Feb 2, 2009 15:08
15 yrs ago
Spanish term

Érase un teléfono pegado a un hombre

Spanish to English Other Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
This is on a web page, a roll-over I believe, that describes the person in question (I think every member of the staff has a photo and a short roll-over quip such as "Bob, the fastest copy writer in the West"). there is no fruther context except it is an ad agency ...

Josep “Érase un teléfono pegado a un hombre”.

Discussion

Lydia De Jorge Feb 2, 2009:
This is derived from Quevedo's famous "Erase un hombre a una nariz pegado". I don't think it translates well literally "There once was a man stuck to his nose" (In this case 'phone')

Proposed translations

+1
1 hr
Selected

This man and his phone are never parted / Ever heard the expression 'glued to the phone'? etc.

I don't think that a literal translation will work. The reference is most likely lost on most readers of the website anyway. I would go for something freer and more lighthearted.
"Ever heard the expression 'glued to the phone'?"
Glued to
"This man and his phone are seldom/never parted"
"We don't recognize X if he isn't glued to the phone" etc.


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Note added at 2 hrs (2009-02-02 17:08:56 GMT)
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'X and his telephone are joined at the ear"

If I think of any more I shall post them, even they start getting a little lame, perhaps ;D

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Note added at 2 hrs (2009-02-02 17:10:17 GMT)
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"Difficult to recognise unless glued to the phone"

another version of an option above...

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Note added at 2 hrs (2009-02-02 17:12:18 GMT)
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"Is the man glued to the telephone, or is it glued to him?'

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Note added at 2 hrs (2009-02-02 17:13:54 GMT)
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"Super-glued to his phone" (or plain "Superglued")
Peer comment(s):

agree Marjory Hord : Nice & idiomatic
4 hrs
Thank you very much Marjory! :)
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thanks, glued to the phone did it for me. :)"
2 mins

was upon a telephone stuck to a man

:)
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+3
3 mins

there was a phone growing out of his ear

sugg
Peer comment(s):

agree Arcoiris
2 mins
Gracias!
agree Andrés Martínez : Me gusta esta opción para traducir libremente esta paráfrasis del célebre verso de Quevedo sobre las narices.
6 mins
Gracias Urico!
agree Alfredo Vargas
12 mins
Gracias Alfredo!
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9 mins

There was a telephone glued to a man ('s ear)

There was a telephone glued to a man ('s ear)
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+5
14 mins

there was once a telephone stuck to a man / once upon a time there was this telephone stuck to a man

other options
Peer comment(s):

agree Robert Forstag : I would go with: "There once was a telephone stuck to a man." (Has sort of a Dr. Suess ring to it.)
6 mins
Thanks Robert!, good suggestion!
agree liz askew
18 mins
Thanks Liz!
agree Alex Lago : I like "there once was a telephone stuck to a man"
31 mins
Thanks Alex!
agree Marcelo González : "there once was..." // I agree with Robert :-)
3 hrs
Thanks Marcelo!
agree Cinnamon Nolan : "There once was..."
5 hrs
Thanks Cinnamon!
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15 mins

Needs a phone implant

I think this would give the idea in English more culturally/idiomatically
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17 mins

once there was a telephone stuck to a man

Suele ser un dicho muy común, al menos en España. Ejemplo:


A un hombre de gran nariz

Erase un hombre a una nariz pegado,
érase una nariz superlativa,
érase una alquitara medio viva,
érase un peje espada mal barbado;
era un reloj de sol mal encarado,
érase un elefante boca arriba,
érase una nariz sayón y escriba,
un Ovidio Nasón mal narigado.

Erase el espolón de una galera,
érase una pirámide de Egito,
las doce tribus de narices era;

érase un naricísimo infinito
frisón archinariz, caratulera,
sabañón garrafal, morado y frito.


Otra versión (posiblemente la original)
del terceto final:

érase un naricísimo infinito,
muchísimo nariz, nariz tan fiera,
que en la cara de Anás fuera delito.





To a man with a big nose

Once there was a man stuck to a nose,
it was a nose more marvellous than weird,
it was a nearly living web of tubes,
it was a swordfish with an awful beard,
it was a sundial doomed to face the shade,
an elephant that looked up to the sky,
it was a nose of hangman and of scribe,
Ovidius Naso nostrilled all awry,

it was the bowsprit of a mighty ship,
like Egypt's pyramid it pierced the sky,
it was of noses all of the twelve tribes;

it was in noseness truly infinite,
an archnose shudder, and a frightening mask,
a monstrous chilblain, purpley and fried.


Translation of the alternate final tercet
(possibly the original):

it was in noseness truly infinite,
an awful lot of nose, a nose so fierce
that on Annas's face would be a crime.


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46 mins

There once was a man with a telephone glued to his ear....

just to join the fun!
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Reference comments

1 day 6 hrs
Reference:

érase un hombre a una nariz pegado

Hace un juego de palabras en referencia a un poema de Quevedo.
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