"对不起，我们没有空。"

Translation: Sorry, we don't have time.

[maartendoc]

对 (duì) = right/correct/to face
不(bù) = not/no
起 (qǐ) = to rise/to be able to

对不起 (duìbùqǐ) = not able to face (lit.) = sorry

Other sorry that we saw:

意 (yì) = idea/meaning/thought/to think
思 (sī) = to think/to consider
意思 (yìsi) = idea/opinion
不好意思 (bùhǎoyìsi) = to feel embarrassed/to find it embarrassing/to be sorry

[cdt071]

Thank you. Very helpful!

[JOrlando3]

Is 对不起我们没有时间 really incorrect? I say this all the time, and no one has ever corrected me.

[Kanayuki_Chan]

This is also correct. Just report it.

[Nicofiesta]

Can you explain the difference between the two ways of saying it then please?

[EATandNAP]

空 is vague as to exactly what isn't available.

[crush]

没有空 is just a phrase that means you don't have any time available.

[ConlinLaw]

That explains it. I was also confused because it sounded like, "Sorry, we have no emptiness."

[Jerry969]

see, the character 空 can means both "free" and "empty" in english. 空气 is literally "free air" 空间 is "empty space".

[anne17d]

sorry, we are not available means the same thing

[EllisonChe1]

I wrote sorry, we are unavailable but they still marked it wrong

[Patrick_Dark]

I was curious as to how to make this sentence past tense given that it contains "沒" already. Apparently, one has to use "以前" ("before"): "我們以前沒有空。"; "我沒沒有空。" and "我沒沒有有空。" are apparently nonsensical.

[adam_gis]

Exactly! However, I do not think that "past tense" is an independent grammar in Chinese. Maybe "我们以前没有空" sounds a little weird to me just as "We were not available" does.

To express the meaning of "before", I believe that you can use "以前", "从前", "之前" or just a single "前". Though in Chinese, the four words sometimes have subtle differences which can even make Chinese native speakers confused. Hope these examples would make some sense:

很久以前，一位王子爱上了一位公主 <-> A prince fell in love with a princess long ago.

从前，一位王子爱上了一位公主 <-> Once upon a time, a prince fell in love with a princess.

在第一次世界大战之前，一位王子爱上了一位公主 <-> Before the World War I, a prince fell in love with a princess.

一百年前，一位王子爱上了一位公主 <-> A prince fell in love with a princess 100 years ago.

[JOrlando3]

“We were not available" is perfectly fine in English. The past tense in Chinese is often implied, which can be a bit difficult when you want to speak very precisely and that's just not how it's done.

[e1VpVxkl]

"Sorry, we don’t have free time." = Accepted: 26 dec. 2019.

[EddieTorre13]

I feel there may be a much better way to translate this

[Kivolamuzikisto]

No, it's pretty good. We're not available, We're not free, We're busy, We don't have time. (All have about the same meaning)

[wx.c0539054e7ab1]

对不起，我们没有事件 still makes sense

[Theophylact]

What tone is this 空 exactly supposed to be in this context?