When delivering bad news in a professional setting, such as canceling plans or announcing a schedule change, it helps to soften the blow. Romanian uses specific phrases to express regret and explain the situation politely.
Unfortunately: "Din păcate"
To express a subjective evaluation of a negative situation, use the discourse marker din păcate (unfortunately).
It is typically placed at the very beginning of the sentence to immediately signal the speaker's regret, and it is usually followed by a comma.
| Unfortunately, a problem came up. | Din păcate, a intervenit o problemă. |
| Unfortunately, an unforeseen event came up. | Din păcate, a apărut un eveniment neprevăzut. |
Explaining Unavailability
When explaining why a meeting must change, you will often state that someone is unavailable (indisponibil) or unable to attend.
To say someone is "unable to" do something in a formal context, Romanian uses the phrase în imposibilitatea de a (literally "in the impossibility of") followed by a verb in the infinitive.
| Unfortunately, Radu will be unavailable tomorrow. | Din păcate, Radu va fi indisponibil mâine. |
| Unfortunately, the lady is unable to make it. | Din păcate, doamna este în imposibilitatea de a ajunge. |
| Unfortunately, Elena is unable to set a date. | Din păcate, Elena este în imposibilitatea de a stabili o dată. |
Rescheduling and Apologizing
After explaining the problem—such as a mix-up (încurcătura)—you will likely need to push back (a decala) or reschedule (a replanifica) the plans.
| Unfortunately, we will push back the class because of this mix-up. | Din păcate, vom decala cursul din cauza acestei încurcături. |
| We have to contact the client to reschedule the meeting. | Avem de contactat clientul pentru a replanifica ședința. |
When handling these changes, it is polite to apologize for the inconvenience (neplăcerea). The verb a interveni (to come up / to intervene) is frequently used to describe problems or inconveniences that unexpectedly arise.
| The boss told me to apologize for the inconvenience that came up. | Șeful mi-a spus să-mi cer scuze pentru neplăcerea care a intervenit. |
