French Translation Please

[milly143]

Was always rubbish at French and don't want to use the net.

Can someone please translate the following for me.

Have a fantastic trip! Bring me back something pretty. Love you.

(It's for my 12 year old neice so please don't change it to anything that might be rude).

Thanks!

[jd_1984]

Go with MARK

[MarkRae]

Also, bear in mind that a transliteration is not the same as a translation. Anyone who learns any foreign language very soon realises that a word-for-word equivalent with English simply doesn't work.

"Je t'aime" certainly means "I love you", but the French simply don't use it in these circumstances. An auntie wouldn't end a wish to her niece with it. Far more likely, she'd say "Bisous", which literally means "kisses".

[boxtops]

Yes I know MR, my study ended at A level.

[MarkRae]

So, putting it altogether and "frenchifying" it:

Je te souhaite un voyage merveilleux, ma biche. Remmène-moi quelque chose de joli. Bisous de ta tati!

[pa___ul3]

if she's 12, be wary, though, of her mistranslating 'ma biche'! ha!

[Euphemia]

Je te souhaite un merveilleux voyage. Ramène-moi quelque chose de jolie;
Bisous.

[MarkRae]

'ma biche' = 'my doe' - term of endearment to a younger female, roughly equivalent of 'sweetie'...

[Euphemia]

sorry typo should read: quelque chose de joli (jolie without an e).

[MarkRae]

Ramène really means "take back" rather than "bring back", certainly in this context.

Quelque chose takes masculine, so "joli", not "jolie".

[pa___ul3]

aye, I don't doubt your french for a second Mark, just wondering, if it's a 12 year old English girl she may read 'ma biche' as lyrics of a Prodigy song!

[Euphemia]

I beg to differ. Ramener is quite correct in this context.

[MarkRae]

It isn't.

Bring and take are often difficult concepts to express in foreign languages. Even in the same language - e.g. in Eire people often use take where British English would use take: "and bring you to the horse dentist."

In this particular case, ramener would convey the sense of "can you take something pretty back to France for me".

[milly143]

Blimey, I expected about 10 posts saying "don't be so thick, it's this ........".

Well I went for Molly's as I was in a rush.

Now, who can tell me what her response means??

"merci pour vos bons vœux, mais je pourrais avoir à dépenser tout mon argent sur moi, parce que c'est comme ça que je roule! l'amour vous. xx lollage xx"

[MarkRae]

It makes about as much sense as the one you went for...

[milly143]

She's only 12 Mark. I don't think she's quite reached your level of expertise.

[milly143]

I should also say I hadn't seen all the other additions before I used Mollys.

[RATTER15]

MR, you really can be incredibly anal at times

[MarkRae]

"merci pour vos bons vœux, mais je pourrais avoir à dépenser tout mon argent sur moi, parce que c'est comme ça que je roule! l'amour vous. xx lollage xx"

Well, what she says literally means (more or less): "Thank you (formal / plural) for your good wishes, but I could have to spend all my money on me because it's like that that I roll. The love you."

Reading between the lines, she's probably trying to tell you that she's going to spend all her money on herself i.e. won't be bringing you anything pretty back.

But don't quote me on that... :-)

[milly143]

Thanks :o)

A rough idea of what she said is fine. I suspect she probably googled it anyway.

That make sense to me too as her new phrase is "because that's how I roll".

I assume her "lollage" was some sort of frenching up of "lol".

[pa___ul3]

ha, "Lollage" reminds me of the Jerry Jackson cartoons!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuTHdzSJz4c