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لا تكن يابساً فتكسر ولا تكن ليناً فتعصر

English translation: Be flexible but firm

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09:04 May 15, 2006

Arabic to English translations [PRO]
Poetry & Literature / Proverb

Arabic term or phrase: لا تكن يابساً فتكسر ولا تكن ليناً فتعصر

What I need is the closest English equivalent proverb. Thanks!

Ramadan Bekheet KudoZ activity Questions: 65 (1 open) (1 without valid answers) (8 closed without grading) Answers: 57 Egypt
Local time: 17:52

English translation:Be flexible but firm

Explanation:
Not very poetic but concise and to the point. Hope it helps. Here are some examples:

Accounting Firm Development Center - [ Traduzca esta página ]Be flexible but firm. Keep in mind that your accounting firm as a “local firm” can be much more flexible that the “BIG TWO” so there is opportunity. ...
www.afdcenter.com/IndustryOpportunities/ GreatPayrollOpportunity/PayrollPg18.asp - 13k - En caché - Páginas similares

ALIEN - The Gavin Beschen Abduction - SURF Magazine - [ Traduzca esta página ]"You gotta be flexible but firm, and keep on movin' along with your head up." "I don't like to see what's straight in front of me-I like to take a step ...
www.transworldsurf.com/ surf/article/0,19929,342146,00.html - 41k - En caché - Páginas similares

60-Second Guide to Collecting Payment | Finance & Accounting ... - [ Traduzca esta página ]Be flexible, but firm; and don’t hesitate to follow up. 0:15 Take Stronger Action. Related Articles. How Current Are Credit Reports? ...
www.allbusiness.com/articles/ FinanceAccounting/2714-32-1780.html - 30k - En caché - Páginas similares

[PDF] Celebrating childcareFormato de archivo: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - Versión en HTML
Be flexible but firm in your. negotiations. Don’t agree to anything. you’ll later regret. If you have a choice, it’s better to ...
www.daycaretrust.org.uk/mod/ fileman/files/childwise_issue12.pdf - Páginas similares

Selected response from:

Yasser El Helw
Local time: 16:52

Grading comment

Many thanks!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

5 +1

Do not be so rigid to the extent of breakage nor so lenient to the extent of liquidation

abdallah1949

3 +3

Be flexible but firm

Yasser El Helw

Safety lies in the middle course

Jihad Saffouri

A course between dry and wet saves one from regret.

Ahmed Ali

Don't be so flexible then you will be pressed, and don't be so rigid then you will be broken

Abdelmonem Samir

Do not go to extremes in your behavior / A balanced behavior is best

sktrans

“Whatever you do, do it in moderation”

MALLAF

2 +1

similar Thai & Chinese proverbs

Nesrin

You are a green, wet stick; had you been dry, you would have been broken long ago

Mahammad Kalfat

Answers

9 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

Do not be so rigid to the extent of breakage nor so lenient to the extent of liquidation

Explanation:
IF YOU REVIEW THIS ARABIC SAYING ,YOU WOULD GO THROUGH THE MOST SUBSTANTIAL CORE OF THE MEANING WHICH SIMPLY MEANS MODERATION LINE OF LIFESTYLE AND ATTITUDES.

Reference: http://http:/shawirmah123@yahoo.com

abdallah1949
Local time: 18:52
Native speaker of:

Arabic

1 hr confidence:

You are a green, wet stick; had you been dry, you would have been broken long ago

Explanation:
a Zulu "izaga" (proverb) is literally translated to English: "You are a green, wet stick; had you been dry, you would have been broken long ago" (no. 120 in the list found here: http://www.antiquarian.co.za/Zulu Proverbs.htm.

in many cases the translator provides the English equivalent saying/proverb, the absence of which in no. 120 indicates that it didn't actually ring a bell in his mind.

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Note added at 1 hr (2006-05-15 10:49:09 GMT)
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the valid web address: http://www.antiquarian.co.za/Zulu Proverbs.htm

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Note added at 1 hr (2006-05-15 10:52:16 GMT)
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also there is an afghani proverb, rendered here: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Afghanistan_proverbs#J
as "If a forest catches fire, both the dry and the wet will burn"

Mahammad Kalfat
Local time: 17:52
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

Arabic
PRO pts in category: 12

2 hrs confidence:

“Whatever you do, do it in moderation”

Explanation:
the overall meaning of the proverb is to handle life moderately.

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Note added at 2 hrs (2006-05-15 11:48:02 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

All things in moderation and moderation in all things
http://www.englishforums.com/English/ThingsModerationModerat...

Reference: http://en.thinkexist.com/quotation/whatever_you_do-do_it_in/...

MALLAF
Local time: 16:52
Works in field
Native speaker of:

Arabic

2 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

similar Thai & Chinese proverbs

Explanation:
I know you're looking for an English proverb, but I've seen these Thai and Chinese proverbs quoted quite a few times on the internet (which seems to suggest that there is no similar English proverb, but who knows?):

Thai proverb, "the tree that bends with the wind is the tree that survives the storm". The ever so wise Thai kings of the Ayutthayan period offered small ...
www.csmngt.com/thailand_history.htm

The old Thai proverb, that the tree that bends with the wind is the tree that survives the storm, was indicative of the Thai mentality. ...
www.j-aircraft.com/research/jan_forsgren/j-aircraft_royal_t...

Ziniewicz on Confucius
The tree that bends with the wind will not break. The tree that is rigid and hard will not stand. Compare this view to Western views. ...
www.fred.net/tzaka/confuc.html

In Chinese philosophy there is a saying, "The tree that sways with the wind never breaks." That is also good advice for a Web designer. ...
www.design-agency.com/project/jimmy/design_4th.html

"To bend like the reed in the wind, that is the real strength" -- Taoist proverb. I was introduced to the Chinese philosophy of Taoism after reading The Tao ...
chronicle.com/jobs/news/2006/05/2006050401c/careers.html

Nesrin
Local time: 16:52
Native speaker of: Arabic
PRO pts in category: 54

11 hrs confidence:

Don't be so flexible then you will be pressed, and don't be so rigid then you will be broken

Explanation:
Baker suggests 4 strategies for dealing with culture bound (or culture-specific) expressions:

1 - Using an idiom of similar meaning and form
2 - Using an idiom of similar meaning but dissimilar form
3 - Translation by paraphrase
4 - Translation by omission

We don't have 1 or 2, so 3 is OK. I found this translation (by paraphrase) on the web.

Reference: http://www.jeddawy.com/vb/archive/index.php/t-2157.html
Mona Baker, In Other Words: A Coursebook on Translation (London: Routledge, 1992)

Abdelmonem Samir
Local time: 17:52
Native speaker of:

Arabic
PRO pts in category: 24

4 hrs confidence:

Do not go to extremes in your behavior / A balanced behavior is best

Explanation:
It was suggested that staff and faculty could also be influential in modeling balanced behavior for students—which would require that they convincingly ...
www.smith.edu/planning/contact_notes2-20.php - 29k - Cached - Similar pages

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Note added at 12 hrs (2006-05-15 21:28:25 GMT)
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a bow that is bent too far will break

Italian Proverb. Extremes and Extremists · A bow that is bent too far will break. Rating: Not Rated, Rate: 1 2 3 4 5 · Values ...
www.cybernation.com/quotationcenter/ quoteshow.php?type=author&id=7246 - 88k - Cached - Similar pages

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Note added at 12 hrs (2006-05-15 21:36:24 GMT)
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wine is one thing, drunkenness another

Aliud vinum, aliud ebrietas.
Posted in Proverbs on September 14th, 2005
Aliud vinum, aliud ebrietas.

Wine is one thing. Drunkenness is something else.

(Anonymous)

(Pron = ah-lee-ood wee-noom, ah-lee-ood ay-bree-ay-tahs)

This proverb has many expressions: balance in all things; avoid extremes; the middle way; vital balance;

-

sktrans
Local time: 11:52
Native speaker of:

Arabic,

French
PRO pts in category: 8

13 hrs confidence:

Safety lies in the middle course

Explanation:
A PROVERB

Reference: http://humanities.byu.edu/elc/student/idioms/idiomsmain.html

Jihad Saffouri
Local time: 18:52
Native speaker of:

Arabic

19 hrs confidence:

A course between dry and wet saves one from regret.

Explanation:
Surely, an explanation is required in both Arabic and English since the two sentences rely heavily on fifgures of speech. Perhaps, a more aggressive translation away from the exact words of the text could be to say that one has to take a middle course or act or behave moderately.

Ahmed Ali
Local time: 16:52
Works in field
Native speaker of:

Arabic
PRO pts in category: 4

19 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +3

Be flexible but firm

Yasser El Helw
Local time: 16:52
Native speaker of:

Arabic,

English
PRO pts in category: 20

Grading comment

Many thanks!

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لا تكن يابساً فتكسر ولا تكن ليناً فتعصر

English translation: Be flexible but firm

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لا تكن يابساً فتكسر ولا تكن ليناً فتعصر

English translation: Be flexible but firm

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KudoZ™ translation helpThe KudoZ network provides a framework for translators and others to assist each other with translations or explanations of terms and short phrases.

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