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  3. Idioms / Maxims / Sayings

gueule de bois en plomb

English translation: a stinker of a hangover

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
French term or phrase:gueule de bois en plomb
English translation:a stinker of a hangover
Entered by: Dominique Broady

13:43 Oct 8, 2009
French to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
French term or phrase: gueule de bois en plomb
Voilà, je voudrais traduire "une gueule de bois en plomb" à l'anglais, mais en français c'est très imagé alors j'aimerais trouver non une traduction littérale bien sûr, mais une solution qui sonnerait bien en anglais..
Kevin Sallee
Mexico
Local time: 07:35
a stinker of a hangover
Explanation:
Here's my suggestion

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 17 mins (2009-10-08 14:01:01 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

another alternative: a stinking hangover
Selected response from:

Dominique Broady
Netherlands
Local time: 16:35
Grading comment
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +6a hell of a hangover
Ben Lenthall
5 +4a stinker of a hangover
Dominique Broady
4 +1Super hangover
Drmanu49
3 +2the mother and father of all hangovers
polyglot45
4eyes like pissholes in the snow
Carol Gullidge
3 +1a clanging hangover
Emma Paulay
2 +1my mouth tasted like a vulture's crotch
Rob Grayson
3a whacking great hangover
Miranda Joubioux (X)
3a bear with a sore head
roisin56
Summary of reference entries provided
Slightly off-topic quote from Kinglsey Amis
John Detre

Discussion entries: 2





  

Answers


3 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
gueule de bois
Super hangover


Explanation:
Road Trip: The Super Dooper Hangover Cure Part 2 - AOL Video
Road Trip: The Super Dooper Hangover Cure Part 2. Description. The only thing we really learn by the end of this is that I'm too big of a baby to handle ...
video.aol.fr/...super...hangover.../1845902161 -

Super hangover, what is the remedy? - Yahoo! Answers
- [ Traduire cette page ]
Water makes me want to puke. Soda does the same. ... more beer always work.. kind of like a weening off effect, drink again but not as much you did the previous ...
answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid... -

Drmanu49
France
Local time: 16:35
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in FrenchFrench

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Mary O’Connor (X): This works if you are translating into US English. Kevin, you could mention if you are translating into US or UK English. This would help.
9 mins
  -> Thank you Mary.
neutral  Lianne Wilson: Just to note that the 'super' in your first reference refers to the cure, not the hangover.
1 hr
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4 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +6
gueule de bois
a hell of a hangover


Explanation:
I may come up with something more poetic but this is probably the best literal translation of the French expression (quand vous ajoutez en plomb).

Ben Lenthall
France
Local time: 16:35
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
Notes to answerer
Asker: it's actually what I had for the moment, but I'm searching for something more poetic :) If not I'll just keep that original translation


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Mary O’Connor (X): This works if you are translating into UK English. Kevin, you could mention if you are translating into US or UK English. This would help.
8 mins
agree  Irene McClure: or "the hangover from hell"
10 mins
agree  HugoSteckel
25 mins
agree  Lianne Wilson: Agree with savtrad on 'hangover from hell', sounds stronger.
1 hr
agree  Jean-Claude Gouin
3 hrs
agree  ormiston: maybe in context 'ONE hell of a hangover'
4 hrs
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14 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +2
gueule de bois
the mother and father of all hangovers


Explanation:
a king-size hangover
a giant hangover
completely hung over

polyglot45
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in FrenchFrench
PRO pts in category: 42

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  gsloane: This works if you want something poetic (and more delicate).
1 hr
agree  philgoddard: This is good!
12 hrs
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11 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +4
a stinker of a hangover


Explanation:
Here's my suggestion

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 17 mins (2009-10-08 14:01:01 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

another alternative: a stinking hangover



    Reference: http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2005/dec/01/health.lifeand...
Dominique Broady
Netherlands
Local time: 16:35
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 4
Notes to answerer
Asker: hahaha I like the sound of it! might keep it as best translation, I'll just wait for a couple of more options


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Vicky James: stinking hangover
19 mins
  -> thank you!
agree  gsloane: This captures the French phraseology the best...and most diplomatically.
1 hr
  -> thank you!
agree  Miranda Joubioux (X)
3 hrs
  -> thanks!
agree  Verginia Ophof
6 hrs
  -> thanks!
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18 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 2/5Answerer confidence 2/5 peer agreement (net): +1
gueule de bois
my mouth tasted like a vulture's crotch


Explanation:
This is certainly colourful, but low confidence as it's (1) restricted to UK, and even then quite possibly only to certain geographical areas, and (2) not necessarily the register you're looking for.

(If you haven't come across it before, you'll find plenty of examples with Google.)

Rob Grayson
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:35
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 16
Notes to answerer
Asker: I love the expression, but it doesn't work here, because I want to make the reader feel the pain in the head, the difficult awakening, and not just bad breath!


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Emma Paulay: LOL - never heard it before, but love it!
1 hr
  -> Glad to have added to your vocabulary!
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31 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
eyes like pissholes in the snow


Explanation:
is a nice graphic one

You could also add "and a head like... " well, almost anything that comes to mind

Urban Dictionary: eyes like pissholes in the snow15 Nov 2006 ... eyes like pissholes in the snow - 1 definition - very bleary eyes, as seen on someone who is suffering from a hangover.
www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 59 mins (2009-10-08 14:43:46 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------



Well, you could probably have a head like... almost anything.

But I found this nice graphic one: Have a head like a blind carpenter's thumb : If you have a 'head like a blind carpenter's thumb', you are suffering from a hangover due to excessive drinking.
http://www.english-for-students.com/Slangs-H.html



--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2009-10-08 14:45:03 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

ie,

A HEAD LIKE A BLIND CARPENTER'S THUMB



Carol Gullidge
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:35
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 47
Notes to answerer
Asker: ha! I like it! Eyes like pisshole in the snow, mouth tasting like a vulture's crotch, and the head???


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Miranda Joubioux (X): I love the blind carpenter Carol!
2 hrs
  -> thanks Miranda! In fact the one I knew was the pissholes one - the blind carpenter came from the dictionary of student slang
disagree  philgoddard: This is not what the French says - the translation has to have "hangover" in it somewhere.
12 hrs
  -> OH? So why disagree with this and not Rob's suggestion? In fact, my expression is a well-known euphemism for a humdinger of a hangover... And if you look carefully at the Asker's notes, you'll see he was looking for something more graphic
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
a clanging hangover


Explanation:
Interesting that there are so many ways of saying this in English...


    Reference: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09197/984214-440.stm
Emma Paulay
France
Local time: 16:35
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 35

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Philippe Etienne: No wonder, it's the British who are eager to leave work on Fridays aka the POETS' DAY (P*ss Off Early, Tomorrow's Satur DAY)
3 hrs
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3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
a whacking great hangover


Explanation:
A dreadful hangover

'a bitch/bastard of a hangover' but that might be a bit too vulgar.

A hangover to match/beat all hangovers

To pick up on Emma
A clanger of a hangover




Miranda Joubioux (X)
Local time: 16:35
Native speaker of: English
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19 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
a bear with a sore head


Explanation:
bit mild compared to some beauts so far

roisin56
France
Local time: 16:35
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
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Reference comments


1 hr
Reference: Slightly off-topic quote from Kinglsey Amis

Reference information:
He lay sprawled, too wicked to move, spewed up like a broken spider-crab on the tarry shingle of morning. The light did him harm, but not as much as looking at things did; he resolved, having done it once, never to move his eyeballs again. A dusty thudding in his head made the scene before him beat like a pulse. His mouth had been used as a latrine by some small creature of the night, and then as its mausoleum. During the night, too, he'd somehow been on a cross-country run and then been expertly beaten up by secret police. He felt bad.

John Detre
Canada
Native speaker of: English
Note to reference poster
Asker: Nice! I love it! It was kind of a hangover like that! :)


Peer comments on this reference comment (and responses from the reference poster)
neutral  roisin56: Oh boy, makes me wince to read it
17 hrs
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