Asking for a Free Table at a Restaurant: When requesting a free table at a restaurant, it's important to be polite and considerate. Here's a suggestion on how to do it: "Excuse me, I was wondering if there's a free table available for [number of people]?" Asking for a Free Seat on a Bus or Subway: When asking for a free seat on public transportation like a bus or subway, you can politely inquire: "Excuse me, is this seat available?" Alternatively, you can ask: "Is this seat taken?" Regarding your second question, the appropriate term to use when indicating that a seat is already occupied is "taken." You can say: "I'm sorry, this seat is taken." This conveys that the seat is currently being used by someone else. While "occupied" and "busy" could also be understood in context, "taken" is the most commonly used term in this situation.

Is this seat taken? Can I sit here? This seat is taken. Someone is sitting here. I'm not sure how you would ask for a free table at a restaurant, because the way it's done here is you go to the front and they lead you to a seat. But if the customer is choosing the seat, then the waitress would say, this seat is taken. One thing you would never say is this seat is busy. Occupied could be acceptable.