到別人家拜訪，到達的時間很重要，最好是先預約(make an appointment)，離開的時間也是大學問。例如你到人家拜訪，下午茶也喝完，主人家開始準備晚飯，你仍然未離開，通常主人家會禮貌地叫你留下來吃晚飯，不管你真的想留下還是借故離開，也該客氣地回答：I'm about to go now.(我即將離開)或I'm just about to leave。About、Just about是‘差不多’、‘快將’的意思，例如：I'm just about twenty.就是‘我差不多20歲’。

對話

A：I'm about to go now. Yeah, I really like this place. I don't want to leave. It's really comfortable and nice and this couch, do you mind if I sit down on again? ...

B：When will you be leaving?

A：Well, I'm about to go now.

B：Look at the clock, you said that two hours ago.

A：Clock? Yes, it is an interesting clock...

甲：我差不多走了。我真的很喜歡這里，不想離去。這里真的很舒服，這沙發(fā)很舒服，可否再次坐下?............

乙：你何時離開?

甲：好啦，我快要走了。

乙：看看鐘吧，你兩個鐘頭前已經(jīng)這么說。

甲：鐘?對呀，很可愛的鐘...

I'm about to go now(我要告辭了)的about to是‘即將’、‘正打算’的意思。要強調(diào)，可加just一字，例如：We must hurry. The train is (just) about to leave.(快點，火車要開出了)。留意not about to往往不是說‘不會很快’，而是‘不愿意’的意思，例如：I'm not about to do your work for you(我不會為你代勞)。

有些客人說話喋喋不休，才說I'm about to go now.，又絮絮叨叨說這說那，這英文稱為long-winded，直譯是‘氣息長的’。聽演講，一般人最怕的是a long-winded speaker(喋喋不休的講者)或a long-winded speech.(長篇大論的講詞)。

總之，到親友家里做客，切勿逗留太久，否則徒討人厭。英文成語to outstay / overstay one's welcome直譯是‘逗留超過了歡迎期’，那是說逗留長得不受歡迎了，例如：Although they asked me to stay "a few more days", I decided to take leave, not wanting to overstay my welcome.(雖然他們邀我‘多住幾天’，我還是決定告辭，恐怕逗留太久，徒討人厭)。

英文諺語說：A guest and a fish after three days are poison.(魚過三天不新鮮，客過三天討人厭)，又說：The first day a guest, the third a pest.(第一天是客人，第三天只惱人)?，F(xiàn)代人生活繁忙，客人逗留不要說三天，就是三小時，恐怕已經(jīng)成為poison(毒藥)或pest(害蟲、討厭的人)了。