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An uphill battle

Arabic translation: معركة حامية الوطيس

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:An uphill battle
Arabic translation:معركة حامية الوطيس
Entered by: Youssef Chabat

21:56 Jul 15, 2020
English to Arabic translations [PRO]
Science - Government / Politics
English term or phrase: An uphill battle
The GERD: An uphill battle
Negotiations over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam move from impasse to impasse
adel almergawy
Egypt
Local time: 04:48
معركة حامية الوطيس
Explanation:
.
Selected response from:

Youssef Chabat
Morocco
Local time: 03:48
Grading comment
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
5 +2معركة حامية الوطيس
Youssef Chabat
5صراع مرير / معركة قاسية / معركة في مهب الريح
Abdullah Ahmad
5معركة قاسية
Ali Abdulrazzak
5جهد جهيد، جهد شاق، جهد عسـير
Fuad Yahya
4معركة عسيرة/شاقة
Yassine El Bouknify
4معركة شاقة / مضنية / عسيرة
Hasnaa EDDAALITI


Discussion entries: 2





  

Answers


7 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
an uphill battle
معركة عسيرة/شاقة


Explanation:
معركة شاقة

https://www.google.com/amp/s/dictionary.cambridge.org/amp/en...

Yassine El Bouknify
Morocco
Local time: 03:48
Native speaker of: Native in ArabicArabic
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7 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +2
an uphill battle
معركة حامية الوطيس


Explanation:
.

Youssef Chabat
Morocco
Local time: 03:48
Native speaker of: Native in ArabicArabic
PRO pts in category: 16

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Mohammed86
6 days
  ->  شكرا جزيلا سيد محمد
agree  abdouarraji2 (X): I agree
24 days
  -> Thank you very much
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20 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
an uphill battle
صراع مرير / معركة قاسية / معركة في مهب الريح


Explanation:
صراع مرير / معركة قاسية / معركة في مهب الريح


    Reference: http://https://www.almaany.com/ar/dict/ar-en/an-uphill-battl...
    Reference: http://https://fanack.com/category/saudi-arabia/?paging=4
Abdullah Ahmad
Egypt
Local time: 04:48
Native speaker of: Native in ArabicArabic
PRO pts in category: 8
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2 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
معركة قاسية


Explanation:
معركة قاسية

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 47 mins (2020-07-15 22:44:31 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Uphil: laboriously fatiguing or difficult:

معركة مضنية/ قاسية

Ali Abdulrazzak
Spain
Local time: 04:48
Works in field
Native speaker of: Arabic
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
an uphill battle
جهد جهيد، جهد شاق، جهد عسـير


Explanation:

The following is a revised answer that I hope will more accurately reflect my thinking about this matter.

The expression "uphill battle" does not mean a battle in the sense of a fight or an adversarial engagement. It only means a struggle, a striving, or a great effort in the face of a great challenge. There need not be an enemy or an adversary, just tough conditions. For example, someone working towards a Ph.D. can be described as being engaged in an uphill battle.

The modifier "uphill" is there to intensify the sense of striving. Of course, every struggle, in a sense, is uphill. There is no downhill struggle, so the expression is not free of redundancy, but such redundancy can be excused if it adds the desired intensity.

In some contexts, it might be appropriate to use the word كفاح, as in:

كفاح شديد
كفاح عسـير

وهلم جرا

In the context of two parties engaged in an honest negotiation for a common good, I think كفاح is too much. Both parties are investing a great effort to break through the impasse and achieve a settlement, so جهد should be appropriate, in my opinion.

Fuad Yahya
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in ArabicArabic, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 180

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Yassine El Bouknify: I think it's possible to translate it as: معركة شاقة/مرهقة, and of course in its metaphorical sense
10 hrs
  -> Many things are possible. In my answer, I tried to suggest what is preferable or optimal (in my opinion). Most debates on KudoZ are not about right or wrong (although some are), but are about what reads or sounds better, more precise, more idiomatic, etc.
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14 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
معركة شاقة / مضنية / عسيرة


Explanation:
a very difficult struggle


Example sentence(s):
  • Starting her own business has proven to be an uphill battle.

    https://www.reverso.net/translationresults.aspx?lang=FR&direction=anglais-arabe
    https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/uphill%20battle#:~:text=Log%20In-,Definition%20of%20uphill%20battle,to%20be%20an%20uphill%20battl
Hasnaa EDDAALITI
Morocco
Local time: 03:48
Native speaker of: Native in ArabicArabic
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