May 15, 2006 09:04
18 yrs ago
5 viewers *
Arabic term
لا تكن يابساً فتكسر ولا تكن ليناً فتعصر
Arabic to English
Other
Poetry & Literature
Proverb
What I need is the closest English equivalent proverb. Thanks!
Proposed translations
(English)
Proposed translations
+3
19 hrs
Selected
Be flexible but firm
Not very poetic but concise and to the point. Hope it helps. Here are some examples:
Accounting Firm Development Center - [ Traduzca esta página ]Be flexible but firm. Keep in mind that your accounting firm as a “local firm” can be much more flexible that the “BIG TWO” so there is opportunity. ...
www.afdcenter.com/IndustryOpportunities/ GreatPayrollOpportunity/PayrollPg18.asp - 13k - En caché - Páginas similares
ALIEN - The Gavin Beschen Abduction - SURF Magazine - [ Traduzca esta página ]"You gotta be flexible but firm, and keep on movin' along with your head up." "I don't like to see what's straight in front of me-I like to take a step ...
www.transworldsurf.com/ surf/article/0,19929,342146,00.html - 41k - En caché - Páginas similares
60-Second Guide to Collecting Payment | Finance & Accounting ... - [ Traduzca esta página ]Be flexible, but firm; and don’t hesitate to follow up. 0:15 Take Stronger Action. Related Articles. How Current Are Credit Reports? ...
www.allbusiness.com/articles/ FinanceAccounting/2714-32-1780.html - 30k - En caché - Páginas similares
[PDF] Celebrating childcareFormato de archivo: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - Versión en HTML
Be flexible but firm in your. negotiations. Don’t agree to anything. you’ll later regret. If you have a choice, it’s better to ...
www.daycaretrust.org.uk/mod/ fileman/files/childwise_issue12.pdf - Páginas similares
Accounting Firm Development Center - [ Traduzca esta página ]Be flexible but firm. Keep in mind that your accounting firm as a “local firm” can be much more flexible that the “BIG TWO” so there is opportunity. ...
www.afdcenter.com/IndustryOpportunities/ GreatPayrollOpportunity/PayrollPg18.asp - 13k - En caché - Páginas similares
ALIEN - The Gavin Beschen Abduction - SURF Magazine - [ Traduzca esta página ]"You gotta be flexible but firm, and keep on movin' along with your head up." "I don't like to see what's straight in front of me-I like to take a step ...
www.transworldsurf.com/ surf/article/0,19929,342146,00.html - 41k - En caché - Páginas similares
60-Second Guide to Collecting Payment | Finance & Accounting ... - [ Traduzca esta página ]Be flexible, but firm; and don’t hesitate to follow up. 0:15 Take Stronger Action. Related Articles. How Current Are Credit Reports? ...
www.allbusiness.com/articles/ FinanceAccounting/2714-32-1780.html - 30k - En caché - Páginas similares
[PDF] Celebrating childcareFormato de archivo: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - Versión en HTML
Be flexible but firm in your. negotiations. Don’t agree to anything. you’ll later regret. If you have a choice, it’s better to ...
www.daycaretrust.org.uk/mod/ fileman/files/childwise_issue12.pdf - Páginas similares
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Many thanks!"
+1
9 mins
Do not be so rigid to the extent of breakage nor so lenient to the extent of liquidation
IF YOU REVIEW THIS ARABIC SAYING ,YOU WOULD GO THROUGH THE MOST SUBSTANTIAL CORE OF THE MEANING WHICH SIMPLY MEANS MODERATION LINE OF LIFESTYLE AND ATTITUDES.
Reference:
Peer comment(s):
neutral |
Ala Rabie
: is this a proper english proverb?
8 mins
|
neutral |
algtranslator
: That still sounds Arabic, we need to come up with the equivalent in the other culture ;-)
33 mins
|
agree |
ghassan al-Alem
: you cannot have two negatives. Neither be .. Try to rephrase
1 hr
|
1 hr
You are a green, wet stick; had you been dry, you would have been broken long ago
a Zulu "izaga" (proverb) is literally translated to English: "You are a green, wet stick; had you been dry, you would have been broken long ago" (no. 120 in the list found here: http://www.antiquarian.co.za/Zulu Proverbs.htm.
in many cases the translator provides the English equivalent saying/proverb, the absence of which in no. 120 indicates that it didn't actually ring a bell in his mind.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2006-05-15 10:49:09 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
the valid web address: http://www.antiquarian.co.za/Zulu Proverbs.htm
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2006-05-15 10:52:16 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
also there is an afghani proverb, rendered here: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Afghanistan_proverbs#J
as "If a forest catches fire, both the dry and the wet will burn"
in many cases the translator provides the English equivalent saying/proverb, the absence of which in no. 120 indicates that it didn't actually ring a bell in his mind.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2006-05-15 10:49:09 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
the valid web address: http://www.antiquarian.co.za/Zulu Proverbs.htm
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2006-05-15 10:52:16 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
also there is an afghani proverb, rendered here: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Afghanistan_proverbs#J
as "If a forest catches fire, both the dry and the wet will burn"
Peer comment(s):
neutral |
ghassan al-Alem
: Not exactly. This calls to be soft only whilst the Arabic calls to stand on the middle grounds.
4 mins
|
2 hrs
“Whatever you do, do it in moderation”
the overall meaning of the proverb is to handle life moderately.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2006-05-15 11:48:02 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
All things in moderation and moderation in all things
http://www.englishforums.com/English/ThingsModerationModerat...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2006-05-15 11:48:02 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
All things in moderation and moderation in all things
http://www.englishforums.com/English/ThingsModerationModerat...
+1
2 hrs
similar Thai & Chinese proverbs
I know you're looking for an English proverb, but I've seen these Thai and Chinese proverbs quoted quite a few times on the internet (which seems to suggest that there is no similar English proverb, but who knows?):
Thai proverb, "the tree that bends with the wind is the tree that survives the storm". The ever so wise Thai kings of the Ayutthayan period offered small ...
www.csmngt.com/thailand_history.htm
The old Thai proverb, that the tree that bends with the wind is the tree that survives the storm, was indicative of the Thai mentality. ...
www.j-aircraft.com/research/jan_forsgren/j-aircraft_royal_t...
Ziniewicz on Confucius
The tree that bends with the wind will not break. The tree that is rigid and hard will not stand. Compare this view to Western views. ...
www.fred.net/tzaka/confuc.html
In Chinese philosophy there is a saying, "The tree that sways with the wind never breaks." That is also good advice for a Web designer. ...
www.design-agency.com/project/jimmy/design_4th.html
"To bend like the reed in the wind, that is the real strength" -- Taoist proverb. I was introduced to the Chinese philosophy of Taoism after reading The Tao ...
chronicle.com/jobs/news/2006/05/2006050401c/careers.html
Thai proverb, "the tree that bends with the wind is the tree that survives the storm". The ever so wise Thai kings of the Ayutthayan period offered small ...
www.csmngt.com/thailand_history.htm
The old Thai proverb, that the tree that bends with the wind is the tree that survives the storm, was indicative of the Thai mentality. ...
www.j-aircraft.com/research/jan_forsgren/j-aircraft_royal_t...
Ziniewicz on Confucius
The tree that bends with the wind will not break. The tree that is rigid and hard will not stand. Compare this view to Western views. ...
www.fred.net/tzaka/confuc.html
In Chinese philosophy there is a saying, "The tree that sways with the wind never breaks." That is also good advice for a Web designer. ...
www.design-agency.com/project/jimmy/design_4th.html
"To bend like the reed in the wind, that is the real strength" -- Taoist proverb. I was introduced to the Chinese philosophy of Taoism after reading The Tao ...
chronicle.com/jobs/news/2006/05/2006050401c/careers.html
11 hrs
Don't be so flexible then you will be pressed, and don't be so rigid then you will be broken
Baker suggests 4 strategies for dealing with culture bound (or culture-specific) expressions:
1 - Using an idiom of similar meaning and form
2 - Using an idiom of similar meaning but dissimilar form
3 - Translation by paraphrase
4 - Translation by omission
We don't have 1 or 2, so 3 is OK. I found this translation (by paraphrase) on the web.
1 - Using an idiom of similar meaning and form
2 - Using an idiom of similar meaning but dissimilar form
3 - Translation by paraphrase
4 - Translation by omission
We don't have 1 or 2, so 3 is OK. I found this translation (by paraphrase) on the web.
Reference:
http://www.jeddawy.com/vb/archive/index.php/t-2157.html
Mona Baker, In Other Words: A Coursebook on Translation (London: Routledge, 1992)
4 hrs
Do not go to extremes in your behavior / A balanced behavior is best
It was suggested that staff and faculty could also be influential in modeling balanced behavior for students—which would require that they convincingly ...
www.smith.edu/planning/contact_notes2-20.php - 29k - Cached - Similar pages
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 12 hrs (2006-05-15 21:28:25 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
a bow that is bent too far will break
Italian Proverb. Extremes and Extremists · A bow that is bent too far will break. Rating: Not Rated, Rate: 1 2 3 4 5 · Values ...
www.cybernation.com/quotationcenter/ quoteshow.php?type=author&id=7246 - 88k - Cached - Similar pages
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 12 hrs (2006-05-15 21:36:24 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
wine is one thing, drunkenness another
Aliud vinum, aliud ebrietas.
Posted in Proverbs on September 14th, 2005
Aliud vinum, aliud ebrietas.
Wine is one thing. Drunkenness is something else.
(Anonymous)
(Pron = ah-lee-ood wee-noom, ah-lee-ood ay-bree-ay-tahs)
This proverb has many expressions: balance in all things; avoid extremes; the middle way; vital balance;
www.smith.edu/planning/contact_notes2-20.php - 29k - Cached - Similar pages
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 12 hrs (2006-05-15 21:28:25 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
a bow that is bent too far will break
Italian Proverb. Extremes and Extremists · A bow that is bent too far will break. Rating: Not Rated, Rate: 1 2 3 4 5 · Values ...
www.cybernation.com/quotationcenter/ quoteshow.php?type=author&id=7246 - 88k - Cached - Similar pages
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 12 hrs (2006-05-15 21:36:24 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
wine is one thing, drunkenness another
Aliud vinum, aliud ebrietas.
Posted in Proverbs on September 14th, 2005
Aliud vinum, aliud ebrietas.
Wine is one thing. Drunkenness is something else.
(Anonymous)
(Pron = ah-lee-ood wee-noom, ah-lee-ood ay-bree-ay-tahs)
This proverb has many expressions: balance in all things; avoid extremes; the middle way; vital balance;
Reference:
13 hrs
Safety lies in the middle course
A PROVERB
19 hrs
A course between dry and wet saves one from regret.
Surely, an explanation is required in both Arabic and English since the two sentences rely heavily on fifgures of speech. Perhaps, a more aggressive translation away from the exact words of the text could be to say that one has to take a middle course or act or behave moderately.
6324 days
Do o not be too hard, lest you be broken; do not be too soft, lest you be squeezed.
من الأقوال المأثورة للإمام علي بن أبي طالب رضي الله عنه
لا تكن ليّناً فتُعصر ولا قاسياً فتُكسر
لا تكن ليّناً فتُعصر ولا قاسياً فتُكسر
Something went wrong...