# Translation from French

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 28, 2003, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918 "2003-06-28T03:48:48Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 8\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2003, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918/1 "2003-06-28T03:48:48Z")

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Could someone please translate this, and tell me where it’s from (possibly Jacques Brel):

“Je veux que le jour le proclame, L’amour qu’au matin j’ai caché…”

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**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2003, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918/2 "2003-06-28T04:01:04Z")

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It appears to be from [_Le secret_ by Armand Silvestre (1837-1901)](http://www.recmusic.org/lieder/s/silvestre/faure23.3.html):

> [@](#):
>
> **I want the day to proclaim  
> the love that I hid from the morning**

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**Author:** ![eunoia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eunoia/32/97_2.png) [@eunoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eunoia)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2003, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918/3 "2003-06-28T04:05:15Z")

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I want the day to proclaim  
the love that I hid **in** the morning

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**Author:** ![jovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/0ea827/32.png) [@jovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jovan)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2003, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918/4 "2003-06-28T06:18:32Z")

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Actually, in context, the first translation is correct - the author is personifying morning, day, night, etc.

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**Author:** ![mecaenas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/91b2a8/32.png) [@mecaenas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mecaenas)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2003, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918/5 "2003-06-28T07:26:42Z")

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Just out of interest, Google has a set of free **[language tools](http://www.google.com.au/language_tools?hl=en)** that could help the next time you need a rough and ready translation.

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**Author:** ![jovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/0ea827/32.png) [@jovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jovan)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2003, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918/6 "2003-06-28T07:46:49Z")

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In this case, since we’re talking about poetry, automated translation services are utterly useless. The key word here is “rough” translation. For technical, straightforward stuff, though, it’s often okay.

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**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2003, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918/7 "2003-06-28T16:02:01Z")

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The most obvious meaning would be "the love that I hid \*\* in \*\*  
the morning. But then, I realized that gramatically, both translation are correct. It could theorically be "that I hid \*\* from \*\* the morning. There’s no way to tell, but the latter translation seems unlikely.

OK…I followed the link and read the whole song. Indeed, the author obviously meant \*\* from \*\* the morning. My mistake.

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**Author:** ![eunoia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eunoia/32/97_2.png) [@eunoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eunoia)\
**Post date:** [June 28, 2003, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-from-french/184918/8 "2003-06-28T23:59:33Z")

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Upon review, **Fear Itself’s** translation is far better, my mistake.