Sep 20, 2007 18:01
17 yrs ago
1 viewer *
French term
United Kingdom
poetically precise prose with... panache
Native in: English 
Works in: French to English, Spanish to English, English
escalier technique
French to English
Other
Real Estate
types/description of staircase
Si cet escalier n’est pas un ****** escalier technique ******, quels style, forme, matière aimeriez-vous lui donner ?
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A guide to choosing your new staircase: style, position, etc.
I guess, from the context that this isn't a main staircase that will express your style, etc, but am stumped to know what sort of staircase it might be (fire escape? loft ladder?...)
My trusty Collins Robert is, unusually, no help, and google has plenty of these in French, but, so far, no clues as to what it might be...
Thanks for any help!
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A guide to choosing your new staircase: style, position, etc.
I guess, from the context that this isn't a main staircase that will express your style, etc, but am stumped to know what sort of staircase it might be (fire escape? loft ladder?...)
My trusty Collins Robert is, unusually, no help, and google has plenty of these in French, but, so far, no clues as to what it might be...
Thanks for any help!
Proposed translations
(English)
Proposed translations
22 mins
Selected
purely functional staircase
I am unaware of one single EN word that encompasses everything that the FR term embraces.
Possibly there is a specialist technical term for this, but I get the impression that your text is aimed more at the general public, so I think a simpler way of expressing it would probably be most appropriate.
Possibly there is a specialist technical term for this, but I get the impression that your text is aimed more at the general public, so I think a simpler way of expressing it would probably be most appropriate.
Note from asker:
| phew!!! right button this time... |
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "This is probably the safest bet, although I'd still like to wait for confirmation before actually glossing this question. It's still just possible that irony is being used here, which opens up the possibilities horribly. Thanks a lot Tony!"
1 hr
AllegroTrans
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
Specializes in field
United Kingdom
Sensible solutions
Native in: English (Variant: Wessexois)
Works in: French to English, English, English to French
Related KudoZ points
:
251
structural staircase
i.e. load-bearing etc. etc.
Note from asker:
| thanks, Allegro! |
2 hrs
built-in staircase
I wonder if it doesn't mean the sort of staircase you see on the outside of Greek houses. It's part of the structure of the house, so you can't give it any particular form or style. the word "sceller" in this link for swimming pool steps made me think of a built-in staircase...Just a thought!
Note from asker:
| thanks for the link! It's similar to some I'd already found - which left me flummoxed! I'm beginning to wonder whether the author isn't perhaps being very ironic indeed... hmmm! |
| thanks, Emma! |
2 hrs
If this is also a staircase for esthetic reasons
Hello,
I think that this has to do with staircase that's being built for esthetic reasons as well as functional reasons. In order words, it's not being built just to serve as staircase (to get you from point A to point B). This person is interested in the beauty/artistic aspect of it as well.
By the way, I think "also" is imperative in the translation. Why? Because I presume the staircase is to serve two purposes.
Example:
furniture for non-esthetic reason (just to be used to lie on/comfort)
I hope this helps.
I think that this has to do with staircase that's being built for esthetic reasons as well as functional reasons. In order words, it's not being built just to serve as staircase (to get you from point A to point B). This person is interested in the beauty/artistic aspect of it as well.
By the way, I think "also" is imperative in the translation. Why? Because I presume the staircase is to serve two purposes.
Example:
furniture for non-esthetic reason (just to be used to lie on/comfort)
I hope this helps.
Note from asker:
| thanks, Matthew! |
+1
37 mins
service staircase
My interpretation is that this is the staircase usually located in the rear of the house near the kitchen. It leads down to the basement or provides another access to upper levels. In older, grander homes, this would have been the staircase used by the staff.
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Note added at 5 hrs (2007-09-20 23:07:39 GMT)
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In light of everyone thinking I was being ironic (!), I’ve just re-read the sentence and noticed for the first time the two key words “lui donner”. (Oops! No wonder! Obviously I’m more jetlagged than I thought.) No, “service staircase” wouldn’t do at all in this context. Do you think it could be rephrased along the lines of, “If you were able to design your own staircase, what style and material would you choose?”
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Note added at 5 hrs (2007-09-20 23:07:39 GMT)
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In light of everyone thinking I was being ironic (!), I’ve just re-read the sentence and noticed for the first time the two key words “lui donner”. (Oops! No wonder! Obviously I’m more jetlagged than I thought.) No, “service staircase” wouldn’t do at all in this context. Do you think it could be rephrased along the lines of, “If you were able to design your own staircase, what style and material would you choose?”
Note from asker:
| thanks, Sarah! |
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
Tony M
: That's just ONE of the many possibilities covered by the FR term... / It's just that so few houses actually have a service staircase these days, it seems a bit too restrictive...
7 mins
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True. Maybe I'm too used to the grand homes of San Francisco! (Not that I live in one, mind you.) Service staircases are v common in such homes, and many of the new houses being built in the US are much bigger than yr avge Wimpey home, so come with a ssc.
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| agree |
Tzveta Valentinova
1 day 20 hrs
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Thank you, Tzveta.
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Discussion
Le choix d’implantation est donc également lié à votre état d’esprit général, lequel implique par ailleurs votre atmosphère. Country, design, classique, ethnique, l’aspect esthétique de l’escalier doit aussi être cohérent avec votre style de mobilier. On peut néanmoins prendre le parti de trancher avec un escalier épuré dans un style très classique par exemple, à condition de rester fidèle à vous même et d’assumer ce choix. recherche.
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So, the term could be being used ironically (which suits Sarah's answer) or straightforwardly (more Tony's style?)