nous savons bien cuisiner

English translation: we're good at cooking

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
French term or phrase:nous savons bien cuisiner
English translation:we're good at cooking

10:49 Mar 17, 2018
    The asker opted for community grading. The question was closed on 2018-03-20 16:54:08 based on peer agreement (or, if there were too few peer comments, asker preference.)


French to English translations [Non-PRO]
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters / school homework
French term or phrase: nous savons bien cuisiner
https://translate.google.fr/?hl=fr#fr/en/nous savons bien cu...
Fabrice59
France
Local time: 21:15
we're good at cooking
Explanation:
Keeping it in a fairly colloquial register

This is another case where 'savoir' certainly has the sense of 'know how to' or 'can', but wouldn't really be the most natural, idiomatic way of expressing it in EN.
Selected response from:

Tony M
France
Local time: 21:15
Grading comment
Merci !
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
5 +9we're good at cooking
Tony M
2 +3we have mastered the art of cooking
ormiston
5 -4We know to cook very well.
Mohamed Hosni


Discussion entries: 14





  

Answers


6 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 2/5Answerer confidence 2/5 peer agreement (net): +3
we have mastered the art of cooking


Explanation:
If I stick to my previous line of thought.
BUT this is starting to sound like an English homework exercise, in which case the simpler "we can cook very well" might be what the teacher is looking for ! (practice in the verb 'savoir' meaning 'know how to).

ormiston
Local time: 21:15
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 93

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Jennifer White: Nothing wrong with this.
34 mins

agree  Beatriz Ramírez de Haro
43 mins

neutral  Tony M: Although it's a perfectly good translation, I really don't think the dramatic change of register is appropriate in this particular context; it might fit for a multi-starred chef using the 'royal we', but would sit awkwardly in a more colloquial context.
1 hr
  -> all our conscientious inout may well be over the head of the Asker's son's English teacher. does this really merit a neutral?!

agree  ph-b (X): with your "BUT": "can..." sounds more like English as taught in a Fr 2dry (?) school.. Can't remember my 2ry (?) teacher teaching me "mastering the art of" :-)
4 hrs

neutral  Nikki Scott-Despaigne: Excellent English, of course, but above the register of the source text, and unlikely to the level being sought by the teacher.
4 hrs
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +9
we're good at cooking


Explanation:
Keeping it in a fairly colloquial register

This is another case where 'savoir' certainly has the sense of 'know how to' or 'can', but wouldn't really be the most natural, idiomatic way of expressing it in EN.

Tony M
France
Local time: 21:15
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 348
Grading comment
Merci !

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Beatriz Ramírez de Haro: Yep!
34 mins
  -> Thanks, Beatriz!

agree  philgoddard: Totally agree.
1 hr
  -> Thanks, Phil!

agree  Josephine Cassar: Very natural
1 hr
  -> Thanks, Josephine!

agree  writeaway: French is dead simple and straightforward. English should be the same
2 hrs
  -> Thanks a lot, Writeaway! My feelings exactly!

agree  ph-b (X): You're right, of course, but unless the son's English teacher is a native speaker, I'll bet you that the expected answer is more sthg like "we can cook well" - sounds more like English as taught in a Fr 2dry (?) school.
2 hrs
  -> Merci, ph-b! I agree, but I and the entire KudoZ community are mobilized for finding a good translation, not for bowing to the woeful inadequacies of language teaching in FR schools ;-)

agree  Sarah Bessioud
8 hrs
  -> Thanks, Sarah!

agree  AllegroTrans
1 day 7 hrs
  -> Thanks, C!

agree  B D Finch
2 days 3 hrs
  -> Thanks, B! :-)

agree  Charles Davis
2 days 9 hrs
  -> Thanks, Charles!
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28 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): -4
We know to cook very well.


Explanation:
Suggestion.

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Note added at 3 hrs (2018-03-17 14:13:51 GMT)
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It's very easy translation

Mohamed Hosni
Morocco
Local time: 20:15
Native speaker of: Native in ArabicArabic

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
disagree  Tony M: Once again, you seem not to have grasped the elementary fact that 'know HOW to' and 'know to' are quite different expressions in EN. It ill behoves you to disagree with other people's correct translations when your own is very far from correct!
1 hr

neutral  Nikki Scott-Despaigne: Using the elements used by the Answerer here, then corrected, the options might be : "We can cook well", "we know HOW to cook well". Once corrected, these may be what the teacher is looking for. Not a ntaural native choice, and they need to be got right.
4 hrs

disagree  katsy: Indeed it is easy to translate, but your suggestion is wrong. The teacher is no doubt trying to teach the pupils, precisely, that in English you say "to know HOW to do something" not "to know to"
4 hrs

disagree  Sarah Bessioud: Your answer is incorrect and your 'explanation' is missing an article. I think it may be time for you to trust the opinion of the native speakers on this one.
23 hrs

disagree  B D Finch: The verb "to know" requires a preposition when followed by an infinitive.
2 days 5 hrs
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