A: Tim, may I borrow your laptop this afternoon?
B: I’m sorry, but I have to finish my term paper today.
May I know why the word “but” is needed in the answer given by B?
It seems to me that the meaning is the same even without the ‘but’…
is it matter if extra words (with no meaning) appears in the sentence?
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‘But’ is not necessary, but it is useful; it is one way for the speaker to make a refusal more gradual, more conciliatory, and more roundabout.
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In addition to what MM wrote, the word ‘but’ also serves as a conjunction in that sentence.
Yes, those “extra” words can often make a big difference in how the listener perceives a sentence.
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I see, thx ^^
So ‘but’ is not necessary? why? I agree with Amy that ‘but’ is a conjunction in this case, and so without ‘but’ we have 2 sentences (‘I’m sorry’ and ‘I have to finish my term paper today’) with no link? It’s wrong, isn’t it?
Hi Nessie
I would recommend always including the word ‘but’, especially in more formal English.
It can be omitted in informal English. However, excluding it does tend to make the sentence sound more abrupt, and therefore not as nice/polite, in my opinion.
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