Apr 25, 2021 01:54
3 yrs ago
41 viewers *
Spanish term
Argentina
Reliable. Computing skills.
Native in: Spanish
Works in: English to Spanish, Spanish to English
No sé si bien o mal, pero hablamos.
Spanish to English
Art/Literary
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
Four old friends reunite after years.
This is the dialogue:
-We missed you a lot.
-We talked about you all the time.
**-No sé si bien o mal, pero hablamos.**
The sentence has to be short as in Spanish.
Thanks!!
This is the dialogue:
-We missed you a lot.
-We talked about you all the time.
**-No sé si bien o mal, pero hablamos.**
The sentence has to be short as in Spanish.
Thanks!!
Proposed translations
(English)
Proposed translations
+2
21 mins
David Hollywood
Native in English
Works in field
worked for int. orgs (IMF, OAS, IDB)
Native in: English
Works in: Spanish to English, German to English
Related KudoZ points
:
190
Selected
Not sure if good or bad/for better or for worse but (at least) we talked
might catch it
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Note added at 28 mins (2021-04-25 02:22:26 GMT)
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but my doubt is the "talked about you" bit i.e you were not directly involved
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Note added at 29 mins (2021-04-25 02:24:03 GMT)
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altough it looks as if you were
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Note added at 30 mins (2021-04-25 02:24:45 GMT)
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should read "although"
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Note added at 28 mins (2021-04-25 02:22:26 GMT)
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but my doubt is the "talked about you" bit i.e you were not directly involved
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Note added at 29 mins (2021-04-25 02:24:03 GMT)
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altough it looks as if you were
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Note added at 30 mins (2021-04-25 02:24:45 GMT)
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should read "although"
Note from asker:
| Thank you, David! |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Carol Gullidge
: For better or worse we did talk
6 hrs
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thanks Carol
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| agree |
Helena Chavarria
: Agree with Carol.
12 hrs
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thanks Helena
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "I want to thank you all very much for helping me. The options were all great!"
+5
3 mins
Muriel Vasconcellos
United States
United States
Native in English
United States
Each translation a gem!
Native in: English (Variant: US) 
Works in: Spanish to English, Portuguese to English
Related KudoZ points
:
199
Maybe good, maybe bad, but we did.
Trying to keep it short!
Note from asker:
| Thanks, Muriel! |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
neilmac
: Brevity is the soul of wit...
5 hrs
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Thank you, Neil!
|
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| agree |
Beatriz Ramírez de Haro
8 hrs
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Thank you, Beatriz!
|
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| agree |
Jessica Noyes
10 hrs
|
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Thank you, Jessica!
|
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| agree |
patinba
: If you are referring to the way they spoke, not the fact that they spoke, I agree, although it is not very gramatical.
10 hrs
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Thank you! Yes, dialog isn't always grammatical.
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| agree |
Michele Fauble
1 day 28 mins
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Thank you, Michele!
|
43 mins
Barbara Cochran, MFA
United States
United States
Native in English
Specializes in field
United States
Laudable Lady Linguist
Native in: English 
Works in: Spanish to English, French to English, English to Spanish, and 3 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
52
Don't knowi if it was a good or bad thing/idea, but we did.
My interpretation.
Note from asker:
| Thank you, Barbara! |
+1
11 hrs
AllegroTrans
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
Specializes in field
United Kingdom
Sensible solutions
Native in: English (Variant: Wessexois)
Works in: French to English, English, English to French
Related KudoZ points
:
52
we talked, for better or worse
Short and idionatically natural
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Note added at 14 hrs (2021-04-25 16:04:31 GMT)
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Remembering Reynaldo Rey and BET's Comic View | Complex
https://www.complex.com › pop-culture › 2015/06 › re...
11 Jun 2015 — And they talked like we talked—for better or worse, foul language, hood politics, and race matters are staples of social interaction within the ...
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Note added at 14 hrs (2021-04-25 16:04:31 GMT)
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Remembering Reynaldo Rey and BET's Comic View | Complex
https://www.complex.com › pop-culture › 2015/06 › re...
11 Jun 2015 — And they talked like we talked—for better or worse, foul language, hood politics, and race matters are staples of social interaction within the ...
Note from asker:
| Thank you, AllegroTrans! |
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
Carol Gullidge
: You probably didn’t notice, but this is simply a reversal of what I suggested under David’s Answer!/almost identical to my proposal- perhaps not different enough to warrant a separate answer (but rather an Agree with suggested modifications...?
2 hrs
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It's shorter and more direct
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| agree |
Orkoyen (X)
6 hrs
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| neutral |
patinba
: This in Spanish would be "no se si PARA bien o para mal" I still think that people are missing the point of the idiomatic Spanish phrase.
7 hrs
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10 hrs
maybe well, maybe ill, but we spoke of you
"Hablar bien o mal de una persona" means to speak well or badly about someone.
Answers so far don't reflect the fact that the answer is slightly teasing the person who had been absent. It does not refer to the fact that they actually talked.
From a Wordreference discussion:
I've seen the expressions "speak well of somebody" and "speak badly of somebody" in dictionaries, but a friend of mine told me they're not common in everyday English, and sound old-fashioned. My question is: are these expressions, in the contexts below, commonly used and natural? If not, what would you suggest?
1. He speaks badly of his friends behind their back. Explanation = he says bad things about his friends, he criticizes his friends, bad-mouths them.
2. I always speak well of you. Explanation = I always say good things about you, a show appreciation to you when I talk about you, etc.
Thank you very much in advance!
Answer
I think both sentences sound fine. Judging any statement's worth depends on what you're trying to do with it. Neither sentence sounds "racy" or "slangy" or even very colloquial. Both sentences sound like normal English as spoken by somebody who doesn't care much about sounding trendy.
...
I agree, but I might go so far as to say they sound like they were spoken by someone who was fairly well-educated, or was brought up by well-educated parents.
I think "speak well of" is fairly common, but I imagine hearing "speak ill of" more often than "speak badly of."
HABLAR BIEN O HABLAR MAL DE ALGUIEN. ¿Qué hay ...https://albertojosevarela.com › salvad...
Translate this page
FAMOSA FRASE DEL PINTOR ESPAÑOL SALVADOR DALÍ: “Que hablen bien o mal, lo importante es que hablen de mí, aunque confieso que me gusta que ...
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Note added at 19 hrs (2021-04-25 21:20:18 GMT)
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Hay una propuesta que considera que el español dice "no se si esta bien o mal, pero hablamos" y otra diferente que dice mas o menos "no te voy a decir si hablamos bien o mal de vos, pero sí hablamos." Una cargadita como dirías. Depende del contexto, pero hay una sutil diferencia entre "hablar PARA bien o para mal" y "hablar bien o mal de" una persona.
Answers so far don't reflect the fact that the answer is slightly teasing the person who had been absent. It does not refer to the fact that they actually talked.
From a Wordreference discussion:
I've seen the expressions "speak well of somebody" and "speak badly of somebody" in dictionaries, but a friend of mine told me they're not common in everyday English, and sound old-fashioned. My question is: are these expressions, in the contexts below, commonly used and natural? If not, what would you suggest?
1. He speaks badly of his friends behind their back. Explanation = he says bad things about his friends, he criticizes his friends, bad-mouths them.
2. I always speak well of you. Explanation = I always say good things about you, a show appreciation to you when I talk about you, etc.
Thank you very much in advance!
Answer
I think both sentences sound fine. Judging any statement's worth depends on what you're trying to do with it. Neither sentence sounds "racy" or "slangy" or even very colloquial. Both sentences sound like normal English as spoken by somebody who doesn't care much about sounding trendy.
...
I agree, but I might go so far as to say they sound like they were spoken by someone who was fairly well-educated, or was brought up by well-educated parents.
I think "speak well of" is fairly common, but I imagine hearing "speak ill of" more often than "speak badly of."
HABLAR BIEN O HABLAR MAL DE ALGUIEN. ¿Qué hay ...https://albertojosevarela.com › salvad...
Translate this page
FAMOSA FRASE DEL PINTOR ESPAÑOL SALVADOR DALÍ: “Que hablen bien o mal, lo importante es que hablen de mí, aunque confieso que me gusta que ...
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Note added at 19 hrs (2021-04-25 21:20:18 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Hay una propuesta que considera que el español dice "no se si esta bien o mal, pero hablamos" y otra diferente que dice mas o menos "no te voy a decir si hablamos bien o mal de vos, pero sí hablamos." Una cargadita como dirías. Depende del contexto, pero hay una sutil diferencia entre "hablar PARA bien o para mal" y "hablar bien o mal de" una persona.
Note from asker:
| Thank you, patinba! |
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
Carol Gullidge
: are totally re the choice of adjectives/abverbs, yet this somehow sounds really clunky! In fact, I wonder if this wouldn't benefit from a complete rethink!
23 hrs
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Discussion