After coming to America, the use of "yes" and "no" brings me a lot of trouble, because the use in Korea (韩语) is a different from that in English. For example, if I am asked, "Haven't you had dinner yet?" and I have not had dinner yet, then in Korean I usually say "Yes, I haven't." But in English, I have to say, "No, I haven't."

    Because of this, my friends often get the opposite meaning from what I want to give them. One day only a month after I came to America, I had dinner with an American student, Bob. He asked me some questions and I answered them sincerely. A few days later, I found some roommates thought that I came from North Korea. One day I stopped by Bob's room and asked why he was spreading the wrong information. "Oh, you told me that. Don't you remember?" he said, "When I asked you 'You are not from North Korea, are you' clearly answered, 'Yes, of course.' Didn't it mean that you are from North Korea?"

    The different use also causes problems between my friends and me. One weekend night, my roommate Mark brought his children into the dorm(宿舍). They make some noise while playing. I didn't mind the noise since I was just watching TV. The next morning, I met Mark. He asked me with a smile, "Didn't my children make noise last night? Didn'titmake you uncomfortable?" Because I did not mind the noise at all, I clearly said "Yes!" The smile suddenly disappear from Mark's face, and he said, "I am sorry about that. They are going right now. See you later." I could not understand what he was sorry about, and I just said, "OK. Bye!" After a moment of thinking, I realized how stupid I was. That evening, I explained to Mark and said sorry to him. I knew he thought that I had been very rude.

    Now to deal with this problem, I have set simple rules: First, take a five-second break if I am not sure of "yes" or "no". Second, use "pardon me", so the person may explain to me in a direct way.