No Idea
March 24th, 2009
When we say “No Idea” does it mean that we have no idea? Or does it mean, “give me a moment I’m thinking of a solution?”
Sometimes this concept might be lost in translation. A non-anglophone might interpret it as meaning “I don’t know,” thus giving the impression of incompetency.
I learned recently that saying “Not Bad” in a Chinese context actually means “Really Good!” whereas in our English world it could simply mean what it states: “Not bad, not amazing… acceptable.” (unless we change our tone with it).
I guess we must be careful with our words when speaking to non-native speakers of our own language.
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