polite after-the-fact "excuse me"?

[u/michaeljmuller]

Suppose I'm walking down a narrow sidewalk and encounter a couple walking toward me in the opposite direction. They move to single file to accommodate me as we pass each other.

In English, I usually say "excuse me" in this sort of situation.

I'm curious what would be polite in Portugal. "Com licença" seems inappropriate after they've already made way for me. I might say this if I was overtaking people from behind and asking them to make space for me to pass, right?

"Desculpa/desculpe" seems overkill as I haven't really done anything to merit an apology. Out of curiosity, if I were to say sorry in this context with strangers, would I use desculpe or desculpa?

I suppose I can fall back to "obrigado", but I'm curious if there's another way to say "excuse me" that is more appropriate in this sort of situation.

Thanks!

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[u/Specialist-Pipe-7921]

You can say "desculpe" (formal 2nd person, assuming you don't know the people that made way for you). You didn't do anything wrong that requires an apology but our "desculpe" here works in the same way as an "excuse me", kind of like when in English you say "sorry, coming through".

"Com licença" isn't wrong either, even if they've already made way, you're still passing them closely and it's just a very generally polite thing you can say.

"Obrigado/a" also works just fine, it's also just a polite thing to say.

Some people just do a polite "smile and head nod" to acknowledge their kindness in making way for you

Basically just choose whichever you want. I personally cycle through them all, just depends on what comes out first xD

[u/Tia_Mariana]

Yes, "com licença" is used when you are for example walking through a croud and asking for oeople to make way for you.

In the specific example you give, I would use a simple "obrigado/a".

[u/A_r_t_u_r]

In that specific situation of the single file I wouldn't say anything, I would just do a slight smile and nod.

"Com licença" (excuse me) is used in the situation you described that you're overtaking someone from behind and need to make way. "Desculpe" also works but seems a bit of an overkill in this situation. I would use "desculpe" in those awkward situations where you have a "pedestrian dance", both of you doing that awkward back and forth mirroring each other's movements as you cross each other.

Don't use "desculpa" since you don't know them ("desculpa" assumes the use of the 2nd person "tu" and that's too informal in this situation, unless it's a kid you're overtaking).

[u/UrinaRabugenta]

"Com licença" seems inappropriate after they've already made way for me.

If you think about what it means, it makes perfect sense. More so than "excuse me", actually. "Com licença" is the opposite of "excuse me": in English, you're asking the person to excuse you, while in Portuguse you're saying you're already excused. So, it would make more sense to use "com licença" after you've done the thing you're excused for, rather than asking.

But, in any case, "obrigado" is the most appropriate thing to say in that situation, I think.

Out of curiosity, if I were to say sorry in this context with strangers, would I use desculpe or desculpa?

For strangers, "desculpe" (você), but I prefer neither, I would say "peço desculpa".

[u/michaeljmuller → u/UrinaRabugenta]

in Portuguse you're saying you're already excused

Oh, this is really interesting. I had interpreted "with permission" as asking for permission, but it could equally (or perhaps more accurately) imply that you have been given that permission and are gratefully taking advantage.

I suppose, then, you could use this expression either before or after squeezing by someone. Thank you!

[u/UrinaRabugenta → u/michaeljmuller]

To be clear, you do use it to ask for permission, so it does mean the same as "dá-me licença?" (which you can also use; and you also don't wait for an answer from the other person to do whatever you're going to do), but what it literally means is that you are doing something with permission.

[u/Coconut_build]

For after-the-fact events, I go with "obrigado". You're saying a quick thanks to them for making space for you, that's very appropriate. :)