和老外过招：聊聊邀请和拒绝的艺术

　　如火的七月，我们的情绪疯狂燃烧。Do your friends sometimes invite you to dinner, a movie, or a party? 面对老外朋友的盛情，你知道怎么接受或者拒绝才算得体吗？Do you know some customs concerning invitations in English-speaking countries?

　　我心所向处 欣然前往之 Accept

　　To accept an invitation, you should thank the inviter for the invitation, and express the pleasure of being invited. 高兴赴约，嘴巴可要甜点哦。

　　提出邀请前需要开场白吗？

　　People usually do not begin a conversation with an invitation; instead, they preface(做…的开场白) an invitation in some way. 在我们的flash对话中， Latoya 先问小刘周六有没有空(Are you doing anything on Saturday night?)，然后她再说出事由 (Al's birthday party) ，并且发出邀请(I hope you can come.)。

　　另一种邀请的方式就是放弃开场白，直接提出邀请。It is also possible to state the occasion and then invite the listener without checking out whether the listener is free at that particular time (We're having a party at Jean's. Would you like to come? ).?In a sense the second way is better in that it states the occasion first and allows the listener to decide whether to accept the invitation or not.

　　所以说，是否需要开场白还是由你自己来决定。

　　用于非正式场合的表达邀请的方式：

　　We are having a dance on Sunday. Will you join us?

　　We're going to have a few friends over on Friday and we'd love you to come.

　　Are you free on Wednesday? Would you like to go to a concert?

　　We're having a meeting tomorrow. We'll be very glad if you can make it.

　　接受邀请看似简单，真的是这样吗？

　　不是就接受那么简单。First, you should thank the person for the invitation (That's very nice of you. Thank you.) and /or express pleasure at being invited (I'd love to come.) Another step is to get the detail of time and place. (Where is it by the way?)

　　邀请你的人告诉你不用买东西，你真的会空手去吗？

　　The offer to bring something to a dinner or party is considered good manners, although the host or hostess in most cases will turn it down. (e. g. "Just bring yourself.") However, bringing a small gift is always a very considerate thing to do. 礼多人不怪，小小的一点意思有助于礼尚往来。

　　关于要不要送礼物的问题，双方还可以这样表达：

　　Offering Responses

　　Can I bring anything? No, don't bother. We've got everything here.

　　Is there anything I can bring? No, just bring yourself. Thanks, anyway.

　　What should I bring? Well, why don't you bring salad?

　　Can I bring the wine? Well, thanks, if you'd like to.