Feb 24, 2014 10:49
10 yrs ago
Spanish term

que definen

Spanish to English Other International Org/Dev/Coop
Hi, this is the beginning of a paragraph describing how a form was used to classify various different activities carried out by organizations for the purposes of exchanging practices and sharing information. I'm unsure as to whether there is an error and 'definen' should in fact be 'define' - ie the 'pregunta central' defines the characteristics of the practices, or whether these characteristics can indeed be the subject of the verb - the characteristics somehow define or address the central question? The central question is defined by...?

"Sin embargo, la ficha propone una “pregunta central” que definen las características de las prácticas que deben presentar los receptores principales."

My first instinct was that it was a typo, but I would appreciate all thoughts to rule out other possiblities. Many thanks.

for more context, the text continues as follows:

"Específicamente se plantea el rol que han jugado o juegan las organizaciones que asumen la función de receptores principales para: a) “apoyar el fortalecimiento de los sistemas comunitarios y de salud [...] etc"

Latin American Spanish, probably Mexican.

Discussion

Lucy Phillips (asker) Feb 26, 2014:
thanks for all thoughts - sorry for the delay in commenting/grading. After considering it in the light of all suggestions, I returned the document with this phrase marked for clarification. If and when I get feedback, I'll let you all know. Thank you!
Alejandro Alcaraz Sintes Feb 24, 2014:
two typos in one As a native speaker in Spanish, if "la pregunta" is the subject of "definir", the verb would, of course, be in the singular, but also in the subjunctive, "que defina", which is required by the verb "proponer". Therefore, I would agree with Carol: the subject may the "características...". I'd check with the client, though, as Jenni suggests.
Collin Stewart Feb 24, 2014:
Not having seen the rest of the document, I think the theory that it should simply read "defiene" is by far the most plausible.
Lucy Phillips (asker) Feb 24, 2014:
thanks Susie, yes, typo is my instinct - but I wanted to make sure I hadn't overlooked a possibility. I think there are one or two agreement typos in the document, but not many and none very significant ones.
Susie Rawson Feb 24, 2014:
As far as I see it, it feels a bit far-fetched that the characteristics are what define the question. That would translate something like “a central question, defined by the characteristics of the practices …”
Much more likely that the question is oriented to define such characteristics.
As for second option suggested by Carol, that would involve various typos: the accent on “qué” , the questions marks (one at the beginning and another one at the end), and maybe a colon before “qué”
Carol Gullidge Feb 24, 2014:
in that case, if a typo is unlikely it could simply be that it means that "las características de las prácticas... " are what defines the “pregunta central”…?
Lucy Phillips (asker) Feb 24, 2014:
more food for thought Carol! hmm, I don't think so, given that the quality of the document is generally good, ie very few typos... but it may be worth raising my query with the client. Will see how others read it.
Jenni Lukac (X) Feb 24, 2014:
Carol may be right. As there is a big different between the two readings, I suggest querying the client.
Carol Gullidge Feb 24, 2014:
that IS the question? As I see it, and without wishing to complicate matters unnecessarily - is it also possible that it should read something like: "una pregunta central: qué definen las características de las prácticas que deben presentar los receptors principales ?"

(Sorry no Spanish question marks available!)

Proposed translations

+2
59 mins
Selected

a typo

Definitely a typo. Makes no sense in Spanish.
Peer comment(s):

agree Lucia Samayoa : but i would double check with the client
1 hr
agree Muriel Vasconcellos : Not actually a typo, but a logical slip of the kind I've seen before in Spanish.
8 hrs
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Selected automatically based on peer agreement."
7 hrs

which define / subdivided into... / with subheadings...

the way I see it, this is perfectly feasible, and is indeed one of Lucy's own proposals. Given that this is about a form, the “pregunta central” (main heading) could well be broken down into subheadings (the characteristics, i.e., sub-divisions on the form) of the main point in question.

This suggestion is based on the assumption that there is no typo, in keeping with the general accuracy and tightness of the rest of the text, as described by Lucy...
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