English translation: I could\'ve got out as soon as I knew, right?
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Portuguese to English translations [PRO] Slang / português de Portugal
Portuguese term or phrase:Podia ser que eu corresse logo e já, não é?
Here's another abused woman talking:
"Os vizinhos não ajudam, não querem saber, fazem-se muitos amigos mas cada qual termina-se. Pr’a onde é que eu vou com os meus filhos? Por isso eu sujeitei-me mais, levando tanto tempo, sabendo…se soubesse que isso já existia, tal que já existiu que é a tal coisa, não tinha conhecimento nada disso. **Podia ser que eu corresse logo e já, não é?** But that was why I put up with it so long, for the sake of my children."
Can anybody unravel what she's saying in that sentence? Obviously, I should have spent more time in cafés in bairros sociais when I lived in Portugal!
What makes "should" more compelling for me is the following sentence ... but that's why...I would even rephrase it with "I OUGHT have gotten out sooner, if it wasn't for the kids...I WOULD have.
I admit when I was TEFL teacher, these doubts occurred very frequently. Any way, nice discussion.
exactly - the innit is much more cloesly associated with should than could. I shudda gorrout shudden I? I see it as a sort of self lament, rather than could which implies (in my opinion) more of a free will non fatalistic tone. BUT we are all entitled to our own opinion of course which makes it a much richer world INNIT!?
I don't think you can infer "should" (or, for that matter, "could") from "não é". "Não é" operates rather like "innit" in that it is, one might say, verb-neutral (and person-neutral). Depending on the context it can mean "aren't they?", "didn't I?" "wasn't it?" and a whole host of other meanings - most of which can be substituted by "right?".
probably should've got(ten) myself out of there sharpish, shouldn't I?
Explanation: The other suggestions are also fine, It's just a question of how a battered wife in an English speaking country would say it (a lot more expletives quite likely!)
Douglas Bissell Portugal Local time: 01:50 Meets criteria Specializes in field Native speaker of: English PRO pts in category: 8
The translation workplace 
peer agreement (net): +1
