说实话
shuō shíhuà
In Chinese, 'honestly' is expressed as 说实话 (shuō shíhuà).
说实话 is used as a sentence adverb at the beginning of a sentence to signal that the speaker is about to be frank or blunt. Other ways to express similar sentiments include using 诚实地说 for 'honestly or truthfully', 说实在的 to imply 'to tell the truth' or the common alternative 老实说 which means 'to be honest' or 'frankly speaking'.
Meaning: (speech act) frankly (adv)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 说实话 is composed of 说, meaning 'to speak' and 实话, meaning 'truth' or 'honest words'.
Which one should you use?
While 说实话 is a standard way to start a sentence when being frank, you can also use 老实说 to carry a very similar meaning. The term 坦白 can be used to describe being 'frank' or 'open', and 实话 itself refers to 'the truth' or 'to tell the truth'.
How does it change in a sentence?
In Chinese, the character 地 functions as an adverbial marker, which can be seen in phrases like 诚实地说.
How do you pronounce it?
shuō shíhuà
Did you know?
- The character 实 in 实话 is originally a pictograph of a container filled with grain. This reflects a cultural connection between 'truth' and being 'solid' or 'full'.
- In Chinese legal or police contexts, the word for frankness 坦白 carries a much heavier weight than 'honestly'. It often refers specifically to a formal confession of a crime.
- If you use 说实话 too frequently in a single conversation, a native speaker might suspect you are actually lying or hiding something.
Examples in context
- 坦白地说 (tǎn bái dì shuō)Honestly speaking
- 我必须坦白地告诉你 (wǒ bì xū tǎn bái dì gào sù nǐ)I must tell you honestly
- 实话告诉你 (shí huà gào sù nǐ)To tell you the truth
- 实话实说 (shí huà shí shuō)To be honest
- 老实说，我不太喜欢这个电影 (lǎo shí shuō, wǒ bú tài xǐ huān zhè gè diàn yǐng)To be honest, I don't really like this movie.
- 诚实地说，我并不同意你的观点 (chéng shí dì shuō, wǒ bìng bù tóng yì nǐ de guān diǎn)Honestly, I don't agree with your point of view.
- 说实在的，这个计划不太可行 (shuō shí zài de, zhè gè jì huà bú tài kě xíng)To be honest, this plan is not very feasible.
- 说实话，我不喜欢这件衣服。Shuō shíhuà, wǒ bù xǐhuān zhè jiàn yīfú.Honestly, I don't like this piece of clothing.
- 说实话，我觉得他很聪明。Shuō shíhuà, wǒ juédé tā hěn cōngmíng.Honestly, I think he is very smart.
- 说实话，我不知道怎么做。Shuō shíhuà, wǒ bù zhīdào zěnme zuò.Honestly, I don't know how to do it.
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing a movie they just watched.
- 俊杰 Junjie说实话，这部电影挺无聊的。Shuō shíhuà, zhè bù diànyǐng tǐng wúliáo de.Honestly, this movie was quite boring.
- 梓涵 Zihan真的吗？我觉得很有趣。Zhēn de ma? Wǒ juédé hěn yǒuqù.Really? I thought it was interesting.
- 俊杰 Junjie我只是觉得剧情太慢了。Wǒ zhǐshì juédé jùqíng tài màn le.I just felt the plot was too slow.
- 梓涵 Zihan好吧，每个人看法不同。Hǎo ba, měi gèrén kànfǎ bùtóng.Alright, everyone has different opinions.
