Use "excuse me" before you inconvenience someone — to get past them, get their attention, or interrupt. Use "sorry" after you already have — a bump, a mistake, or running late. That one difference, before versus after, answers most apology questions in English.
From there, it is a matter of matching the size of the mistake, from a light "my bad" among friends to a full "I apologize" at work. Here is the whole toolkit.
Excuse me vs sorry: the core rule
This is the distinction most learners search for, so let's make it concrete with common situations.
| Situation | Best phrase |
|---|---|
| Getting past someone in a crowd | Excuse me |
| Getting a stranger's attention | Excuse me |
| Interrupting people talking | Sorry to interrupt / Excuse me |
| You bumped into someone | Sorry! |
| You're running late | So sorry I'm late |
| A small slip at work | My bad (casual) / My apologies (formal) |
The pattern holds: "excuse me" clears the way before the trouble, "sorry" repairs it after.
The many jobs of "sorry"
"Sorry" is one of the busiest words in English, and only some of its jobs are real apologies. Knowing the others stops a lot of confusion.
| You say | It means |
|---|---|
| Sorry? (rising tone) | Please repeat that |
| I'm sorry to hear that | Sympathy — not an apology |
| Sorry, could I just...? | Softening a request |
| Sorry! | A genuine apology for a small mistake |
"I'm sorry to hear that" does not admit fault. If a coworker says their train broke down and you reply "I'm so sorry," you are offering sympathy, not taking blame. Learners sometimes worry they just apologized for something they didn't do — you didn't. It simply means "that's a shame."
Making a real apology, casual to formal
When you do owe an apology, the strength of the words should match the mistake.
| Phrase | Register |
|---|---|
| My bad (US) | Very casual |
| Sorry / I'm sorry | Neutral |
| I'm so sorry | Sincere |
| I apologize / My apologies | Formal, often written |
A good apology usually has three parts: the sorry, what happened, and a fix. Put together, it sounds like this: "So sorry I'm late — the train was delayed. Can I get you a coffee?" The fix at the end is what makes it feel complete rather than just polite.
Replying to an apology
When someone apologizes to you, brushing it off kindly is the norm. Any of these works.
| Reply | Register |
|---|---|
| No worries | Casual, very common |
| It happens | Relaxed, forgiving |
| Don't worry about it | Warm, reassuring |
| That's okay | Neutral, gentle |
English speakers — the British especially — apologize constantly, often when nothing is their fault. If two people bump into each other, both usually say "sorry." Here "sorry" barely means an apology at all; it means "I notice this is a bit awkward, and I'm friendly." Do not read every "sorry" as an admission of guilt.
Apologizing gracefully is part of the larger art of sounding considerate, which we cover in our guide to being polite in English.
Keep learning English
Sorry and excuse me are tiny words that smooth over a hundred small moments a day, so it is worth making them automatic. Practice these apologies and replies out loud with audio and speaking practice in the Pretalk app, and strengthen the sentences around them with our free English grammar guides — so the right words come out before you have to think.
