# I'll be drinking from your skull an hour from now.



## Quake 3

Il est rare que je sois coincé par une phrase tout entière, mais c'est pourtant le cas ici. C'est non seulement l'utilisation de _will_, la proposition _from_ utilisé deux fois qui font que je m'emmêle les pinceaux et au final, je pense en réalité ne pas du tout saisir le sens de cette phrase.

*'I'll be drinking from your skull an hour from now.*​
Vous l'avez deviné, il s'agit d'une des répliques du jeu Quake III, employée par un des joueurs lorsque la conversation touche à l'alcool. En effet, cette phrase apparaît à l'écran suite à l'utilisation au préalable de l'un des mots suivants "_drink_", "_beer_", "_alcohol_", "_drinking_", "_drinks_", "_brandy_", "_whiskey_", "_alcoholic_", "_wine_", "_booze_", "_hootch_", "_moonshine_", "_everclear_" par un des joueurs du jeu. Je suis vraiment sans l'ombre d'une vague idée quant au sens de cette phrase, là j'ai vraiment besoin de vous! Dans le même contexte, on peut aussi trouver celles-ci:

_'Alcohol dulls your reflexes. Bad choice for a warrior.'
'Alcohol causes mistakes, and I don't intend to make mistakes.'
'Everything in moderation.'
'My motto: 'Don't drink and frag.'
'You're not what I look for in a drinking partner.'
'Never touch the stuff.'
'Everything in its time and place.'
'Go ahead, you won't need your liver much longer anyway.'
'Liquor is quicker.'
'I've heard you can make booze from fermented bananas.'
'I only drink iced tea shaken with ice.'
'Ever try celery soda pop? Don't. That's my advice.'
'Hoist one for me, I'll be there soon.'
'Never after breakfast.'
'It's a little early in the day for me.'
'Don't mind if I do!'_

Merci du coup de main!


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## titekrolyn

Peut-être qu'il s'agit d'une menace envers le joueur... En gros, dans une heure, tu seras mort et ton crâne me servira de verre... ?


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## Quake 3

OK thanks but it remains too vague, that's roughly the idea but I'd like to get someone to "decipher" this 'coz I really am at pains!


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## totallylost202

I don't know if this helps much, but when you talk about something in the future you can specify when it will happen by saying '... from now', in this case an hour from now = dans une heure.

_Two hours from now, I'll be playing football._


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## harbottle

titekrolyn said:


> Peut-être qu'il s'agit d'une menace envers le joueur... En gros, dans une heure, tu seras mort et ton crâne me servira de verre... ?



^^ this is precisely what it means, although I wonder whether there isn't a better word for "verre".. something meaning any general drinking container like the English "vessel"?

I'm not sure sure if there's any French preposition which could substitute for the first "for", but I don't see what's wrong with the above translation, in any case


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## francois_auffret

D'ici une heure...

J'avoue ne pas bien comprendre l'objet de la discussion ici


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## desert_coffin

D'ici une heure, ton crâne me servira de verre (à vin?).

Le français n'est pas aussi flexible que l'anglais malheureusement...


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## Quake 3

Hence "l'objet de la discussion" (...). Thanks desert_coffin. And here is the problem, French is not as flexible as English! Even if all the words are in the dictionnary and do not look tricky to understand, when all put together, it can become very tricky. I'll take a moment to reflect on your suggestion, thank you very much!


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## francois_auffret

desert_coffin said:


> D'ici une heure, ton crâne me servira de verre (à vin?).
> 
> Le français n'est pas aussi flexible que l'anglais malheureusement...


 
Les langues ne sont rien, tout est dans les gens qui les parlent....


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## Quake 3

J'ai bien peur qu'il s'agisse de propos prolixes, mais nous nous écartons de la question initiale.


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## renardor

- phrase initiale : I'll be drinking from your skull an hour from now.
- traduction mot à mot (ou presque) : Je serai en train de boire à partir de ton crâne une heure à partir de maintenant.
- dans un meilleur français : Je boirai dans(ou avec) ton crâne dans une heure à compter de maintenant.

c'est donc une menace ou une provocation pour dire : si tu bois de l'alcool, ben, dans une heure tu seras mort, et je me servirai de ton crâne comme gobelet.


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## Topsie

D'ici une heure ton crâne sera ma coupe (ou vice-versa!)
Je crois qu'on a besoin de Hunternet!!!!


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## harbottle

renardor said:


> c'est donc une menace ou une provocation pour dire : si tu bois de l'alcool, ben, dans une heure tu seras mort, et je me servirai de ton crâne comme gobelet.



à mon avis le sens est pluôt : je vais te tuer et, dans une heure, je me servirai de ton crâne comme gobelet


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## xtrasystole

Quake 3 said:


> je pense en réalité ne pas du tout saisir le sens de cette phrase.
> 
> *'I'll be drinking from your skull an hour from now.*​


_'*Dans une heure, je boirai dans ton crâne*'_

(ça a effectivement l'air d'une menace, mais comme francois_auffret, je ne vois pas bien où est le problème de traduction, là...  )


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## échalote

D'ici une heure, ton crâne me servira de gobelet.

That's it. I think this conveys the meaning of the original pretty well. In both languages, it sounds like a simple threat.

By the way, among your other examples, there was also _'Go ahead, you won't need your liver much longer anyway.'_, which sounds much the same: a threat somewhat devoid of emotion.


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## Quake 3

No need to stratch your head to get why this is tricky! That's obvious! People do not entirely agree on the same accurate meaning of the sentence. 

'Dans une heure, je boirai dans ton crâne" could be as simple as "I'll be drinking in your skull within an hour". 
Je vais parler français pour bien être clair là, si j'ai posté ce message, c'est que j'ai en effet un problème. J'ai peut-être pas lu beaucoup de livre en anglais, je ne suis qu'un simple débutant, mais de ma bien maigre expérience, cette tournure de phrase n'est pas très courante, car si vraiment la proposition faite juste au-dessus était la bonne, pourquoi faire d'une phrase anglaise à la structure un peu délicate une phrase française avec un simple verbe + complément. Seuls des génies de la langue pourront me reprendre, mais je persiste pour le moment à croire que la traduction demandée est un peu plus délicate et subtile que la phrase qui vient d'être proposée au-dessus.

En effet, Hunternet, sache que ton aide devient vraiment nécessaire!

OK, I was referring to xstrasystole's suggestion, not échalote. It seems pretty good, but since I'm somewhat demanding with my own work, with the translations I'm asking in here, I'll wait for a real pro's suggestion! But thanks a lot Echalote.


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## harbottle

Hi,

I'll try to shed some light (in English) on why the words in the phrase are set out in this way. "I'll be drinking from your skull an hour from now". Note the gerunds - "I'll be drinking" not "I will drink". "An hour from now" is used in place of "in an hour" -- they both mean the same thing -- because it fits better with "I'll be drinking". Basically, to me, it is phrased in this way to more clearly infer the fact that you will be dead, whatever happens, an hour from now. If it were "In an hour, I'll drink from your skull", to me, that's more "In an hour, _I'll kill you_ and drink from your skull", whereas in our sentence, it is implied that, during that hour between the time when the statement is made and when the speaker is going to be drinking from your skill, you will have died (and, probably, you'll be killed by the person who is speaking).

I'm not sure how to get the same meaning across in French. "D'ici une heure, ton crâne me servira de gobelet" would be my choice


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## xtrasystole

Quake 3 said:


> 'Dans une heure, je boirai dans ton crâne" could be as simple as "I'll be drinking in your skull within an hour".


Hmm... I wouldn't be any too sure about that. 

To me, _'within'_ means _"à un moment quelconque au cours du délai"_ (d'une heure), not _'dans une heure'_. 

_'Please reply within 8 days'_ (tu peux répondre dans 1 jour, dans 2 jours, dans 3 jours, dans 8 jours, mais pas dans 10 jours). 

Also: _'Use within 3 days after opening package'_ ne veut pas dire _'À consommer 3 jours après ouverture'_, mais _'À consommer dans les 3 jours après ouverture'_.


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## Quake 3

I really enjoyed reading your long explanation, as a French, I'm not very well acquainted with thoses nuances and it's very useful to me. Really, I thank you. At that, it sounds convincing so I guess we have found what we needed!

As for the _within/in _thing, well, given the context, I honnestly believe that the warrior who says this is not staring at his watch and is making a countdown. It's rather "around an hour" than "in 3600 seconds". I'm going too far but it's just to show that the warrior is not that specific, he just means that between an hour or two, his foe will be dead.


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## George French

harbottle said:


> Hi,
> 
> Basically, to me, it is phrased in this way to more clearly infer the fact that you will be dead, whatever happens, an hour from now.


 
I agree that Harbottle has correctly interpreted the English idea.

Maybe I would harden it slightly to:-

You will be dead *within* the hour. (Otherwise I could only drink the liquified brains......) but this would be nit-picking.


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## Nicomon

Just wondering... could something like this work? 

_D'ici une heure, je boirai/me soûlerai à même ton crâne _(as in... boire à même la cruche/la bouteille)


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## Quake 3

That's neat! But I let English speakers reply. Just know that I dig your suggestion even if it may not fit!


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## échalote

I like Nicomon's suggestion - it sounds more natural than the ones before, and it may also better fit the linguistic style used in such games. To help fix the temporal issue discussed at length above, may I suggest:

_Dans pas plus d'une heure, je m'abreuverai à même ton crâne._

or

_Dans moins d'une heure, je m'abreuverai à même ton crâne._

It may not be perfect yet, but I feel our respective skulls in unison are on to something. Let's hope it will take much less than an hour!


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## timboleicester

xtrasystole said:


> _'*Dans une heure, je boirai dans ton crâne*'_
> 
> (ça a effectivement l'air d'une menace, mais comme francois_auffret, je ne vois pas bien où est le problème de traduction, là...  )


 
I can vouch for this too, it's exactly the right degree of menace in the original and conveys the exact meaning....one can't ask for better in a translation.


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## Nicomon

> =échalote;4440991]I like Nicomon's suggestion - it sounds more natural than the ones before, and it may also better fit the linguistic style used in such games. To help fix the temporal issue discussed at length above, may I suggest:To help fix the temporal issue discussed at length above, may I suggest:
> _Dans pas plus d'une heure, je m'abreuverai à même ton crâne._
> or
> _Dans moins d'une heure, je m'abreuverai à même ton crâne._


  Thank you échalote. I nearly suggested _dans moins d'une heure_... but hesitated to. Happy to see that I would have been right. 

I also initially wrote _abreuverai_... before I changed it to _soûlerai_ since _abreuver_ is mostly said for animals (I think).


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## Quake 3

You are right Nicomon. The French verb_ abreuver_ is specifically used with horses. _S'abreuver_, which is quite colloquial means drinking in huge quantities.
I'm sorry but I beg to differ Timboleicester. Between what you think is the best and échalote's, hers is way more subtle, more accurate, not just _drink in a skull_. It does all of us good to have different opinions and it's not in my habits to say this is bad/this is good, but frankly, those two suggestions are not the same at all!


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## Gil

Nicomon said:


> Thank you échalote. I nearly suggested _dans moins d'une heure_... but hesitated to. Happy to see that I would have been right.
> 
> I also initially wrote _abreuverai_... before I changed it to _soûlerai_ since _abreuver_ is mostly said for animals (I think).


Salut Nicomon
Par esprit de contradiction, je suggère:
"Encore une plombe et je picolerai dans ton caillou".


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## Nicomon

Gil said:


> Salut Nicomon
> Par esprit de contradiction, je suggère:
> "Encore une plombe et je picolerai dans ton caillou".


 
Salut Gil
J'aime! Beaucoup!


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## échalote

For what it's worth, I think the verb _se désaltérer_ could be interesting as well. I somehow think that in this context, the act of drinking should be expressed by a word that conveys relief. I play Neverwinter Nights and lots of Japanese games with a rather twisted sense of humour, in which drinking out of skulls is a pretty standard activity, so... the sense of relief could be interesting. On the other hand, I never played Quake...

It never occurred to me that _s'abreuver_ is specific to horses - we do have _abreuvoirs_ in Quebec, which are just drinking fountains in public spaces, not the least intended for animals.


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## Quake 3

I think you are exploring some new paths! But that's great, I like it. The thing is that s'abreuver may be a bit too soft here. _S'abreuver_ was fine to me but if I were to follow your suggestion, although I can't find a verb that illustrates my idea, _se désaltérer_ wouldn't convey the idea that the warrior is pourring blood in is mouth. I like the relief idea, but _se désaltérer_ would mean that he would just have a few sips of blood and then stop drinking. Quake 3 is a gore, bloody, deadly game with warriors who know that to survive, they have to be as cruel as possible. To my mind, with that very sentence, we have to picture ourselves a warrior drinking blood in a skull and in doing so, he's not quenching his thirst (se désaltérer) but drinking blood until there's no left. 
Let's focus on the relief he has, yes, that's a very good idea, but let's find another verb that conveys both quantity and relief.


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## échalote

I meant relief in the sense of satiety, where you no more feel the urge to drink. In that sense, it could be a more subtle form of vampirism. I find the idea fits the context.


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## Nicomon

échalote said:


> It never occurred to me that _s'abreuver_ is specific to horses - we do have _abreuvoirs_ in Quebec, which are just drinking fountains in public spaces, not the least intended for animals.


 
True enough (guilty as charged) but in an ideal world, we shouldn't be saying _abreuvoir _and that's what made me change my mind. Petite capsule



> *Quake 3 :* Let's focus on the relief he has, yes, that's a very good idea, but let's find another verb that conveys both quantity and relief.
> *échalote :* I meant relief in the sense of satiety, where you no more feel the urge to drink. In that sense, it could be a more subtle form of vampirism.
> I find the idea fits the context.


 
Well, in that case... I revert to my initial suggestion of « _Je me soûlerai à même ton crâne ». _Given this below definition of soûler/saouler, and the many others that can be found here


> *1. Littér., vieilli. [Le compl. désigne une pers.] Gorger de nourriture, de boisson; rassasier complètement, jusqu'à satiété.*


 
Edit : I found this sentence ... _On la rencontre souvent sur les sites de crémation ou sur les champs de bataille, où *elle se saoule du sang des victimes*. _


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## KaRiNe_Fr

Salut,

Je me demandais si l'idée de banquet et de festivités n'est pas implicite dans la phrase en anglais... et lors de réjouissances pour fêter la victoire après le combat, on trinque.
Auquel cas, peut-être : « Dans moins d'une heure c'est dans ton crâne que je serai en train de trinquer / trinquerai ! » pourrait fonctionner, même si on s'éloigne de la traduction littérale ?  
Et pourquoi ne pas parler de _libations_, tant qu'on y est ? « ... c'est dans ton crâne que je ferai mes libations ! »


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## Quake 3

Nicomon, I followed with a deep interest all your suggestions from the very beginning and I'd say that _se saouler_ is finally the verb we needed. Yeah, I had _s'enivrer _ in mind but yours sounds better. Furthermore, your quotation just puts a premium on the use of _se saouler,_ here. I'm really grateful for what you've come up to.
Karine_Fr, I quite like the idea except that in here, it is very unlikely to fit. Because, when you _trinque_, you need to be at least with another person, you can't do that alone. And when the game's rule might have been "every man for himself", the verb _trinquer_ cannot fit at all. As for libations, I'm not sure... why not? But I truly believe that Nicomon's thoughts are great.
In any case, I genuinely appreciate your help and the interest you have in my requests! Thank you very much.


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