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The expression is so common I thought there was a word for it.

I was surprised to find none on Thesaurus (none of the words are related to "giving new information").

Is there any word for "bad news"?

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  • We often use expressions like "I'm sorry to tell you that... " or "I regret to inform you that ...". Or use a different adjective like "unfortunate news" or "regrettable news" or "tragic news".
    – John Feltz
    Commented Dec 22, 2016 at 13:00
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    There are so many English phrases that don't have a single word. It doesn't have a single word for "handsome face", 'beautiful face", "long hand", "short hand", etc. Why does it have to have a word for "bad news"?
    – user140086
    Commented Dec 22, 2016 at 13:07
  • @Rathony Curiously, there's godspell for good news, but your point is well taken. "Bad news" is already powerful. Bad news, bad news to England doth flow Bad news I have to tell thee For there's been a rich merchant ship, and for England was bound Have sunk to the bottom of the sea.
    – Airymouse
    Commented Dec 24, 2016 at 3:05

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Oxford Dictionaries:

bad news: A person or thing that is regarded as unpleasant, unlucky, or undesirable.

Synonyms:

  • unpleasant, disagreeable, unwelcome, unfortunate, unfavourable, unlucky, adverse, nasty

  • terrible, dreadful, awful, grim, distressing, regrettable

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