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en kilo devise
Dot 18000
Aug 5, 2012 17:25
11 yrs ago
French term

Du temps en sport, comme dans la vie.

French to English Marketing General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters marketing
also appears as "Du temps dans la vie et en sport." Each time as whole sentences. In this company magazine for a famous sports watch brand the article intends to boast about a famous footballer's good taste in choosing to wear the company's watches. Having outlined said footballer's footballing credentials, the writer finds himself at a loss for a link to the topic of the sportsman's interest and good taste in watches. Hence the ungainly verbless sentence which we have to translate.
Proposed translations (English)
3 +8 Time matters, in sports and life.
3 +2 Timing is everything, in sport as in life.
Change log

Aug 5, 2012 17:54: writeaway changed "Field" from "Art/Literary" to "Marketing"

Discussion

cc in nyc Aug 6, 2012:
is key to It would not be my choice, but one might argue that Paul Brians is on shaky ground militating against a construction that is found in the online Merriam-Webster dictionary and also here: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/key – both instances without any words of warning. ;-)
polyglot45 Aug 6, 2012:
Timing is all on and off the pitch/field (we talk about football pitches in the UK but depends who your target audience is)
Nikki Scott-Despaigne Aug 6, 2012:
"key" as an adjective It exists used as you have used it, but apparently reads uneasily to others too. I would suggest avoiding it in the way of the second example. Readers of the final version may think that a word has been left out.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/key[adjective]

1)
Coming before all others in importance "maintains that Sir Isaac Newton remains the key figure in physical science"

2)
Of the greatest possible importance "first—and this is key—I wasn't even there that evening"
Nikki Scott-Despaigne Aug 6, 2012:
@Paul As you have phrased it, "key" reads as a noun lacking its article rather than as an adjective, although I understand your intention. If you wish it to be an adjective, it would have to precede a noun. As is, it definitely requires an article.

http://public.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/key.html

“Deceptive marketing is key to their success as a company.” “Careful folding of the egg whites is key.” This very popular sort of use of “key” as an adjective by itself to mean “crucial” sets the teeth of some of us on edge. It derives from an older usage of “key” as a metaphorical noun: “The key to true happiness is an abundant supply of chocolate.” “Key” as an adjective modifying a noun is also traditional: “Key evidence in the case was mislaid by the police.”

But adjectival “key” without a noun to modify it is not so traditional. If this sort of thing bothers you (as it does me), you’ll have to grit your teeth and sigh. It’s not going away."
Paul Hirsh (asker) Aug 6, 2012:
@Nikki I see your point, but I was using 'key' as an adjective meaning crucial. It's something one hears a lot, so I assume it has become current usage.
Paul Hirsh (asker) Aug 6, 2012:
@Daryo It starts a new paragraph.
Nikki Scott-Despaigne Aug 6, 2012:
On and off the field : nice!
cc in nyc Aug 6, 2012:
@ polyglot In the USA, it would be "on and off the field" I think, but it lacks the zing of the French.
polyglot45 Aug 6, 2012:
Not sure I like "sport/life" Think it's more about "on the pitch and off" that this guy needs a watch.
A watch for on and off the pitch
Daryo Aug 5, 2012:
what's the sentence before and the one after?
"Du temps" feels unfinished, like a shortened reference to something said in the previous sentence.
cc in nyc Aug 5, 2012:
Comma placement I too would move the comma after "key."
Nikki Scott-Despaigne Aug 5, 2012:
Time is key in sport, as in life Paul,

If you have decided to use the sentence as above, then you might liek to consider two points of grammar; the article and the position of the comma.

Suggestion : "Time is THE key...".
Suggestion : "Time is the key, in sport and in life". (comma)

The comma has changed position in relation to the original, but it is made necessary by the addition of a new word (key) in the first part of the sentence.

Proposed translations

+8
11 mins
Selected

Time matters, in sports and life.

Maybe too fast to be good enough, but at least a start.

Of course, they should hire an Anglophone PR firm for stuff like this.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 12 mins (2012-08-05 17:37:37 GMT)
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Or: Time counts, in sports and life. Same idea.

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Note added at 51 mins (2012-08-05 18:16:36 GMT)
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@ Paul: Great! The point being, Get out there and buy a watch – just like the one the famous footballer is wearing!

BTW, I prefer "Time matters," but that's no surprise since it's the phrase I came up with.

Glad to help, in any case. ;-)

(And, even though should hire a PR firm, I like these jingles.)

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 52 mins (2012-08-05 18:17:56 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Argh! And, even though they should....
Note from asker:
That's great cc! You removed the block :) I went with Time is key in sport, as in life
Peer comment(s):
agree Kelly Harrison : sounds good to me!
4 mins
Thank you!
agree Nikki Scott-Despaigne : "... in sport and in life"
41 mins
Thank you. Yes, "sport" for BE. We are hearing that a lot this week (London Olympics).
agree Kate Collyer : sport [collective singular] I would say
45 mins
Thank you. (Note: I speak AE.)
agree Tristan Jimenez : I like that!
56 mins
Thank you.
agree Bertrand Leduc
56 mins
Thank you.
agree AllegroTrans : "in sport as in life" - maybe
1 hr
Thank you.
agree mimi 254
15 hrs
Thank you.
agree Verginia Ophof
22 hrs
Thank you.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "went for "on and off the field" in the end. Thanks cc!"
+2
15 hrs

Timing is everything, in sport as in life.

Changes the meaning of the FR, of course, and may not fit with the context - but, an option all the same.
Example sentence:

In life as in sport, timing is everything.

Timing is everything, in sport and in life.

Note from asker:
I liked the change of word order in the first example. Thanks
Peer comment(s):
agree cc in nyc : why not?
15 mins
Thanks cc.
agree Daryo : better related to a watch than just "time" - makes you think of a watch, so it would be a good transition to the spiel about the watch itself.
4 hrs
Thanks Daryo.
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