The Vocabulary of Not Saying No

不置可否 To set down neither yes nor no. To give no position at all.

打哈哈 To go “haha.” To brush someone off and deal with a matter only on the surface.

打官腔 To speak in the official tone. To use official set phrases to deal with a request or to pass it on.

搪塞 To plug one hole. From an image in the Huainanzi of a dike with ten thousand holes, of which only one is plugged. To deal with something only for form’s sake.

婉拒 To refuse gently. To decline in a roundabout, polite way.

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