Mar 27, 2021 18:30
3 yrs ago
39 viewers *
French term
United States
Quality work into English since 1981
Native in: English 
Works in: German to English, Dutch to English, Danish to English, and 4 more.
servie
French to English
Art/Literary
Journalism
Biography
I am translating an account of the meeting of Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley.
She was impressed by his lack of pretentiousness, and then it states:
"Elle qui appréciait les hommes avec un ascendant était servie".
I need particular insight into SERVIE, but, while you're at it, would "ancestry" be appropriate for "ascendant"?
Thank you!
RE Anderson
Chicago, IL, USA
She was impressed by his lack of pretentiousness, and then it states:
"Elle qui appréciait les hommes avec un ascendant était servie".
I need particular insight into SERVIE, but, while you're at it, would "ancestry" be appropriate for "ascendant"?
Thank you!
RE Anderson
Chicago, IL, USA
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 +5 | see explanation |
David Hayes
|
| 4 | to get what one was looking for |
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
|
| 4 | she got her wish |
Yvonne Gallagher
|
| 4 | Was not to be disappointed |
Danielle Letch
|
Proposed translations
+5
51 mins
David Hayes
France
France
Native in English
Works in field
France
Traductions soignées et fiables
Native in: English (Variant: British)
Works in: French to English
Related KudoZ points
:
4
Selected
see explanation
In this case, 'servie' refers back to 'elle' (hence the feminine ending) and is the past participle of 'servir'. You would have to rephrase in some way to translate this phrase. The sense of it is as follows:
She, who valued men with ascendancy, certainly got what she wanted
You can no doubt tweak this to make fit it more naturally with the rest of your text.
She, who valued men with ascendancy, certainly got what she wanted
You can no doubt tweak this to make fit it more naturally with the rest of your text.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Emmanuella
1 min
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| agree |
Daryo
1 hr
|
| disagree |
SafeTex
: Nothing personal but I've asked a moderator to look at this. "See explanation" is not an answer and this sort of usage will quickly make the forum unusable.
10 hrs
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|
I presume you have also asked the moderator to look at the 1,864 other KudoZ answers framed in the same way.
|
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| agree |
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
: "ascendency" works
16 hrs
|
| agree |
Carol Gullidge
: I agree with your interpretation, but also with SafeTex’s point, from the POV of helpful Glossary entries. Also applies to those other 1864 Answers, naturally!
1 day 1 hr
|
| agree |
Julie Barber
: great explanation (that you can't really squeeze in the answer box, and the alternative would be a perhaps half-baked suggestion whereas this gives the asker the understanding to create their own suggestion)
1 day 14 hrs
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|
Thanks, Julie! In this highly context-bound case, I do not think a standard answer would be all that helpful. We are talking about a particular use of a past participle rather than the translation of a French term per se.
|
|
| agree |
Conor McAuley
1 day 18 hrs
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Selected automatically based on peer agreement."
4 hrs
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
Native in English
Psychologist, Court-certified legal
Native in: English 
Works in: French to English
Related KudoZ points
:
8
French term (edited):
être servi
to get what one was looking for
Important not to confuse this with "to get what one was asking for", which is about getting what one deserves.
1 day 18 hrs
Yvonne Gallagher
Ireland
Ireland
Native in English
Works in field
Ireland
right word, right place. everytime
Native in: English (Variants: UK, US, Canadian, Irish)
Works in: French to English, Spanish to English, English, and 1 more.
she got her wish
a rewrite of previous answers
she liked/preferred DOMINANT men and got her wish (Or what what she was seeking)
she liked/preferred DOMINANT men and got her wish (Or what what she was seeking)
4 days
Was not to be disappointed
In this context the journalist is explaining that she preferred domineering men and that with Michael she definitely got her wish as per previous answer. But to remian coherent and according to the style of the journalistic text I would use "she was not to be disappointed"
Discussion