Apologizing & Offering Solutions

Read/Listen first

Yesterday our online training session almost failed because my laptop froze and showed a blue screen. I had already prepared the slides, so I was really stressed and frustrated. When you joined the meeting and saw nothing on the screen, I immediately said, “I’m so sorry about this technical problem.” I explained that it has happened twice this week and that I have tried to fix it myself. Then I told you that I would restart the computer and rejoin the call within five minutes. While you waited, I sent a quick message to apologise again and to offer two options: we could continue a shorter session today, or we could reschedule for tomorrow. You chose to continue, so I shared a PDF version of the slides in the chat. In the end, the solution worked well and you said you appreciated my clear communication and quick reaction.

⚡ Learning goals

• Apologise clearly for technical problems in an online meeting.
• Explain what happened using past tenses and present perfect.
• Offer alternative solutions politely with would and could.

✨ Key language

• I’m so sorry about… “I’m so sorry about this technical problem today.”
• It has happened twice this week. “It has happened twice this week already.”
• We could reschedule for… “We could reschedule for tomorrow if you prefer.”

⚙️ Rules & Grammar — 4 Structures

1️⃣ Present perfect for recent problems

Rule: Use have / has + past participle to talk about recent problems or experiences that are still relevant now.
Examples: It has happened twice this week; I have tried to fix it myself; We have already restarted the system once today.
Common pitfall + fix: Learners often use only past simple with “this week”. Use present perfect when the time period includes now — “It has crashed three times this week.”.

2️⃣ Past simple for finished incidents

Rule: Use the past simple with a finished time (yesterday, last week, at 9:00) for one completed event.
Examples: My laptop froze yesterday; The screen showed a blue error message; We finished the session on time.
Common pitfall + fix: Learners sometimes mix present perfect and past simple. With a clear past time, choose past simple — “The system crashed yesterday afternoon.”.

3️⃣ Past perfect for earlier actions

Rule: Use had + past participle to show that one past action happened before another past action.
Examples: I had already prepared the slides before the laptop froze; She had sent the link before the meeting started; They had tested the system before the client joined.
Common pitfall + fix: Many learners avoid past perfect and only use past simple. Use past perfect when you want to emphasise the earlier action — “I had finished the report before the call began.”.

4️⃣ Would / could for polite offers and solutions

Rule: Use would and could to make polite offers and suggest solutions to problems.
Examples: I would restart the computer and rejoin the call; We could continue a shorter session today; We could reschedule for tomorrow if you prefer.
Common pitfall + fix: Learners sometimes use only “will”. For softer, more polite options, use “would” or “could” — “We could send you a summary after the session.”.

✍️ Vocabulary

  apology

Meaning: a statement that you are sorry for a mistake or problem
Synonyms: sorry, regret, admission of guilt
Chunk/Idiom: make an apology to someone
Example: She sent a short apology email after the delay.
Morphology: noun; countable; plural: apologies
Self-practice: Write two short apologies for different small problems at work.

  frustrated

Meaning: feeling annoyed or upset because you cannot do something
Synonyms: annoyed, upset, irritated
Chunk/Idiom: feel frustrated with something
Example: He felt frustrated when the system crashed again.
Morphology: adjective; from the verb frustrate
Self-practice: Describe a time you felt frustrated by technology in one sentence.

  technical problem

Meaning: a difficulty caused by machines, software, or equipment
Synonyms: issue, error, malfunction
Chunk/Idiom: have a technical problem during a meeting
Example: We had a technical problem during the online meeting today.
Morphology: noun phrase; technical = adjective, problem = noun
Self-practice: List two technical problems that often happen in online calls.

  blue screen

Meaning: a computer error screen that appears when the system crashes
Synonyms: system crash, error screen, failure
Chunk/Idiom: get a blue screen on your laptop
Example: My laptop showed a blue screen in the middle of class.
Morphology: noun phrase; blue = adjective, screen = noun
Self-practice: Write one sentence about the last time you saw a blue screen.

  reschedule

Meaning: to change the time of a planned event
Synonyms: postpone, rearrange, delay
Chunk/Idiom: reschedule the meeting for another day
Example: We decided to reschedule the session for tomorrow afternoon.
Morphology: verb; regular; rescheduled, rescheduling
Self-practice: Reschedule a meeting in one polite sentence with tomorrow in it.

  clear communication

Meaning: expressing information in a way that is easy to understand
Synonyms: clarity, transparency, openness
Chunk/Idiom: offer clear communication about the next steps
Example: Her clear communication helped calm the angry customer.
Morphology: noun phrase; clear = adjective, communication = noun
Self-practice: Write one sentence showing clear communication after a problem.

☁️ Examples (+ audio)

🔊 Play I’m really sorry about the delay with your training session today.

🔊 Play This problem has happened twice this week with my laptop.

🔊 Play We could reschedule the meeting for tomorrow morning if you prefer.

🔊 Play I’ll share the slides now so we can continue without the whiteboard.

✏️ Exercises

Grammar

Vocabulary & Comprehension

✅ Guided practice

Mini-dialogue:

A: I’m really sorry about the blue screen. Our session might start a bit late.
B: No problem, these things happen. What can we do now?
A: I can restart my laptop and rejoin, or we could reschedule for tomorrow.
B: Let’s continue today with the PDF. Thanks for offering solutions.

Why this matters:

When things go wrong online, a clear apology and simple options help keep trust. Customers feel respected when you explain the problem and offer realistic solutions. Practising this language makes you sound calm, confident, and professional.

Verb & Adjective Pack:

apologise — I apologise for the delay with your session.
reschedule — We can reschedule the call for tomorrow morning.
frustrated — She felt frustrated when the laptop crashed again.
flexible — Thank you for being flexible with the new time.
relieved — He was relieved when the solution finally worked.

Try & compare: