日常使用這個俗語，通常是預先作個警告「好話唔好聽」，跟著講的一句話，雖然聽的人或會覺得過份或嫌不吉利／尷尬，但的確是實情。
例如：「現在H3N2疫症咁犀利，你打乞嗤都唔用手巾掩住個口鼻，好話唔好聽，如果你有事，你自己死就好啦，個寫字樓幾十人，容乜易陪埋你㗎！」
後來想到，這句話如果要譯成英文，可以怎樣說？
直譯是很容易的，說不定多人用了，像「好久不見」講成 Long time no see 一樣，由 Chinglish 變成正式可以接受的英文：'Good say, bad hear'?
或比較「正確」的英文： 'Good to say, but bad to hear ' 嗎 ?
如果是意譯，可以是：
1. It is embarrassing to say, but it's true that.....
2. Pardon me for being frank, but.....
3. What I am going to say might not please people's ears, but....
歡迎各位提議其他英譯。
.......................
*倘有留言未能即時上板，是自動過濾去了spam之故，諸君稍安無躁，版主每日檢查幾次，一有發現便會救回*
(文章允許轉貼，請具作者名字：梁煥松)
我以為第二句，或簡單的 "Frankly speaking," 比較好。
回覆刪除God forbids?
回覆刪除good word with bad say
回覆刪除i dread/shudder to think
回覆刪除knock on wood
--
回覆刪除My translation = “if I may say so”
-
對不起，梁Sir
轉一個話題
澳洲出了個岳飛：
http://cablenews.i-cable.com/webapps/news_video/index.php?news_id=455615
唔知嬲好定笑好
--
識時務者為俊傑，我2O年前認識他，判若兩人。
刪除「好話」不只是「真實」〈true〉或「坦率」〈frank〉，應有點「忠告」的意思。
回覆刪除Pardon me for a good but unpleasant advice ...
這是我經常用的句子:
回覆刪除You might not want to hear this but the fact is.... ...
或者
You'll find these words hard to swallow but the truth is .......
JF
或 者
刪除Good Words fall onto deaf ears.
JF
no offense, but...
回覆刪除i don't want to put anybody off, but...
i might be speaking out of turn, but...
this might not be the right time, but...
各位的不同版本都很好，比我的高明多了。
回覆刪除Ho Wah ng Ho Ten！
回覆刪除Hao Hua wu Hao Tian！
Wise words are harsh on ears.
回覆刪除JF
若要像 Long time No see
回覆刪除man hill man sea
要 Chingish
Good Words Bad Hear
但不是真正意思
所以要意譯才佳
不過：好話唔好聽
doesn't mean 忠言逆耳
I saw some contributors mistaken the meaning
各位可以看 Chris Leung 的例句：
「現在H3N2疫症咁犀利，你打乞嗤都唔用手巾掩住個口鼻，好話唔好聽，如果你有事，你自己死就好啦，個寫字樓幾十人，容乜易陪埋你㗎！」
離題問, 忠言逆耳口語可用「難啲咁講」呢？
刪除Americans would probably use "let me be frank."
回覆刪除"Long time no see" origin disputed. it might either be from Chinese or some Native American languages.
回覆刪除according to Wikipedia sources.
"The earliest appearance of the phrase "long time no see" in print recorded in Oxford English Dictionary dates to 1901, found in W. F. Drannan's Thirty-One Years on the Plains and in the Mountains, in which a Native American man is recorded as greeting the narrator by saying, "Good morning. Long time no see you."[1] This example is intended to reflect usage in American Indian Pidgin English."
as matter of fact, almost all pidgin/creole languages have features perceived as "Broken English" by English native speakers.
a few examples include:"no can do"/ "no have money" ...
In conclusion, the perceived Chinese origin of the expression "long time no see"may be an instance of coincidence.