No sé si bien o mal, pero hablamos.

English translation: Not sure if good or bad/for better or for worse but (at least) we talked

01:54 Apr 25, 2021
Spanish to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
Spanish term or phrase: No sé si bien o mal, pero hablamos.
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!!
Liliana Garfunkel
Argentina
Local time: 18:59
English translation:Not sure if good or bad/for better or for worse but (at least) we talked
Explanation:
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"
Selected response from:

David Hollywood
Local time: 18:59
Grading comment
I want to thank you all very much for helping me. The options were all great!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +5Maybe good, maybe bad, but we did.
Muriel Vasconcellos
3 +2Not sure if good or bad/for better or for worse but (at least) we talked
David Hollywood
4 +1we talked, for better or worse
AllegroTrans
4maybe well, maybe ill, but we spoke of you
patinba
3Don't knowi if it was a good or bad thing/idea, but we did.
Barbara Cochran, MFA


Discussion entries: 1





  

Answers


3 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +5
Maybe good, maybe bad, but we did.


Explanation:
Trying to keep it short!

Muriel Vasconcellos
United States
Local time: 14:59
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 199
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thanks, Muriel!


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  neilmac: Brevity is the soul of wit...
5 hrs
  -> Thank you, Neil!

agree  Beatriz Ramírez de Haro
8 hrs
  -> Thank you, Beatriz!

agree  Jessica Noyes
10 hrs
  -> Thank you, Jessica!

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
  -> Thank you! Yes, dialog isn't always grammatical.

agree  Michele Fauble
1 day 28 mins
  -> Thank you, Michele!
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

21 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +2
Not sure if good or bad/for better or for worse but (at least) we talked


Explanation:
might catch it

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 28 mins (2021-04-25 02:22:26 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

but my doubt is the "talked about you" bit i.e you were not directly involved

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 29 mins (2021-04-25 02:24:03 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

altough it looks as if you were

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 30 mins (2021-04-25 02:24:45 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

should read "although"

David Hollywood
Local time: 18:59
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 190
Grading comment
I want to thank you all very much for helping me. The options were all great!
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you, David!


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Carol Gullidge: For better or worse we did talk
6 hrs
  -> thanks Carol

agree  Helena Chavarria: Agree with Carol.
12 hrs
  -> thanks Helena
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43 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
Don't knowi if it was a good or bad thing/idea, but we did.


Explanation:
My interpretation.

Barbara Cochran, MFA
United States
Local time: 17:59
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 52
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you, Barbara!

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11 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
we talked, for better or worse


Explanation:
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 ...

AllegroTrans
United Kingdom
Local time: 21:59
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 52
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you, AllegroTrans!


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
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
  -> It's shorter and more direct

agree  Orkoyen (X)
6 hrs

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   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
maybe well, maybe ill, but we spoke of you


Explanation:
"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.

patinba
Argentina
Local time: 18:59
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 170
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you, patinba!


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
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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