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passer à l’honneur

English translation: pass close aboard/alongside

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GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

French term or phrase:	passer à l’honneur
English translation:	pass close aboard/alongside
Entered by:	Comunican

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12:31 Feb 14, 2011

French to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - History / Piracy

French term or phrase: passer à l’honneur

"On lance enfin le branle-bas ! Alors que les marins entreposent leurs hamacs et leurs sacs contre le bastingage, la mitraille jaillit des petits canons du sloop et vient balayer le pont. Les hommes tombent comme des mouches et le sang recouvre le tillac. On glisse dessus et on est gêné par les corps. La mer devient noire et rouge autour du Heureux Hasard. Le sloop passe à l’honneur – à ras – derrière la flûte, en fait le tour et aborde à tribord. "

Many thanks

Comunican KudoZ activity Questions: 988 (5 open) (1 without valid answers) (98 closed without grading) Answers: 136 United Kingdom
Local time: 17:10

pass close aboard/alongside

Explanation:
*

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Note added at 37 minutes (2011-02-14 13:09:04 GMT)
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e.g. The ships came close aboard to pass messages

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Note added at 39 minutes (2011-02-14 13:10:58 GMT)
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i.e. as close as possible, without touching, without boarding.

Selected response from:

kashew
France
Local time: 18:10

Grading comment

Many thanks Kashew and everyone; much appreciated
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

4 +4

pass close aboard/alongside

kashew

pass alongside (of)

Euqinimod

cut close astern

xxxBourth

3 -2

to make do without the honour

Kirsten Bodart

Summary of reference entries provided

maritime term

Martin Cassell

Answers

36 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +4

pass close aboard/alongside

kashew
France
Local time: 18:10
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 20

Grading comment

Many thanks Kashew and everyone; much appreciated

22 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): -2

to make do without the honour

Explanation:
I have the impression that it is not an expression per se, but a kind of sarcastic remark at the sloop passing behind a fluyt, both kinds of ships, and thus escaping the canons. 'Passer' as in 'to pass' a question in a game show.

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Note added at 23 mins (2011-02-14 12:55:29 GMT)
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See Wikipedia for the types of ships.

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Note added at 1 hr (2011-02-14 13:32:41 GMT)
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And a play on words of course as to the meaning of 'passer'.

Kirsten Bodart
Germany
Local time: 18:10
Works in field
Native speaker of:

Dutch,

English
PRO pts in category: 4

1 hr confidence:

pass alongside (of)

Explanation:
On trouve la définition suivante dans le dictionnaire Littré :
"Terme de marine. Faire honneur à un banc, à une roche, en passer près, mais sans le toucher et, pour ainsi dire, en se tenant à une distance respectueuse.
On dit dans le même sens : ranger à l'honneur les roches, un écueil, etc."

Euqinimod
Local time: 18:10
Works in field
Native speaker of:

French
PRO pts in category: 8

4 hrs confidence:

cut close astern

Explanation:
My French naval glossary provided by a client many years ago gives:

ranger a l'honneur
pass dangerously close to

So: cut close astern –

As the tow line extends at an low angle from the ferry you must not CUT CLOSE ASTERN or risk hitting the tow line. Bateau Channel narrows ...
www.cruising.ca/thousand/j_docs/th-bateau.html

Cleaning lines by towing >
>> I was doing this with a long warp that had been in Bembridge harbour
>> when somebody CUT CLOSE ASTERN .... fortunately I didnt manage to win
>> the boat fishing contest.

In a busy area like the Solent, would it be worthwhile to attach some kind
of float to the other end of the line to show that it's there?
http://www.sporttaco.com/uk.rec.sailing/Halyard_cleaning_344...

I had a boat CUT CLOSE BEHIND us at high speed while we were trolling a ... and ran to the stern to cut both lines in an attempt to prevent ...
www.boatersed.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=105843

By now, pissed-off boy is buzzing us again, CUTTING IN REAL CLOSE BEHIND Residual. Poor little thing bounces up and down as if she’s gonna jump out of the water
http://www.weekendcruiser.com/st_joe_sound.htm
[read more of the passage to see what's going on]

I had a boat CUT CLOSE BEHIND US at high speed while we were trolling a couple of years ago. Both lines started screaming. I yelled out at the guy (who was oblivious to what he had done), pulled out the knife I keep next to the helm seat, and ran to the stern to cut both lines in an attempt to prevent burning out the drags on both reels.
http://www.boatersed.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=105843

xxxBourth
Local time: 18:10
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 154

Reference comments

1 hr

Reference: maritime term

Reference information:
− MAR. Ranger un navire, une terre à l'honneur. ,,Passer avec un navire très près d'un autre navire ou d'une terre sans les toucher`` (Gruss 1952). La brise (...) nous permit de doubler cette île à l'honneur (Dumont d'Urville, Voy. Pôle Sud, t. 4, 1842, p. 331).
[http://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/honneur]

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Note added at 1 hr (2011-02-14 13:44:31 GMT)
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highly recommend CNRTL/ATILF as a resource for rarer/historical terms

Martin Cassell
United Kingdom
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 16

Note to reference poster

Asker: Thanks very much Martin

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passer à l’honneur

English translation: pass close aboard/alongside

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English translation: pass close aboard/alongside

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