ABSTRACT
The expression por favor means ‘please’ when making a request. In making requests to strangers it is used as in English, but in making informal requests to family and friends, it is not normally used, and using it in such situations can sound overbearing and insistent. Instead, the softening effect of ‘please’ in English is rendered by means of a questioning intonation (see 66.1.2):
Aguarde na linha, por favor. (to a stranger)
Hold the line, please.
Me passa o sal? (to friend or family)
Will you pass me the salt, please?
