When do I say 'excuse me?'
By Chime221
@Chime221 (35)
Togo
9 responses
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
11 Aug 12
I think that it's more correct to say 'Excuse me' after sneezing. Very often a sneeze is simply not predictable and you are asking for forgiveness for doing something which you didn't expect to do. Somehow, it seems more 'false' to say 'Excuse me' before one sneezes because it suggests that you KNOW that you are about to sneeze but that you are going to do it anyway.
It is actually possible to prevent a sneeze if you feel one coming on by pressing the middle joint of the forefinger HARD up under your nose against the cartilege of the central division. Try it, next time you feel the urge to sneeze!
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
11 Aug 12
When someone sneezes, it is traditional in some cultures to say 'Bless you' because a sneeze was believed to let the soul out and to leave the body unprotected from evil spirits for that moment.
'Excuse me', these days, probably means 'Please forgive me [for stsrtling you]'
@enjoythejourney (524)
• United States
11 Aug 12
Wow, I do not know if I ever had said "excuse me" before or after sneezing. I grew up saying "God Bless You" to someone after they sneeze and their response would be "Thank you" and my spouse who is hispanic, in their culture when someone sneezes a person would say to the sneezer "jesus" (pronounced hezeus) and the sneezer responds with "Gracias" which means thank you.
In both those references I was always told these are traditional responses coming from age old myths that when someone sneezes is the the spirits leaving the body and the religious references were to protect you.
I will have to listen now and here if anyone says excuse me, I just never heard that before.
@Chime221 (35)
• Togo
13 Aug 12
My dear, it's possible that you've not heard people say 'excuse me' after they sneezed. But just as you and others have said, it's a reflex action which means that it happens without a persons prior knowledge or permission. However, in my culture, peoplet around says, 'your life' to the person that sneezed and he or she responds with 'thank you'.
But my arguement in the first instance is that there is no need again excusing yourself once the sneeze has gone out. 'Excuse me' is a phrase that is used before the proper action and not after it.
@se7enthbird (8307)
• Philippines
11 Aug 12
Maybe we just get used to it. Saying excuse me before or after sneezing is better than not saying excuse me at all. Sometimes we can`t really control our self or our words before we sneeze so the result is we say it after. My friend say sorry instead of excuse me and i think it is already his habit. He say it all the time even if it is not something to be apologized for 
@surekharathi (14146)
• India
20 Nov 12
Heeheh...how can say before because sneezing came instantly not intentionally. Not funny but feel sorry for disturb due to sneeze.
@ravisivan (14079)
• India
10 Aug 12
welcome to mylot. I normally say 'excuse me' after sneezing. Of course this depends on the culture taught to you.
@fantabulus (4000)
• India
22 Aug 12
Sir why here everyone is telling sneezing sneezing whats the meaning of this. I always say the person excuse me if they are standing middle and I want to go other side or if two persons are talking and I also want to talk in the middle I say excuse me sorry for disturb you.
@surfer222 (1714)
• Indonesia
11 Aug 12
LOL... Sneezing is a reflex, it cannot be planned when do we sneeze, so it's hard to say 'excuse me' before sneezing.
@tetris15 (539)
• Philippines
10 Aug 12
You have a point there but what if you are about to sneeze, do you freeze the sneeze so that you can say "excuse me" first or the worst would be saying it in the middle of the sneeze. Sometimes it happens that when you are feeling the urge to sneeze and you bother to say excuse me first, the sneeze was interrupted resulting to just saying excuse me for something that is not bound to happen anymore because the sneeze was interrupted. I guess whether it be from the start or after the sneeze, just say it.
@bm1b4by (82)
•
10 Aug 12
'Excuse me' is said because you want people to forgive you for spraying germs haha that or if you've sneezed and interrupted something or someone.
But some people say 'Bless me'. Apparently, and I just found this out recently, it's because your heart stops briefly or something. Whatever it is, apparently it's the work of the devil. Interesting, hu?
Mainly I think people just say it because they have been brought up too, just common knowledge I guess.
