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schimmenspel

English translation: secretiveness

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GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

Dutch term or phrase:	schimmenspel
English translation:	secretiveness
Entered by:	mariette

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09:53 Oct 25, 2005

Dutch to English translations [PRO]
Idioms / Maxims / Sayings

Dutch term or phrase: schimmenspel

I know this refers literally to shadow play or shadow puppets, but I can't think of the right register for translating its figurative sense in "Dit is een schimmenspel". I see it used in newspapers a lot about various efforts by politicians, etc to obfuscate things.

It comes up in a series of notes exchanged by two people discussing a potential business manoeuvre. As the text is to be used for legal purposes (I presume), I want to be sure not to translate it more harshly than intended (though there is almost no context apart from what I have indicated).

This is an illusion? Hoodwinking?

Monica Sandor KudoZ activity Questions: 35 (none open) Answers: 73 Belgium
Local time: 07:28

secretiveness

Explanation:
Geheimzinnigdoenerij: een geheimzinnige handelswijze.

In dit artikel over Indonesie wordt echter wel over shadow play gesproken, dus als het om politici gaat zou je misschien "political shadow play" kunnen gebruiken.

Selected response from:

mariette
Local time: 01:28

Grading comment

I think I will stay with "shadow play" because I suspect that ruse or smokescreen are both too strong for this context - they definitely imply deliberate intent to obscure things, which is not entirely certain that it is meant here. Thanks!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer