See this BBC video on YouTube, it’s really interesting. Here is the link. Video

Disguised requests

Not asking for information. Used to highlight something. This is less direct, and considered more polite.

Sarcasm

People say the opposite of what they mean, about the things thy don’t like.

signal

• Falling intonation
• Make words sound longer
• Think about context. Obvious that the situation isn’t as described

i.e.

A: Ah, it's nice to see the weather's fantastic again.[raining outside]
B: Yes, it's great isn't it?
A: Oh, it's a beautiful day.
B: I love days like these.

Euphemistic feedback

a word or expression used to refer to something without causing offence.

signal

• Adjectives that could be positive but aren’t always
  • interesting
  • different
• Phrases that recognize effort rather than the achievement
  • i.e. You have really thought about this
  • i.e. Well I can see you’ve been working on that
• Tone and body language

Suggestions as instructions

signal

Modal verbs for suggestion:

• Could
• If you’d like to
• You might want to

Question as warnings

Use question as warning, the answers are obvious, and it’s a lot politer than saying the truth.

signal

• Is this information that other people really needs?
• Are the answers obvious?
• Often use the same intonation as a statement