ፓይ/

ይቅርታ መጠየቅ

To admit that one was wrong or accept an apology in a humiliating way.

ስህተትን አምኖ በትህትና ይቅርታ መጠየቅ

In Practice

"After the mistake, I had to eat humble pie."
"He ate humble pie when his plan failed."
Fluent Tip

Used when someone admits a mistake publicly or humbly.

Clear the air

/ክሊር ዘ ኤር/

አለመግባባትን ማስወገድ

To resolve a misunderstanding or tension between people.

በሰዎች መካከል ያለን አለመግባባት ወይም ውጥረት መፍታት

In Practice

"We need to talk to clear the air."
"A meeting helped clear the air."
Fluent Tip

Used in conflict resolution and apologies.

Make amends

/ሜክ አመንድስ/

ካሳ መክፈል ወይም ማካካስ

To do something to correct a mistake or improve a relationship.

ስህተትን ለማረም ወይም ግንኙነትን ለማሻሻል አንድ ነገር ማድረግ

In Practice

"He tried to make amends by helping."
"I want to make amends for my behavior."
Fluent Tip

Common in formal and personal apologies.

Swallow one's pride

/ስዋሎው ዋንስ ፕራይድ/

ኩራትን መተው

To humble oneself and admit a mistake or ask for help.

ራስን ዝቅ አድርጎ ስህተትን ማመን ወይም እርዳታ መጠየቅ

In Practice

"I had to swallow my pride and apologize."
"She swallowed her pride to ask for the job."
Fluent Tip

Used when someone overcomes ego to apologize.

Cry over spilt milk

/ክራይ ኦቨር ስፒልት ሚልክ/

ባለፈ ነገር መቆጨት

To complain about a past mistake that cannot be changed.

ሊለወጥ በማይችል ያለፈ ስህተት ላይ ማማረር

In Practice

"It's no use crying over spilt milk."
"Don't cry over spilt milk, just move on."
Fluent Tip

Used to advise against useless complaints.

Take someone to task

/ቴክ ሰምዋን ቱ ታስክ/

መገሰጽ ወይም መውቀስ

To strongly criticize or complain to someone about their actions.

አንድን ሰው በድርጊቱ ምክንያት በጥብቅ መገሰጽ ወይም መውቀስ

In Practice

"The boss took him to task for the error."
"She was taken to task by the manager."
Fluent Tip

Used in formal complaints or disciplinary contexts.

Rub someone the wrong way

/ረብ ሰምዋን ዘ ሮንግ ዌይ/

ሰውን ማበሳጨት

To annoy or irritate someone.

አንድን ሰው ማበሳጨት ወይም ማስቆጣት

In Practice

"His tone rubs me the wrong way."
"The service rubbed customers the wrong way."
Fluent Tip

Used to describe the cause of a complaint.

Burn bridges

/በርን ብሪጅስ/

ግንኙነትን ማቋረጥ

To destroy relationships so that one cannot return to a previous state.

ወደ ቀድሞው ሁኔታ መመለስ በማይቻልበት ሁኔታ ግንኙነትን ማበላሸት

In Practice

"Don't burn bridges when you quit."
"He burned his bridges with that complaint."
Fluent Tip

A warning about how one handles complaints or exits.

On the warpath

/ኦን ዘ ዎርፓዝ/

ለጥብቅ ቅሬታ መዘጋጀት

To be very angry and looking for a confrontation.

በጣም መቆጣት እና ግጭት መፈለግ

In Practice

"The customer is on the warpath."
"She is on the warpath about the delays."
Fluent Tip

Describes a person making an aggressive complaint.

Smooth things over

/ስሙዝ ቲንግስ ኦቨር/

ነገሮችን ማለስለስ

To settle a disagreement or lessen the impact of a problem.

አለመግባባትን መፍታት ወይም የችግርን ተፅእኖ መቀነስ

In Practice

"I tried to smooth things over with a gift."
"They smoothed things over after the fight."
Fluent Tip

Used when trying to fix a relationship after an issue.

Hold your tongue

/ሆልድ ዩር ታንግ/

ዝም ማለት

To refrain from speaking, often to avoid making a complaint worse.

ነገሮች እንዳይበላሹ ከመናገር መቆጠብ

In Practice

"I had to hold my tongue during the meeting."
"Hold your tongue even if you are angry."
Fluent Tip

Used when suppressing a complaint or reaction.

Bite the bullet

/ባይት ዘ ቡሌት/

ችግርን መጋፈጥ

To accept something difficult or unpleasant without complaining.

አስቸጋሪ ወይም ደስ የማይል ነገርን ያለ ቅሬታ መቀበል

In Practice

"I had to bite the bullet and apologize."
"We must bite the bullet and fix this."
Fluent Tip

Used when facing a difficult apology or situation.