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  2. French to English

cherchez l’homme

English translation: Look for the man

10:22 Dec 15, 2003
French to English translations [Non-PRO]
French term or phrase: cherchez l’homme
Can anyone give me the translation?
tania74
Local time: 13:04
English translation:Look for the man
Explanation:
Look for the man
Selected response from:

IanW (X)
Local time: 13:04
Grading comment
2 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +8Look for the man
IanW (X)
4 +3hunt the man/seek out the man
CMJ_Trans (X)
5 +2Find the man
Jane Lamb-Ruiz (X)
4 +2really depends on the context
louisajay
3 -2Watch out for The man
alx


  

Answers


0 min   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +8
cherchez l’homme
Look for the man


Explanation:
Look for the man

IanW (X)
Local time: 13:04
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in pair: 234

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Enza Longo
3 mins
agree  Vicky Papaprodromou
12 mins
agree  lindaellen (X)
27 mins
agree  Cristina Pereira
37 mins
agree  Charlie Bavington: I wonder whether it's being used as a variant of the "English" expression "cherchez la femme", roughly meaning if there's something a bit 'unusual' (in every sense) going on with a man's behaviour, there's quite often a woman behind it !
1 hr
  -> True, but with no further context, this is the safest bet ...
agree  Laurel Porter (X): Depending on context, I also agree with Charlie - "Surely a man's behind it", or leave it "cherchez l'homme".
6 hrs
agree  lien
8 hrs
agree  jenan
10 hrs
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5 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +3
hunt the man/seek out the man


Explanation:
by extension "chercher", the verb meaning "to look for", often has the meaning of "to find" in French. In this case, although the context would need to be specified, you could say "find the man". You would need to give a whole sentence for me to be able to say whether that would really work in your case.

CMJ_Trans (X)
Local time: 13:04
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in pair: 5264

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  jerrie: cherchez la femme/cherchez l'homme...hunt down/find/keep your eyes peeled for/
5 mins
  -> and so on....... ad infinitum!!!!
agree  moya
14 mins
agree  Iolanta Vlaykova Paneva: oui,agree with jerrie also
1 hr
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): -2
Watch out for The man


Explanation:
Or again "search the man"

alx
Local time: 12:04
Native speaker of: Native in FrenchFrench
PRO pts in pair: 11

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
disagree  louisajay: not natural english. Watch out for is negative - "be wary of". And you can't say "search the man" - this means do a security-style body search! It's search for.
13 mins
disagree  Bourth (X): Search him = fouillez le
1 hr
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +2
really depends on the context


Explanation:
but another alternative could be "seek him" or "find him". To me "find the man" or "seek the man" sounds a bit weird, almost like it's a kids' game of the "pin the tail on..." kind or when you tell a dog to "fetch the bone"!

louisajay
PRO pts in pair: 4

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Marshall Waddell: Without context, a proper translation is anybody's guess. Please consider adding the paragraph in which the term appears.
5 hrs
agree  Azure
5 hrs
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +2
Find the man


Explanation:
Like in a graphics game...where you pick out things hidden in the picture...

Jane Lamb-Ruiz (X)
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in PortuguesePortuguese
PRO pts in pair: 8576

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  margaret caulfield
6 hrs
  -> Thank you Margaret
agree  Charlie Bavington: certainly another option, depending on context (as ever !!)
1 day 3 hrs
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