“欠人情”常见的英文表达有 “owe someone a favor” 或 “be in someone's debt”。
owe someone a favor:侧重于表达因为接受了别人的帮助或好处,而欠下对方一个人情,未来可能需要回报。例如:I owe him a big favor for helping me out of that difficult situation.(他帮我摆脱了困境,我欠他一个大人情。)
be in someone's debt:更强调一种心理上的感激和亏欠感,意味着从情感或道义上觉得自己对对方有所亏欠。例如:I'm always in her debt because she supported me when I was at my lowest.(我永远感激她,因为在我最低谷的时候她支持了我。 )