Glossary entry

français term or phrase:

avait exprimé le désir de..

anglais translation:

she said she wanted to take part in/join the programme

Added to glossary by suezen
Feb 24, 2006 18:13
18 yrs ago
français term

avait exprimé le désir de..

Non-PRO français vers anglais Autre Jeux / jeux vidéo / jeux d'argent / casino Recreation
elle avait exprimé le désir de participer au programme

Discussion

MatthewLaSon Feb 26, 2006:
Past perfect in French translates into past perfect in English. It's not a question of theory, but a question of accuracy. Never does "Il a parlé" translate into "he speaks"! Context would not change that fact.

Proposed translations

+5
10 minutes
Selected

she said she wanted to take part in/join the programme

or more formally, she'd expressed the desire to
Peer comment(s):

agree Allan Jeffs
4 minutes
agree ACOZ (X)
3 heures
thanks :-)
agree Susana Magnani
4 heures
thanks silt
neutral MatthewLaSon : You need to put this in the past perfect tense: She HAD said that she wanted...
8 heures
in theory, Iagree but in practice it depends on the rest of the context. It could well be replaced by the simple past in English
agree Assimina Vavoula
11 heures
thanks
agree Valérie Cromphaut
12 heures
thanks Valérie
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Merci"
4 heures

she had mentioned she would like to take part in

Slightly awkward but .....
Peer comment(s):

neutral MatthewLaSon : I would have agreed, but you left out the word "that". It should read: she had mentioned THAT she would like to take part in. Besides this minor error, I like your translation.
4 heures
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9 heures

She had expressed her desire to participate in the program.

Remember: "avait exprimé" should be translated in the past perfect tense in English. The past present tense in French normally translates into the past perfect tense in English.

Example: I had bought a pair of pants BEFORE I went to France.

A past event that takes place before another past event should always be put into the past perfect tense in English.

Here, we have "avait exprimé", which, in Engish, is" HAD expressed".

There are many possible translations here, but the verb should remain nonetheless in the past perfect tense.
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