Chinese phrase
不好意思，我帮不了忙 bù hǎo yì si wǒ bāng bù liǎo máng
Meaning
I'm sorry I cannot help
When to use it
This phrase is a polite way to say that help cannot be given. It softens a refusal and often comes before a brief reason.
Example dialogue
你能帮我把这个报告做完吗？ nǐ néng bāng wǒ bǎ zhè ge bào gào zuò wán ma
Could you help me complete this report?
不好意思，我帮不了忙，我这周有几个重要会议，没办法抽时间。 bù hǎo yì si wǒ bāng bù liǎo máng wǒ zhè zhōu yǒu jǐ gè zhòng yào huì yì méi bàn fǎ chōu shí jiān
I'm sorry, I can't help because I have several important meetings this week and cannot spare the time.