Glossary entry (derived from question below)
French term or phrase:
sine qua non
English translation:
key / crucial factor
Added to glossary by
silvester55
Apr 20, 2011 21:36
13 yrs ago
5 viewers *
French term
sine qua non
Non-PRO
French to English
Other
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
Hi everyone,
Any ideas how I could translate 'condition sine qua non' in this context? It's from an article about a young professional footballer who is gradually maturing into a key player for both club and country. A lack of maturity was the only thing that had prevented him from fulfilling his potential sooner.
"Ne manquait que la maturité nécessaire à l’épanouissement, condition *sine qua non* pour une progression attendue depuis ses 14 réalisations de la dernière campagne."
All of my efforts so far have sounded a bit clunky, so any inspiration would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Joe
Any ideas how I could translate 'condition sine qua non' in this context? It's from an article about a young professional footballer who is gradually maturing into a key player for both club and country. A lack of maturity was the only thing that had prevented him from fulfilling his potential sooner.
"Ne manquait que la maturité nécessaire à l’épanouissement, condition *sine qua non* pour une progression attendue depuis ses 14 réalisations de la dernière campagne."
All of my efforts so far have sounded a bit clunky, so any inspiration would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Joe
Proposed translations
(English)
Change log
Apr 21, 2011 06:15: Stéphanie Soudais changed "Term asked" from "Sine qua non" to "sine qua non" , "Field (specific)" from "Sports / Fitness / Recreation" to "General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters" , "Field (write-in)" from "Football" to "(none)"
May 2, 2011 16:24: silvester55 changed "Edited KOG entry" from "<a href="/profile/1349615">Joseph Jeffries (X)'s</a> old entry - "sine qua non"" to ""key / crucial factor""
Proposed translations
+3
7 hrs
Selected
key factor
just another suggestion
Note from asker:
| Thanks Silvester. This fits pretty well with the kind of register I'm aiming for |
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Many thanks for all of your suggestions"
+1
2 mins
sine qua non
see link
Reference:
Note from asker:
| Hi Victor, thanks for the suggestion. The text has to be accessible to as wide a target audience as possible, so preserving the Latin isn't an option I'm afraid |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
rkillings
: No more Latinate, really, than "prerequisite". Same number of syllables, and fewer letters.:-) Just dispense with the 'condition' part -- that always goes without saying.
3 hrs
|
|
Thank you!
|
|
| neutral |
Tony M
: Agree, really, except for the question of register.
8 hrs
|
| neutral |
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
: Agree with Tony, used commonly in France, less so in England.
2 days 16 hrs
|
+1
2 mins
Zbyněk Táborský
Czech Republic
Czech Republic
Czech Republic
Business, Legal, Marketing, EU, Politics
Native in: Czech
Works in: English to Czech, French to Czech, Czech
Related KudoZ points
:
1
fundamental/necessary/required...
...
Note from asker:
| Thanks Zbynek, definitely an option |
+1
1 min
Sine qua non ou condition indispensable pour...
IMO
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 18 mins (2011-04-20 21:54:57 GMT)
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or indispensable as absolutely necessary
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Note added at 18 mins (2011-04-20 21:54:57 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
or indispensable as absolutely necessary
Note from asker:
| Hi Drmanu49, I was actually looking for an English translation, but thanks for the suggestion all the same |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Jean-Claude Gouin
9 mins
|
|
Thank you.
|
|
| neutral |
Zbyněk Táborský
: Like this it seems to me like saying the same thing twice... / Sorry for that, I overlooked "ou" :)
13 mins
|
|
It's one or the other Zbynek.
|
+2
27 mins
Sara Meservey
Italy
Italy
Native in English
Works in field
Italy
Interprete - traduttrice EN,FR IT
Native in: Italian 
, English
Works in: English to Italian, Italian to English, French to Italian, and 2 more.
conditio sine qua non / prerequisite
You could either leave it in latin "conditio sine qua non" thus respecting the original intention of the author of using a certain kind of expression or use the English equivalent which is Prerequisite. In French conditio sine qua non would be "condition préalable"
Note from asker:
| Thanks Sara |
+6
3 hrs
a must
If you're translating down for a readership ignorant of the language of Cicero.
Note from asker:
| Yes Tony you're right. If I keep the Latin, there's a danger it might sound rather haughty and pretentious - the complete opposite of what the client wants. Better to keep it simple |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
MoiraB
: I'd go even further: an absolute must. And avoiding Latin expressions, particularly in an informal text, is another must...
4 hrs
|
| agree |
Tony M
: I think the problem is one of register: sqn is used in even quite informal registers in FR (why, even my young pals will say it in a purely conversational context!), whereas in EN, it connotes a more formal register, n'en déplaise à Cicéron !
4 hrs
|
| agree |
Sheila Wilson
: an absolute must would be my choice, for the reasons given by Moira and Tony. BTW, I don't think this implies the reader is necessarily ignorant, nor is it "translating down" - just colloquial English
5 hrs
|
| agree |
B D Finch
: The French are a bit closer linguistically to Cicero but, in English, Anglo-Saxon rather than Norman is needed here.
6 hrs
|
| agree |
AllegroTrans
: simple and direct
1 day 11 hrs
|
| agree |
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
: Ditto MoiraB
2 days 12 hrs
|
22 hrs
Michele Fauble
United States
United States
Native in English
Specializes in field
United States
Native English
Native in: English 
Works in: Norwegian to English, Danish to English, Swedish to English
Related KudoZ points
:
16
an absolutely essential condition
an option
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
Tony M
: My only slight quibble is the use of 'condition' like this, which works in FR, but less well in EN, I feel; unless we have 'pre-condition', for example...
1 hr
|
|
thanks - yes, I had second thoughts about 'condition' right after posting - nevertheless, my Oxford English dictionary gives 'an indispensable condition' for 'sine qua non'.
|
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