@ Florence (bis) 13:09 Aug 6, 2018
In my FR > EN work, when faced with a choice of let's say 2 possible translations, one of which seems to me more natural / idiomatic than another, one of the questions I ask myself is "why di the writer choose to express it that particular way, rather than another?" Sometimes, it can be seen that the alternative way of saying it that exists in EN is for some reason not available in FR, in which case, I have no compunction in using the EN solution that feels to me more natural and idiomatic. In the case here, we are faced with 2 translation suggestions, and with your indulgence, I would like to expand slightly on my analysis of the translation issues here. Let me strat by saying that the attributive use in the source text here 'coastal swell' is an exceedingly common construction in EN, and one that I realize is somewhat less so in FR; however, the back translation of your suggestion would be 'swell in coastal areas', which has a different nuance of meaning, equally possible to render in EN; why then, did the source text writer choose one over the other? (cont.)
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