Glossary entry

English term or phrase:

stick in the mud

French translation:

rabat-joie

Added to glossary by Tony M
Jul 8, 2014 16:04
10 yrs ago
2 viewers *
English term

to be a stick in the mud

English to French Art/Literary General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters colloquial expression
"oh you are such a stick in the mud..."

L'un est saoul et veut se baigner tout nu dans la piscine et l'autre tente de l'en empêcher alors l'homme saoul lui dit "oh you are such a stick in the mud..."

Je comprends bien que cela signifie que le personnage est trop carré, trop droit, mais je ne trouve pas d'expression équivalente en français, à part "come tu es ennuyeux", merci de votre aide. Il s'agit d'un roman de gare américain.
Change log

Jul 8, 2014 16:38: writeaway changed "Field (specific)" from "Poetry & Literature" to "Slang" , "Field (write-in)" from "(none)" to "colloquial expression"

Jul 8, 2014 16:39: writeaway changed "Field (specific)" from "Slang" to "General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters"

Jul 21, 2014 18:34: Tony M Created KOG entry

Discussion

Mireille BOULANGER Jul 9, 2014:
writeaway dans un langage peu chatié, cela pourrait donner "quel emmer...."!! certains romans policiers sont rédigés dans un style encore bien pire...
writeaway Jul 9, 2014:
il y a tant de réponses possible je suis d'accord avec BOULANGER MIREI:il faut aussi voir le style du livre pour adapter la réponse

Lorraine Dubuc Jul 8, 2014:
J'aime bien vieux croûton!
writeaway Jul 8, 2014:
vieux croûton selon un de mes dicos
Lorraine Dubuc Jul 8, 2014:
I believe it is a polite way of saying a pain in the ass. So everything that sounds like it in French would be fine, I believe; Quel trouble fête, toi alors!

Proposed translations

+4
9 mins
Selected

rabat-joie

My R+C dico suggests 'sclérosé, encroûté', but I'm not sure if either of those would really work here; if not, 'rabat-joie' conveys the same notion here — a killjoy, someone who wants to stop you having fun!
Peer comment(s):

agree Anne R : Rabat-joie c'est bien!
34 mins
Thanks, Anne!
agree GILLES MEUNIER
1 hr
Merci, Gilles ! :-) Que l'on ne le dise pas de moi... !
agree Alain Boulé
1 hr
Merci, Alain !
agree Annie Rigler
1 hr
Thanks, Annie!
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Merci à tous, rabat-joie me convient tout à fait dans le contexte. Quelqu'un accusé de ne pas savoir s'amuser et d'empêcher les autres de s'amuser. Merci!"
53 mins

lourdaud

The term is slang, therefore it is something which you could hear in the mouth of someone drunk. What' more, it means someone who doesn't want to move, who's stuck in his routine. So that seems to suit the situation.
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+1
1 hr

Pisse-vinaigre.

Une autre option.
Peer comment(s):

agree Odile Raymond : Expression argotique qu'on imagine bien dans la bouche d'un homme ivre. On dit aussi "pisse-froid".
1 day 13 hrs
Merci.
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13 mins

tu n'es qu'un vieux grincheux

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/stick in the mud ?s=t...

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Note added at 14 mins (2014-07-08 16:19:10 GMT)
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"someone who avoids new activities, ideas, or attitudes; old fogy. "

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Note added at 15 mins (2014-07-08 16:20:07 GMT)
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I don't think it means "spoilsport"

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Note added at 1 hr (2014-07-08 17:32:57 GMT)
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Oxford dic :

"A person who is dull and unadventurous and who resists change: they see many of their colleagues as stick-in-the-muds and sentimental neanderthals [as modifier]: the more stick-in-the-mud members objected to the name"
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/stick-i...

absolutely nothing in trhe definition implies someone spoiling the fun of others.
Peer comment(s):

neutral Tony M : I'm not sure, I think it does, a bit — it seems he's not refusing to go in himself, but rather, trying to stop the other from doing so. / If anything, it's the source term that's poorly-chosen; but the idea's certainly "You dont want to & want to stop me"
1 hr
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1 hr

être un empêcheur de tourner en rond

quel empêcheur de tourner en rond, quel casse-pieds..
il faut aussi voir le style du livre pour adapter la réponse
Something went wrong...
9 hrs
English term (edited): stick in the mud

trouble-fête/bonnet de nuit

In recent years, the U.S. government has become the killjoy of bilateral and multilateral agreements by not complying with trade rules.
www2.parl.gc.ca

Le gouvernement américain est devenu, au cours des dernières années, le trouble-fête des ententes bilatérales et multilatérales en ne respectant pas les règles commerciales.
www2.parl.gc.c
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