Chinese Colloquial Phrases（26）Let me speak frankly; I must warn you beforehand.

丑话说到前头

Chǒuhuà shuō zài qiántou。

Let me speak frankly; I must warn you beforehand.

用法说明

       “丑话”就是不好听的话，在这句话里指的是不好的结果可能会发生。这句话的意思是把不利的因素或者可能发生的不好的后果先说出来。有两种用法，一种是提出警告或威胁对方，让对方小心可能会发生的不好后果，后面经常跟着用“要是……就……。另一种是提醒，以免等到不好的后果真的发生的时候，对方责怪或埋怨自己。也可以说“丑话说在前边”。

“丑话(chǒuhuà)” means the unpleasant words, and in this sentence it indicates the possible bad consequences. This expression is used to present the unfavorable factors or the possible bad results beforehand. It has two usages: one is to warn or to threaten and cautions the listener to be careful of the bad results, which is usually followed by “要是……就……”. Another usage is to remind the listener for fear that the speaker would be blamed when the bad result really happens. You can also use “丑话说在前边”。

例句

1、甲：我欠你的钱能下个月还吗？
Jiă: Wǒ qiàn nǐ de qián nénɡ xià ɡe yuè huán mɑ?
A: Can I repay you the money next month?

乙：不行！咱们丑话说到前头，你要是明天不还，可别怪我不客气！
Yǐ: Bùxínɡ ！ Zánmen chǒuhuà shuō dào qiántou ， nǐ yàoshì mínɡtiān bù huán ， kě bié ɡuài wǒ bú kèqi ！
B: No way! I must warn you beforehand; you’d better give it to me tomorrow before I resort to something rude!

2、甲：我自行车放这儿怎么样？
Jiă: Wǒ zìxínɡchē fànɡ zhèr zěnmeyànɡ？
A: How about if I put the bicycle here?

乙：应该没问题吧。但是丑话说到前头，你要是丢了车可别怪我。
Yǐ: Yīnɡɡāi méi wèntí bɑ 。 Dànshì chǒuhuà shuō dào qiántou ， nǐ yàoshì diū le chē kě bié ɡuài wǒ。
B: Should be fine. But let’s be straight; don’t blame me if you really lose it.