# Too Americano



## Pirata_Brighton

Sorry guys but I have to say what I think of this website after using the English-Spanish section for a while:

The Spanish translations given for English terms are far too american or false friends in some cases.

The majority of the definitions could be valid in Mexican or Argentinian, but not in castellano.

Sorry to be so cold, but for experience I know that any criticism can be  constructive if interpreted the way it should be, not in a defensive way, even bad criticism.

I just want to give my opinion to make this web site more useful, I think the idea is great and a tool like this could be VERY helpful for everyone if done properly.

Saludos,

Pirata


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## E-J

Hello Pirata

The English/French dictionary has an additional feature which the English/Spanish one doesn't seem to have: it's a link which users can click on to leave their suggestions for improvements to the dictionary definitions.

Perhaps this feature will eventually be implemented in the Spanish version?

Saludos.


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## Pirata_Brighton

It´d help, so the users are aware of the weaknesses of the dictionary and the webmasters can use that section to improve it. 

As I say, it´s just an opinion.

Saludos.


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## Carlos Martínez Riera

Pirata_Brighton said:
			
		

> Sorry guys but I have to say what I think of this website after using the English-Spanish section for a while:
> 
> The Spanish translations given for English terms are far too american or false friends in some cases.
> 
> The majority of the definitions could be valid in Mexican or Argentinian, but not in castellano.
> 
> Sorry to be so cold, but for experience I know that any criticism can be constructive if interpreted the way it should be, not in a defensive way, even bad criticism.
> 
> I just want to give my opinion to make this web site more useful, I think the idea is great and a tool like this could be VERY helpful for everyone if done properly.
> 
> Saludos,
> 
> Pirata


 
Pirata:

Como colaborador en algunos fragmentos del suplemento de WordRefrence, me interesa mucho tu comentario, puesto que me he esforzado en asegurar la presencia de traducciones específicamente españolas junto con las de otros países de L.A. y evitar el sesgo en uno u otro lado del Atlántico.

A modo de botón de muestra, ¿puedes dar algún par de ejemplos?

Gracias

Carlos


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## clipper

Yo tambien creo que las traducciones en ambos sentidos favorecen el inglés americano y español latino americano. Lo que me gustaría ver es que cuando pregunta alguien alguna traducción que apunten el país de origen del texto y el país en el que van a leer la traducción.


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## Carlos Martínez Riera

clipper said:
			
		

> Yo tambien creo que las traducciones en ambos sentidos favorecen el inglés americano y español latino americano. Lo que me gustaría ver es que cuando pregunta alguien alguna traducción que apunten el país de origen del texto y el país en el que van a leer la traducción.


Si hablas del foro, esto se hace ya en la sección de vocabulario especializado, donde este tipo de diferencias entre países es a veces más evidente.
En las respuestas, muchos de nosotros hacemos referencia a nuestro origen para aclarar las posibles diferencias locales.

Si te refieres al diccionario, cuando has sido posible se ha indicado si el término utilizado es específico de un país o zona, pero es evidente que no se ha hecho de manera sistemática para todos los términos. Hay espacio para la mejora.

Carlos


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## Afrodeeziak

The goal of the site, I think, is to provide a lot of information from varied sources. We need more Britons.


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## clipper

After thinking more about my post I realised that the reason that there are more american influences on the site than european is probably simply down to the people who are prepared to learn and help others learn (I don´t think there are many British spanish speakers, whereas for North Americans, spanish is the first choice foreign language).

I like the forum but I still think the target readers´ country should be stated in all questions.


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## belén

Pirata_Brighton said:
			
		

> Sorry guys but I have to say what I think of this website after using the English-Spanish section for a while:
> 
> The Spanish translations given for English terms are far too american or false friends in some cases.
> 
> The majority of the definitions could be valid in Mexican or Argentinian, but not in castellano.
> 
> Sorry to be so cold, but for experience I know that any criticism can be constructive if interpreted the way it should be, not in a defensive way, even bad criticism.
> 
> I just want to give my opinion to make this web site more useful, I think the idea is great and a tool like this could be VERY helpful for everyone if done properly.
> 
> Saludos,
> 
> Pirata



Hello. Sorry but I don't understand your post.

First of all, are you talking about the forums or the dictionary?
If you are talking about the dictionary, well, Espasa is the editing company granting WR the rights to use their dictionary and this is a Spanish (from Spain) company, with many American addings in order to cover the wider scope of Spanish words. Then, we have the expressions supplement that was worked on by people from all over, Argentina, Mexico, Spain etc, again, trying to contemplate the different types of Spanish spoken around the world.

If, on the other hand, you are referring to the Forums, I simply don't understand your concern. Participants of the forum come from all over the world and you can see their mother language information in their profiles. If I ask for a translation from English to Spanish, I am glad to receive as many options as possible, from Mexicans, Paraguayans, Bolivians and Salvadoreans the same. That's the beauty of our language, we have such a big spectrum of words to work with, that I would never see this as something negative, but very possitive and enriching.

Belén


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## chucho

> Registrado: julio-2005
> País e idioma nativo: England´s english
> Residencia: Madrid
> Posts: 159


Didn't you can see the country and the native lang?... I do see it...

Always that I post any message I look for a native speaker or someone from the country which I hope the answer but all replies are accepted for me although I use only one.

I did fill my profile, you can see that I'm not good at English, my country is México, and I live at Yucatán. I speak Spanish.

Anyway would be good if everybody does put in his sign or somewhere something like this:

es-mx

If you strike it necessary although doesn't necessary to me...

rgds..


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## araceli

Buenas tardes:
En Argentina, México, Cuba, Chile, Puerto Rico y muchas más naciones del continente americano _también_  hablamos CASTELLANO; por supuesto que hay muchas variaciones regionales, como ya lo ha dicho Belén y otros foreros, pero el idioma es el mismo.
Este tema ya se ha hablado/escrito hasta el hartazgo.
Problemas parecidos ocurren con el inglés que se habla en USA, UK y demás lugares.
Con el portugués de Portugal, Brasil, Mozambique, etc.
Y podríamos seguir con esto *ad infinitum...*  
Saludos.


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## Afrodeeziak

Entonces, hay una diferencia entre castellano y español?


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## belén

Afrodeeziak said:
			
		

> Entonces, hay una diferencia entre castellano y español?



No, son sinónimos. Es cuestión de gustos y de preferencias de cada uno. Hay algún hilo que habla de esto por aquí (pero no he sido capaz de encontrarlo  sorry...a ver si alguien lo encuentra)

Saludos,
Belén


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## Afrodeeziak

ou gracias


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## araceli

Afroodeziak: Te paso el enlace:
http://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=castellano


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## patrikia

La maravilla de nuestro idioma, como dice Belén, es que siendo tantos y tan distintos países, todos nos entendemos. A unos se nos apetecen las cosas, a otros se nos antojan; unos nos comemos las eses y otros no; unos seseamos y otros ceceamos; unos cambiamos las erres por eles, pero el idioma es el mismo. En la variedad está la riqueza. Pocas cosas dan tanto gusto como, después de estar un tiempo en un país de habla no hispana, distinguir de repente, entre el ruido del idioma que no entiende uno, o que no es el de uno, las sílabas claras del español, sean con el acento que sean.


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## Afrodeeziak

muy bien dicho.


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## GenJen54

> Originally posted by *Pirata_Brighton* The Spanish translations given for English terms are far too american or false friends in some cases.


While I realize it may be an "extra" step, you are always welcome to join us in the English Only forums, where you will encounter a number of delightful British-English speakers who I'm certain would be more than happy to help you translate from AE to BE. 

That said, I can also say the reverse is true. When specifically asking for "spanish" translations from people who speak "Mexican" Spanish, the majority of my replies have come from foreros of Spain and/or Argentina. Given that my Spanish is spotty, at best, I have no way of knowing whether the answers I am given are "autentico" to the type of translation needed.

Cheers!


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## beatrizg

Pirata_Brighton said:
			
		

> The majority of the definitions could be valid in Mexican or Argentinian, but not in castellano.


 
Mexican? Argentinean? ¿Sugieres que en Mexico y en Argentina se habla "argentino y "mexicano"? ¿y que el "castellano" es un idioma diferente? 
Espero que puedas explicar ya que no queda muy claro lo que quieres decir.


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## vikingo44

And there are also many different flavors of Spanish in Spain alone!


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## Faith

Pirata_Brighton said:
			
		

> The Spanish translations given for English terms are far too american or false friends in some cases.


Hi
Well I think you are completely mistaken about this forum and I'll tell you why. This is a place, as far as I know, open to everybody and when I mean everybody is everybody from everywhere. Apart from the diversity of countries you can find here, there are a lot of people who are not translators but they speak (or are learning) English and they are always willing to help and to learn. When I ask for help all the answers are welcome I'm the one making the last decision about my translation!!. I don't know if someone has ever told you this but there are as many translations as translators...so once again, if you don't like one answer...do not use it. It's up to you!!. If you are able to identify the translations as false friends you can use the forum to say..hey that's wrong, it's a false friend or I wouldn't say that..... And if you consider that a translation is not suitable for you because it's too "regional",consider what would be the appropriate for you but any help, no matter its origin, may guide you and help you decide


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## swift_precision

vikingo44 said:
			
		

> And there are also many different flavors of Spanish in Spain alone!


 
As is the case with other countries in Latin America.


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## UNLVBen

If users of these forums want translations for specific regions, they can write that in their posts.  If they don't write it in their posts, then they may get variations from different people, and that is not necessarily a bad thing.

Other tools for learning languages (CDs, books, etc.) usually do not focus on specific regions either.

-Ben


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## rob.returns

Yeah! You guys rullleeeezzzz...

Saludos a todos...

I want you to know "PIRATA BRIGTON" that we are here to protect the forum. No matter what. Where's your reply buddy. Donde su respuesta?

All of us came from different cultures to tell you that. So you cant tell that this forum or dictionary is too American. 

Thats cool of you people. Although we constantly go against each other sometimes, we are here to protect the forum.

Good day to all.

Anyway, Everybody is welcome thats including YOU brighton! Welcome..enjoy posting!

P.S. Next time if you have any suggestions theres a Suggestion thread where you could put your suggestions.k?


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## Mariaguadalupe

Dear Pirata Brighton, 

I sense a little discrimination in your post. tut tut tut

As everyone else has stated, all answers are welcome, whether they are of use to you or not, it is up to you. You have the power to decide. something else that will determine language, not castellano or spanish, or AE or BE, is the correct usage of the language. A person who uses language properly is more likely to be understood wherever he goes, regardless of nationality.

Best regards,

MG


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## cuchuflete

Hola Pirata,

Belén and Araceli have given superb answers to your rather vague complaint.  

Are you ill-at-ease with the forum discussions, or with the dictionary definitions?   Without specifying your objection, you make it difficult to consider it usefully.

I won't say more than Be has, other than to reiterate that the Espasa dictionary is primarily peninsular Spanish.

The WR supplement was created by a team of translators and reviewers,  and every entry was reviewed by at least one Iberian native speaker. In my own review work I frequently added an Iberian/Peninsular translation to the totally accurate usages provided by my Mexican and Argentine colleagues, if and only if there was a regional difference in common usage.
In the huge majority of cases the identical word or phrase is used throughout the Spanish-speaking world.   

As to the English side of the equation, please note that UK and US are used throughout the dictionary when a word or term is a regional usage, and many of the dictionary entries have listings for both AE and BE usage.

There are almost certainly many specific cases in which the dictionary needs help. If you would point those out, it would be welcome.  Constructive criticism is welcome.   Broad generalities are difficult to use constructively.  Your specific objections are invited.  

Thanks,
Cuchuflete



			
				Pirata_Brighton said:
			
		

> Sorry guys but I have to say what I think of this website after using the English-Spanish section for a while:
> 
> The Spanish translations given for English terms are far too american or false friends in some cases.
> 
> The majority of the definitions could be valid in Mexican or Argentinian, but not in castellano.
> 
> Sorry to be so cold, but for experience I know that any criticism can be constructive if interpreted the way it should be, not in a defensive way, even bad criticism.
> 
> I just want to give my opinion to make this web site more useful, I think the idea is great and a tool like this could be VERY helpful for everyone if done properly.
> 
> Saludos,
> 
> Pirata


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