home truth

English

home truth (plural home truths)

A true but unwelcome statement.
- 2008 May 22, Megan McArdle, “Bank on it”, in The Atlantic‎^[1]:
  The old adage is that a banker is someone who lends you an umbrella, then asks for it back when it is raining. The banks may find out this home truth for themselves: UBS joins the string of financial institutions looking to raise major amounts of capital to shore up their balance sheets.
- 2023 April 18, Phil McNulty, “Chelsea Champions League exit: Where do 'disjointed, broken' Blues go from here?”, in BBC Sport‎^[2]:
  If Todd Boehly thought visiting Chelsea's dressing room to deliver some home truths would inspire a Champions League miracle against Real Madrid he was, as he has been so often since arriving at Stamford Bridge, very much mistaken.