Glossary entry (derived from question below)
French term or phrase:
homme de main
English translation:
(right/very best) man for the job
Added to glossary by
Marie Jackson
Nov 11, 2012 15:12
11 yrs ago
French term
homme de main
French to English
Other
Government / Politics
Hello,
I'm working on a translation of a letter by a Cameroonian discussing his political party. Due to confidentiality I cannot provide much more context than that.
Source: "Donner aux jeunes une claire voyance du plan d'action de l'****(political party), bref montrer que l'****(political party) est la solution au changement, que M. J**** est le président idéal, l'homme de main."
My translation: To give them a clear vision of the ***'s plan of action, in short, to show that the **** is the answer for change and that M.**** is the ideal president, the henchman."
The problem is that the term "henchman" doesn't really fit the tone of the letter. The writer is supportive of the "ideal president," and the word "henchman" does not have a positive connotation.
Any suggestions?
Thank you very much.
Sev
I'm working on a translation of a letter by a Cameroonian discussing his political party. Due to confidentiality I cannot provide much more context than that.
Source: "Donner aux jeunes une claire voyance du plan d'action de l'****(political party), bref montrer que l'****(political party) est la solution au changement, que M. J**** est le président idéal, l'homme de main."
My translation: To give them a clear vision of the ***'s plan of action, in short, to show that the **** is the answer for change and that M.**** is the ideal president, the henchman."
The problem is that the term "henchman" doesn't really fit the tone of the letter. The writer is supportive of the "ideal president," and the word "henchman" does not have a positive connotation.
Any suggestions?
Thank you very much.
Sev
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 +6 | (right/very best) man for the job |
Marie Jackson
|
| 4 +2 | the man who gets things done |
Just Opera
|
| 4 -1 | handyman |
Cyril B.
|
| 3 | enforcer |
Barbara Veness
|
Change log
Nov 19, 2012 14:14: Marie Jackson Created KOG entry
Proposed translations
+6
8 mins
Marie Jackson
Netherlands
Netherlands
Native in English
Netherlands
Mirroring your message
Native in: English
Works in: German to English, French to English, English
Related KudoZ points
:
4
Selected
(right/very best) man for the job
One possibility...
You could also say 'task at hand' instead of 'job'.
You could also say 'task at hand' instead of 'job'.
Example sentence:
To give them a clear vision of the ***'s plan of action, in short, to show that the **** is the answer for change and that M.**** is the ideal president, the right/very best man for the job.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Tony M
19 mins
|
|
Thanks, Tony :)
|
|
| agree |
katsy
20 mins
|
|
Thank you, Katsy :)
|
|
| agree |
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
: the man for the job
38 mins
|
|
Thank you, Nikki :)
|
|
| agree |
sofi21
55 mins
|
|
Thanks, sofi :)
|
|
| agree |
Anne R
6 hrs
|
|
Thanks, Anne :)
|
|
| agree |
Maryse Trevithick
22 hrs
|
|
Thank you, Maryse :)
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thanks again Marie!"
-1
10 mins
handyman
.
Peer comment(s):
| disagree |
Tony M
: I don't think the concept of 'bricoleur' would be welcome here ;-) / OK, if you're clairvoyant; in that case, 'handyman' still won't work, I think we need a more formal word here. We don't want people thinking "He's a handy man to have around"
17 mins
|
|
yes it is. Author meant "homme à tout faire", the guy who fixes everything. / it's not about being clairvoyant, it's about understanding African French :) here, 'guy who fixes everything', whatever best EN word you can come up with
|
|
| neutral |
Marie Jackson
: Even if the author means 'homme à tout faire', 'handyman' wouldn't be appropriate as a translation in this case... 'handyman' doesn't carry the weight of the French and makes the person in question seem less impressive; it implies he's simply 'handy'.
35 mins
|
| neutral |
B D Finch
: That would be a very useful attribute if he failed to become president! A handyman is a bit of a jack-of-all-trades who doesn't have enough skill to be professional in any.
18 hrs
|
+2
43 mins
the man who gets things done
what it says to me
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 44 mins (2012-11-11 15:57:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
the word 'main' denoting action BTW
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 44 mins (2012-11-11 15:57:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
the word 'main' denoting action BTW
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Cyril B.
: yep
5 mins
|
| neutral |
Marie Jackson
: Or indeed a 'man of action', in that case?
7 mins
|
| agree |
Alan Douglas (X)
: Or (nuance), 'the man to get things done'.
1 day 1 hr
|
17 hrs
enforcer
There are 3 translations of "homme de main" given in my reference below. Henchman, hatchet-man and enforcer! You are right that henchman has negative connotations (in fact when I was a journalist and used it, justifiably in the circumstances I thought, I got a barrage of criticism from the man's supporters! Hatchet-man is used when he's brought in to make cuts etc, so enforcer would be the only positive one of the three to use.
Reference:
Discussion
avoir de la poigne : Diriger avec énergie, commander avec rudesse ; homme autoritaire, énergique ; fort, autoritaire
See: http://fr.wiktionary.org/wiki/homme_de_main
which gives homme d'exécution, homme brave, hardi.
'Homme d'exécution' = 'man who gets things done' seems a reasonable translation choice.
<p>
I hope that that helps some. Do feel free to ask further questions if you have any!
<p>Best,
<br>Marie
Thank you very much for your response. I think it fits the meaning and tone of the sentence.
Do you know if this is a common usage for the phrase "homme de main"?
Best,
Sevastian