What the British people really mean...

 

This is about pragmalinguistics (a type of communicative competence) for English as a second/foreign language learners. Unlike grammar, it is hard to identify all the cross-cultural deviations (especially when learners come from all corners of the world) and to pin it down in a textbook or to teach in a classroom...  Shame though, because how the language is really used (pragmatics) by native speakers should really be learnt when learning a foreign language