Vocabulary Tricks Part 3: Declining Invitation Gracefully

The vocabulary covered in the article is useful for declining formal invitations. Try to guess the highlighted words while reading.

I have received a job offer from your company. I would like to express my gratitude for such an offer. However, I am declining your generous invitation with the deepest regret.

I must appreciate the extensive effort made by your staff in organizing the interview. Their attitude was highly commendable. Your offer was also substantial but I cannot sever the bonds with my current company due to some reasons. Firstly, your company is at outskirts of the city due to which a lot of time would waste in commuting. Moreover, I am content with my present job as my seniors have always supported me and fostered my career.
I apologize for the inconvenience caused.

WORDS WITH MEANING AND ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Gratitude

Meaning: The quality of being thankful
Examples

• She expressed her gratitude to the committee for their support
• All farmers expressed a deep sense of gratitude for the thought given by the club.

Synonyms: gratefulness, thankfulness, thanks, appreciation, recognition

Decline

Meaning: Politely refuse
Examples

• He declined my request on social networking site.
• She declined the coffee.

Synonyms: turn down, reject

Generous

Meaning: Showing kindness towards others
Examples

• She is kind, generous and good-natured.
• His family is very generous towards me.

Synonyms: good-natured, kind-hearted, tender-hearted, warm-hearted

Regret

Meaning: Feel sad, repentant, or disappointed over
Examples

• She immediately regretted her words.
• I regret I can't come to the party.

Synonyms: be sorry about, feel apologetic about

Extensive

Meaning: Large in amount or scale
Examples

• An extensive collection of silver
• He is doing an extensive research in this field.

Synonyms: comprehensive, thorough, complete, exhaustive

Commendable

Meaning: Deserving praise
Examples

• Steps taken by them are highly commendable.
• There is a great interest in the swimming competition, which is highly commendable.

Synonyms: admirable, praiseworthy, laudable

Substantial

Meaning: Of considerable importance, size, or worth
Examples

• There is a substantial amount of imported food in this country.
• This finding is substantial considering the small size of the sample.

Synonyms: considerable, real, significant

Sever

Meaning: Put an end to (a connection or relationship); break off
Examples

• You have to sever the bonds with other companies in order to work with our organization.
• Even if he faced a divorce from his wife, he didn't have to sever his relationship with his children.

Synonyms: break off, discontinue, suspend

Outskirts

Meaning: The outer parts of a town or city
Examples

• He built a new factory on the outskirts of the city.
• Our hotel was in a suburb on the outskirts of the city.

Synonyms: outlying districts, edges, fringes, suburbs

Commuting

Meaning: Travel some distance between one's home and place of work on a regular basis
Examples

• Many people spend much of their working week travelling in cars, trains, etc. commuting to and from their places of employment.
• He has been commuting to London on a weekly basis for four years.

Synonyms: travel to and from work, travel to and fro, travel back and forth

Content

Meaning: In a state of peaceful happiness
Examples

• They both are content with each other.
• She looked content and comfortable.

Synonyms: satisfied, pleased

Foster

Meaning: Encourage the development
Examples

• Online writing workshops, discussion sites, and newsletters also foster a sense of writing community.
• The temple can serve to foster spiritual growth and development.

Synonyms: encourage, promote, further, stimulate

Apologize

Meaning: Feeling something for something that one has done wrong
Examples

• I must apologize for disturbing you like this.
• We apologize to him for our error.

Synonyms: say sorry, express regret

Inconvenience

Meaning: Trouble or difficulty
Examples

• It is going to cause hardship and inconvenience to many people.
• We regret the inconvenience caused.

Synonyms: trouble, bother, problems, disruption, nuisance