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When I want to stop chatting on computer, I said " Sorry, I have no time."

Does this way of saying give a bad impression? Are there any better way of saying?

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  • Sorry, I have to go now. But what you said is also acceptable. I don't think people are going to expect you to be using perfect idiomatic English at your skill level.
    – user6951
    Oct 3, 2014 at 13:41
  • If native English speaker says " Sorry, I have no time.", does this sentence give a bad impression? Oct 3, 2014 at 13:46
  • "Sorry, I have no time" is somewhat brusque. It could seem a little unfriendly.
    – TimR
    Oct 3, 2014 at 13:58
  • My favorites: "Gotta go. Be back later." (Sorry, I've got to go.) "Sorry, something is coming up." "Sorry, but I think I will be busy for a while. Nice chatting with you." "Sorry, but I have to go out for a bit." and so on. Oct 3, 2014 at 18:47

4 Answers 4

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Other options:

  • Sorry, I've got to go.
  • Sorry, I've got to run. (Here, "run" isn't used in the literal sense, it just means you need to be somewhere else/doing something else, and you are in a hurry.)
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  • 2
    "Sorry, I've got to run." is the one I use most often and I'll usually add "It was nice chatting with you." or something similar to make it sound less abrupt.
    – ColleenV
    Oct 3, 2014 at 17:30
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If you want to :

  • keep it polite and simple

why not: Sorry, I have/got to rush.

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It does sort of give a bad impression.

Some alternatives are:

Sorry, I need to do _______ soon

Sorry, I have some _______ to do

or

Sorry, I have a _______ appointment

or, if you just don't feel like chatting with the guy/girl, then you can say

Sorry, I've had a bad day. Ill be back later.

Hope this helps.

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If you want to use that construction, you might say, "Sorry, I've run out of time." The implication was I had time for your earlier.

But "Sorry, I've got to go," is more common. It implies, "I need to do something else."

In either case, you've taken the "no" out of the construction, and therefore made it less abrupt.

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