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  3. General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters

hard aanpakken

English translation: severely penalized

12:27 Sep 25, 2010
Dutch to English translations [PRO]
Social Sciences - General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
Dutch term or phrase: hard aanpakken
Het mag dan waar zijn dat de kinderen gestraft worden voor de zonden van hun vaders, maar Liverpool is de laatste vijfentwintig jaar toch wel heel zwaar aangepakt.

It’s true children are punished for the sins of their fathers, but Liverpool has been tackled the last twenty-five years

I used tackled but someone told me you can't use it in this context only in e.g. to tackle criminality. What verb should I use?
Fabriziat
English translation:severely penalized
Explanation:
Another possibility. And it carries through the theme of "punishment".

Het mag dan waar zijn dat de kinderen gestraft worden voor de zonden van hun vaders, maar Liverpool is de laatste vijfentwintig jaar toch wel heel zwaar aangepakt.

It may be true that children are punished for the sins of their fathers, but for the past twenty-five years, Liverpool has been severely punished.


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Note added at 3 hrs (2010-09-25 15:50:41 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

OOOps! Sorry. I meant to say "....Liverpool has been severely penalized."
Selected response from:

Suzan Hamer
Netherlands
Local time: 17:05
Grading comment
best answer :)
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +3severely penalized
Suzan Hamer
4 +1bear the brunt heavily/severely
Jack den Haan
3 +1suffer
Johan Venter
4put great effort into, work hard
Chris Hopley
3to give tough treatment
Josephine Isaacs (X)


  

Answers


59 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
suffer


Explanation:
I would replace "tackled" as you use it with "suffer", as in they have been suffering for the last 25 years.

Johan Venter
Czech Republic
Local time: 17:05
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 2

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Tina Vonhof (X): Good option.
1 hr
  -> Thank you
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3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +3
severely penalized


Explanation:
Another possibility. And it carries through the theme of "punishment".

Het mag dan waar zijn dat de kinderen gestraft worden voor de zonden van hun vaders, maar Liverpool is de laatste vijfentwintig jaar toch wel heel zwaar aangepakt.

It may be true that children are punished for the sins of their fathers, but for the past twenty-five years, Liverpool has been severely punished.


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 hrs (2010-09-25 15:50:41 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

OOOps! Sorry. I meant to say "....Liverpool has been severely penalized."

Suzan Hamer
Netherlands
Local time: 17:05
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 4
Grading comment
best answer :)

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Frank Poppelaars
29 mins
  -> Thanks, Frank.
agree  Verginia Ophof
3 hrs
  -> Bedankt, Verginia.
agree  Barbara Backer-Gray (X)
2 days 22 hrs
  -> A belated thank you, Barbara.
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

4 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
bear the brunt heavily/severely


Explanation:
Suggests a logical consequence of the "sins of the fathers".

Oxford Dictionary of English
brunt /brʌnt/
► noun (the brunt) the worst part or chief impact of a specified action: education will bear the brunt of the cuts.
ORIGIN
late Middle English (denoting a blow or an attack, also the force or shock of something): of unknown origin.

http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/bear the brunt of
bear the brunt of something
to get the greater amount or larger part of something bad Ordinary citizens will bear the brunt of higher taxes. The oldest parts of the town bore the brunt of the missile attacks.

Example sentence(s):
  • It may be true that children are punished for the sins of their fathers, but for the past twenty-five years, Liverpool has borne the brunt (rather) heavily.
Jack den Haan
Netherlands
Local time: 17:05
Native speaker of: Native in DutchDutch, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 26

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Frank Poppelaars
6 hrs
  -> Thanks, Frank.
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

9 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
to give tough treatment


Explanation:
Perhaps this fits:

but over the last twenty-five years Liverpool has indeed been given very tough treatment

Josephine Isaacs (X)
Australia
Local time: 01:05
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in DutchDutch, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 16
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3 days 2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
put great effort into, work hard


Explanation:
I think 'hard aanpakken' is used here to mean 'put great effort into', 'work hard' rather than 'tackle'. Having some first-hand knowledge of Liverpool many years ago, it seems obvious to me that what's being tackled is poverty, deprivation and lack of opportunity in the city. For me, this results in a translation along the lines of:

While it's true that children are punished for the sins of their fathers, Liverpool has been transformed in the last twenty-five years.

I have interpreted a little here: the transformation is the result of 'hard aanpakken'. A more literal translation would be:

While it's true that children are punished for the sins of their fathers, a great effort/a lot of hard work has been put into Liverpool in the last twenty-five years.

The broader context of your text should tell you whether this interpretation is correct or not.

Chris Hopley
Netherlands
Local time: 17:05
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 34
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