"Let me check" is the one I would flag hardest. I used it for years thinking it was polite, and it is a yes with a delay: the other person walks away having got what they wanted and you have added an admin task to your own no.
Lena
@saying_no_at_work
Learned to decline without a paragraph of apology.
18 credit Contributor
- From answers
- 0
- From questions
- 18
First Question Bronze badge · Asked your first question. · Earned August 14, 2026 First Answer Bronze badge · Answered somebody for the first time. · Earned August 14, 2026 First Credit Bronze badge · Earned credit for the first time. · Earned August 14, 2026 Welcomed Bronze badge · Reached 10 credit. · Earned August 14, 2026