I become seriously ill if I eat anything containing wheat/flour?

Chinese translation: 如果我吃任何含有小麦/面粉的食物，我就会病得很厉害。

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

English term or phrase:	I become seriously ill if I eat anything containing wheat/flour?
Chinese translation:	如果我吃任何含有小麦/面粉的食物，我就会病得很厉害。
Entered by:	Libin PhD

10:31 May 21, 2002

English to Chinese translations [Non-PRO]
Medical

English term or phrase: I become seriously ill if I eat anything containing wheat/flour?

I am intolerant of any foods containing wheat, oats, rye or barley and become violently ill if I eat them. I need to be able to explain this when I eat in a Chinese restaurant as a lot of time the staff dont understand and bring me something deep fried in batter etc after I have explained my problem

Sandra

如果我吃任何含有小麦/面粉的食物，我就会病得很厉害。

Explanation:
如果我吃任何含有小麦/面粉的食物，我就会病得很厉害（严重）。

个人更倾向于用厉害，而不是严重。

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Note added at 2002-05-22 03:36:52 (GMT)
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我想，这里的提问者肯定知道她说的是过敏，但是没有用过敏这个词，可能是为了使问题简单一点，免得waiter或waitress听不懂，妨碍交流。

我认为翻译过程中尊重原文是很重要的，原作者没有用我们看来很显然的词，往往有他/她的理由。我们不能把自己的理解强加给原作者。尤其是我们做商业翻译，也是避免给自己找麻烦的最好办法。我给几个医疗制药公司客户做活时，它们都要找人反译回英文，如果跟原来的英文原文不符，就会找回来。因此，我在用词时，尽量考虑到让反译者能联想到英文原文中用的词，这样最后大家皆大欢喜。

杨绛先生曾说过，翻译家是一仆二主，仆人就是自己，一个“主”是原作者，另一个“主”是读者，两边都要伺候好，不是一件很容易的事。作为仆人的我们，不能Second guess原作者或企图outsmart原作者。这是信达雅中最重要的一条忠实性的问题。

当然，文学翻译和诗歌翻译译者有一定程度的介入是难免的，也没有什么不好，否则，我们将会看到更多的硬译，谁也看不懂。译了等于没译。

Selected response from:

Libin PhD

Grading comment

The comment "you are going to be okay" was very reassuring
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

4 +8

如果我吃任何含有小麦/面粉的食物，我就会病得很厉害。

Libin PhD

我对含小麦、大麦、燕麦、黑麦的食物有严重的过敏症

Xiaoping Fu

这不是翻译问题

Xiaoping Fu

Discussion entries: 1

Answers

14 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +8

如果我吃任何含有小麦/面粉的食物，我就会病得很厉害。

Libin PhD
Native speaker of:

Chinese
PRO pts in pair: 522

Grading comment

The comment "you are going to be okay" was very reassuring

19 hrs confidence:

我对含小麦、大麦、燕麦、黑麦的食物有严重的过敏症

Explanation:

我对含小麦、大麦、燕麦、黑麦的食物有严重的过敏症。
or
我吃了含有小麦、大麦、燕麦、黑麦的食物后，会病得非常严重。
or
我的饭菜里请千万不要加小麦、大麦、燕麦、黑麦等成分，否则我吃了会病得非常严重。

小麦 = wheat
大麦 = barley
燕麦 = oats
黑麦 = rye
过敏症 = alergy

Show these words to the waiter, you are going to be OK.

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Note added at 2002-05-22 05:42:54 (GMT)
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Go to the following like for a image of these characters.

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Note added at 2002-05-28 23:35:23 (GMT) Post-grading
--------------------------------------------------

~{6T~} Bin Li ~{9XSZVRJ5SZT-ND5D9[5c#,NR:AN^RlRi!#~}

~{2;9}Ub@o5DGi?vITSP2;M,!#LaNJU_UfU}PhR*5D2;JGVRJ55D7-Rk#,6xJGHg:NHC2M9]5D7~NqIzCw0WK}2;D\\3TBs@`J3No!#Ub@oS&8C?<BG5D2;JGJ2C4!0PE4oQE!15DNJLb#,6xJG9X:uHK5D=!?5IuVAIzC|5DOVJ5Iz;nNJLb!#=hSC!0R;FM6~Vw!15DK57(#,TZUb@o#,!0T-WwU_!1Ub8vVwHKJG:CKE:r5D#,V;R*1pHCK}3TBs@`J3No>MPP#,K}R;6(2;;aTZRbRkNDJG7qF+@kAKK}5DT-ND#,;rU_SCAKK}C;SPSC5D2;M,K57(~} ~{!#6x6AU_#(<47~NqIz#)Ub8v!0VwHK!1Tr2;L+:CKE:r#,RrN*NRCG2;V*5@K{JGK-#,TZDG@o#,J2C4ND;/3L6H#,=2J2C47=QT!#5+NRCGN^B[Hg:NR*HCK{6.#,792K@o2;D\\<SBs@`3I7V!#!09}Ct!1Ub8v4J2MR{R55DHKT16<Cw0W#,R21H=OH]RWR}FpW\"Rb!#6x!03TAK~}... ~{;a2!5C:\\@w:&!1UbVV1m4o7=J=#,VP9zHKTZHU3#Iz;nVP:\\IYSC#,KyRT2;D\\R;OBWS>MHCHKCw0W!#;ySZUbQy5D?<BG#,NR2ISCAK~} arget ~{:M~} eandli ~{5D=(Ri#,2\"GR8x3vAKH}VV2;M,5DK57(!#Wn:s5DR;>dIuVAMjH+2;JG7-Rk#,JGNRWT<:Db5D>dWS#,V;JGN*AK1m4o5C8|Cw0W#,SoFx8|G?AR#,R}Fp7~NqIz5DW\"Rb!#5+T8UbP)D\\0oVzLaNJU_4S4K0ZMQUb8v@\'HE!#~}

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-29 00:08:09 (GMT) Post-grading
--------------------------------------------------

~{6T~} Bin Li ~{9XSZVRJ5SZT-ND5D9[5c#,NR:AN^RlRi!#~}

~{2;9}Ub@o5DGi?vITSP2;M,!#LaNJU_UfU}PhR*5D2;JGVRJ55D7-Rk#,6xJGHg:NHC2M9]5D7~NqIzCw0WK}2;D\\3TBs@`J3No!#Ub@oS&8C?<BG5D2;JGJ2C4!0PE4oQE!15DNJLb#,6xJG9X:uHK5D=!?5IuVAIzC|5DOVJ5Iz;nNJLb!#=hSC!0R;FM6~Vw!15DK57(#,TZUb@o#,!0T-WwU_!1Ub8vVwHKJG:CKE:r5D#,V;R*1pHCK}3TBs@`J3No>MPP#,K}R;6(2;;aTZRbRkNDJG7qF+@kAKK}5DT-ND#,;rU_SCAKK}C;SPSC5D2;M,K57(~} ~{!#6x6AU_#(<47~NqIz#)Ub8v!0VwHK!1Tr2;L+:CKE:r#,RrN*NRCG2;V*5@K{JGK-#,TZDG@o#,J2C4ND;/3L6H#,=2J2C47=QT!#5+NRCGN^B[Hg:NR*HCK{6.#,792K@o2;D\\<SBs@`3I7V!#!09}Ct!1Ub8v4J2MR{R55DHKT16<Cw0W#,R21H=OH]RWR}FpW\"Rb!#6x!03TAK~}... ~{;a2!5C:\\@w:&!1UbVV1m4o7=J=#,VP9zHKTZHU3#Iz;nVP:\\IYSC#,KyRT2;D\\R;OBWS>MHCHKCw0W!#;ySZUbQy5D?<BG#,NR2ISCAK~} arget ~{:M~} eandli ~{5D=(Ri#,2\"GR8x3vAKH}VV2;M,5DK57(!#Wn:s5DR;>dIuVAMjH+2;JG7-Rk#,JGNRWT<:Db5D>dWS#,V;JGN*AK1m4o5C8|Cw0W#,SoFx8|G?AR#,R}Fp7~NqIz5DW\"Rb!#5+T8UbP)D\\0oVzLaNJU_4S4K0ZMQUb8v@\'HE!#~}

Reference: http://www22.brinkster.com/fxp2002/wheat.html

Xiaoping Fu
Canada
Local time: 14:01
Native speaker of:

Chinese
PRO pts in pair: 2566

7 days confidence:

这不是翻译问题

Explanation:
对 Bin Li 关于翻译要忠实于原文的观点，我毫无异议。

不过这里的情况稍有不同。提问者真正需要的不是忠实的翻译，而是如何让餐馆的服务生明白她不能吃麦类食物。这里我们所关心的是人的健康问题，说严重点是“人命关天”。“信达雅”的问题可以稍缓。借用“一主二仆”的说法，“原作者”这个“主人”是好伺候的，只要别让她吃含麦类的食物就行。她一定不会在意译文是否偏离了她的原文，或者用了她没有用的不同说法。而读者（即服务生）这个“主人”则不太好伺候。因为我们不知道他是谁，在那里，什么文化程度，讲什么方言。但我们必须让他一下子明白，食物里不能含有麦类的成分。“过敏”这个词餐饮业的人员都懂。而“吃了...会病得很厉害”这种表达方式，中国人在日常生活中很少用，所以不能保证每个人都能立刻明白。基于这种考虑，我采用了 arget 和 eandli 的建议，提供了三种不同的说法来表达同样的意思。最后一句甚至完全不是翻译，是我自己拟的句子，只是为了表达得更明白，语气更强烈，引起服务生的注意。但愿这些能帮助提问者从此免于这个问题的困扰。

Xiaoping Fu
Canada
Local time: 14:01
Native speaker of:

Chinese
PRO pts in pair: 2566

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