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Off topic: More funny mistranslations
Thread poster: Jeff Whittaker
Jeff Whittaker
Jeff Whittaker  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 12:10
Member (2002)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Jul 23, 2010

French:

I have a product that you are supposed to spray on your dogs (all natural - made of rosemary) to stop them from frequently itching (and subsequently injuring) specific parts on their body. In the American variety of English at least, these are called "hot spots". The French translation on the bottle translates "hot spots" as "endroits populaires" or "popular places" which I suspect may not fit this particular context. I wonder if "points chauds" would work any better??
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French:

I have a product that you are supposed to spray on your dogs (all natural - made of rosemary) to stop them from frequently itching (and subsequently injuring) specific parts on their body. In the American variety of English at least, these are called "hot spots". The French translation on the bottle translates "hot spots" as "endroits populaires" or "popular places" which I suspect may not fit this particular context. I wonder if "points chauds" would work any better??

Spanish:
On a recent visit to my car mechanic, I noticed that someone (or perhaps something) had translated a sign informing customers of a possible 10% surcharge added to their bill in certain cases. Spanish speakers were informed that there may be a 10% extra charge on their "proyecto de ley". This is a "congressional bill" rather than an invoice (una factura). I wanted to inform them about their mistake, but I do not think they would understand what I am talking about.

There is a lot of construction going on in my area and there are numerous signs that read "WARNING! Power Lines Above" with an arrow pointing up to electrical power lines. The Spanish version provided below this reads "AVISO! Encima de las lineas electricas" or "WARNING! Above the power lines".




[Edited at 2010-07-23 13:50 GMT] ▲ Collapse
 
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT
Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 18:10
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
+ ...
Not that wrong, really Jul 23, 2010

Jeff Whittaker wrote:
I have a product that you are supposed to spray on your dogs (all natural - made of rosemary) to stop them from frequently itching (and subsequently injuring) specific parts on their body. In the American variety of English at least, these are called "hot spots". The French translation on the bottle translates "hot spots" as "endroits populaires" or "popular places" which I suspect may not fit this particular context. I wonder if "points chauds" would work any better??

Hm... But the French translator was very considerate towards the true customers of the product: bacteria dwelling in the hot spots. After all, these spots are "endroits populaires" for bacteria, fleas, ticks, etc....
 


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