# overigens nauwelijks



## la jeremiada de Jeremías

Hello everyone,

Held up again by particles!  If it weren't for the two bracketed words in following sentence, I just might understand it.



> Mensen die op de pistes blijven, lopen [overigens nauwelijks] risico om slachtoffer to worden van een lawine.  --volkskrant.nl


I translate it loosely, without the bracketed words, as, "People who stay behind on the slopes run the risk of becoming avalanche fatalities."

However, when I try to reconcile the whole sentence with the dictionary definitions of *overigens* and *nauwelijks*, it all falls apart on me.  "...*otherwise* they _*barely*_ run the risk of becoming an avalanche fatality"?  It can't be.

Once again, I ask your help.


----------



## Peterdg

la jeremiada de Jeremías said:


> Hello everyone,
> 
> Held up again by particles! If it weren't for the two bracketed words in following sentence, I just might understand it.
> 
> I translate it loosely, without the bracketed words, as, "People who stay behind on the slopes run the risk of becoming avalanche fatalities."
> 
> However, when I try to reconcile the whole sentence with the dictionary definitions of *overigens* and *nauwelijks*, it all falls apart on me. "...*otherwise* they _*barely*_ run the risk of becoming an avalanche fatality"? It can't be.
> 
> Once again, I ask your help.


"People who stay behind on the slopes by the way, barely run the risk of becoming avalanche fatalities."

Hope this helps.

Peter


----------



## la jeremiada de Jeremías

Peterdg said:


> "People who stay behind on the slopes by the way, barely run the risk of becoming avalanche fatalities."
> 
> Hope this helps.
> 
> Peter



Peter,

It does help.  I'm on my way.  I do see the function of *overigens* now, but I'm still having trouble with *nauwelijks* here.

Perhaps I have to go back to *pistes*, and the article itself.  Am I right in translating *pistes* as "ski trails/tracks" (though I don't find a meaning related to skiing in the online dictionaries I use)?

So, let me look again at the context of the article, which is about how a number of people died this weekend in landslides in the Italian Alps.  It would seem to me that if someone "stayed behind on the slopes", instead of leaving the area, that they would indeed run a considerable risk, that there would be quite some danger involved.  "Barely" running a risk sounds off to me in this case. 

Is there, then, some other possible way to translate *nauwelijks*, such as to "run *some* risk"?  Have I misread *pistes*?


----------



## Suehil

'But otherwise, people who stay on the official pistes hardly run any risk .....'


----------



## Peterdg

la jeremiada de Jeremías said:


> Peter,
> 
> It does help. I'm on my way. I do see the function of *overigens* now, but I'm still having trouble with *nauwelijks* here.
> 
> Perhaps I have to go back to *pistes*, and the article itself. Am I right in translating *pistes* as "ski trails/tracks" (though I don't find a meaning related to skiing in the online dictionaries I use)?
> 
> So, let me look again at the context of the article, which is about how a number of people died this weekend in landslides in the Italian Alps. It would seem to me that if someone "stayed behind on the slopes", instead of leaving the area, that they would indeed run a considerable risk, that there would be quite some danger involved. "Barely" running a risk sounds off to me in this case.
> 
> Is there, then, some other possible way to translate *nauwelijks*, such as to "run *some* risk"? Have I misread *pistes*?


Hello,

I was concentrating on the "*overigens nauwelijks*" question and I must admit I didn't pay much attention to the rest of the translation and just copied and pasted it around the rest

With *piste* they indeed mean the official ski track.

So, second attempt:

_People that stay on the official ski tracks by the way, hardly run any risk of becoming avalanche victims._

Also Suehil's suggestion is OK, although less literal.

Best regards,

Peter


----------



## la jeremiada de Jeremías

Suehill and Peterdg,

A very loud and somewhat involuntary AHA escapes my lips!  Thank you both.


----------



## Lawrencelot

Overigens is a word that has about the same meaning as the English expression 'by the way', at least in this context.


----------



## Ktke

I think

_By the way, people that stay on the official ski tracks, hardly run any risk of becoming avalanche victims._

covers it best.

I've read about the accidents, in Italy, was it? I think they just want to say that a lot of the victims asked for it, by not staying on the tracks...


----------

