# Let sleeping dogs lie



## mikasa_90

Ciao!

Chiedo come si traduce questo detto in Romeno.

In inglese è '' let sleeping dogs lie''

In italiano è  '' non svegliare il can che dorme''


Grazie


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## jazyk

Ho trovato tante possibilità qui. Non so quale sia la più comune/più efficace.


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## mikasa_90

Credo vada bene 

Nu destepta cainele care doarme.

Poi non sò.


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## Blue Butterflies

Hi.

Nice site you found, jazyk.

Mikasa, to be honest, "nu deştepta câinele care doarme" isn't really a Romanian expression. If you simply wish to translate "let sleeping dogs lie", you can use it, of course. But there are equivalent expressions, and the one I'm most familiar with is "hai să nu dezgropăm morţii" (_come, let's not disturb/exhume/dig up the dead_).

It does sound a bit spooky.


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## radu

Non penso che ci sia un proverbio equivalente in romeno. Ma se lo dici come "Nu deranja câinele care doarme" una persona intelligente dovrebbe capire il senso. 
Secondo me, il proverbio citato da @Blue Butterflies ha un senso leggermente diverso (non risvegliare i ricordi tristi) del tuo (non prendere un rischio inutile o
ora - se l'ho capito bene).


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## mikasa_90

_Quindi è difficile trovare un equivalente, capisco.

Quindi riassumendo, quello di Blue Butterflies si riferisce più ai ricordi tristi, che vanno

dimenticati e non da ricordare.

Giusto?

Mentre per__Nu deranja câinele care doarme  __ci riferiamo a uan finezza letterale, c'è 

anche gente che può prenderla letteralmente?


_


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## Blue Butterflies

With all due respect, I beg to differ (and I apologise for doing so in English).

First, "let sleeping dogs lie" doesn't _necessarily_ mean not to take risks (unless speaking about past things is risky, because you might upset someone). From *The Free Dictionary*:


> *let sleeping dogs lie
> *to not talk about things which have caused problems in the past, or to not try to change a situation because you might cause problems.
> _His parents never referred to the shoplifting incident again. I suppose they thought it best to let sleeping dogs lie._


Second, I do believe that "nu dezgropa morţii" has a very close meaning to that. In the *DEX*, the figurative meaning of "a dezgropa" is _"_A readuce în memorie; a scoate din uitare; a dezmormânta". It doesn't have to be sad, but it would probably be something that's disturbing to talk about.


Of course, there are nuances to every idiom. And _I agree that most people would probably understand what you mean_ if you say "nu deştepta câinele ce doarme". But I bet many will just think it a literal translation of the English expression (which is not something a translator, for example, would be too proud of).


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## radu

I mostly agree that the two proverbs have very close meanings and that in many cases one could be translated using the other, but I imagine that in certain particular cases that could be inadequate because of the slight different nuances.

Secondly, I think it could be more culturally enriching to say something like: "in this case we say: ..." and use the translation of the proverb than to change it entirely. If the translation makes sense, of course.

So, micasa_90, I guess you can use whichever of the two best suits your intention and your taste.
Blue Butterflies, I apologize for arguing with you without firstly seeking the explanation of the proverb. However, the meaning I imagined for "Let sleeping dogs lie" was very close to what you quoted, only I expressed it wrong.


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## Blue Butterflies

Definitely no need for an apology, but thank you for your kindness nonetheless. I love it when people give me reason to consult a dictionary 

Yes, you're right that context is crucial in deciding which words to use.


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