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  2. French to English
  3. Cosmetics, Beauty

teint bruine

18:42 Feb 4, 2018
This question was closed without grading. Reason: Errant question

French to English translations [PRO]
Cosmetics, Beauty / Skin color
French term or phrase: teint bruine
This is from the statement of a witness to a crime committed in the Central African Republic. The witness is describing a captain in the military: "Le capitaine était de la même tribu, avec le teint bruine, visage rasé et la tête allongée devant."

I have selected the "cosmetics/beauty" category for this inquiry because I am guessing that people familiar with that field will know more than most about how skin tones are described.

Obviously, no one would describe skin as "drizzle" in English. I did a Google search on images of "teint bruine", "couleur bruine", "couleur de bruine" and "peau bruine" and didn't spot anything useful. Could it mean that the captain's skin was dewy, sweaty or shiny? Or is this simply a misspelling of "brun"? (If that were the case, it is odd that there is an "e" at the end.)
Martin Hoffman
Local time: 15:03


Summary of answers provided
3 +3dark complected
Barbara Cochran, MFA
4 +1dark complexion or dark-skinned
Raquel Holzmann (X)
3a swarthy complexion
ormiston
2weathered complexion
Anne-Marie Laliberté (X)


Discussion entries: 3





  

Answers


1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +3
dark complected


Explanation:
I think, given the context, that the military captain would in all likelihood be "dark complected" (he's from a tribe) rather than have skin that is "tan".

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Note added at 2 hrs (2018-02-04 20:48:32 GMT)
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No, I have not. But I think, after reading Nathalie's post, that the description has to do with skin color ("brun"), rather than "sweaty" or "shiny skin".

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Note added at 2 hrs (2018-02-04 21:20:15 GMT)
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You're welcome.

Barbara Cochran, MFA
United States
Local time: 15:03
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you, but have you found any example of "bruine" being used in context with that meaning?

Asker: At one point in the interview, the witness describes someone else as having a "teint noir clair", so I am definitely leaning towards the conclusion that "bruine" is a misspelling of "brun" but I will wait a couple of days before deciding, just in case anyone else comes up with a better interpretation. Thank you.


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Yolanda Broad
2 hrs
  -> Thank you, Yolanda.
agree  Sheri P
16 hrs
  -> Thank you, Shari.
agree  GILLES MEUNIER
1 day 9 hrs
  -> Thank you, GILOU.
neutral  ormiston: i feel compelled to post a reservation as this sounds more than startling to UK ears
1 day 14 hrs
  -> But it sounds spot on to American ears, and I notice that the asker is in my time zone.
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5 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
dark complexion or dark-skinned


Explanation:
'dark complected' is unheard of in BE. Since the rest of the sentence refers to the captain's facial features, I think you can be fairly sure that bruine is a mispelling of brune.


    https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/dark-complected-vs-dark-skinned.2205494/
Raquel Holzmann (X)
Australia
Local time: 05:03
Works in field
Native speaker of: Portuguese

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Jennifer White: I agree. "Complected" is an Americanism, unheard of here. Better to have a translation that is universally understood.
9 hrs
  -> Thanks, Jennifer!
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17 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 2/5Answerer confidence 2/5
teint bruine (buriné)
weathered complexion


Explanation:

.........


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Note added at 17 heures (2018-02-05 11:56:12 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

''buriné'' is the correct word maybe.

Anne-Marie Laliberté (X)
Local time: 15:03
Native speaker of: French
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thanks, that's a good guess. However, I think the witness would have said "visage" with "buriné", not "teint". Every other time he uses "teint" in the interview transcript, it is to describe skin color.

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1 day 15 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
a swarthy complexion


Explanation:
This would fit i think, avoiding the possible ambiguity of dark as a euphemism for black

ormiston
Local time: 21:03
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 37
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