Translation Exercise • 92

Sei in grado tu di rendere la frase di oggi in inglese?

La traduzione, come metodo di esercizio nell’apprendimento di una lingua, farà sicuramente parte della vecchia scuola, però, inserita in un contesto più vario di apprendimento, soprattutto con feedback in tempo reale, può sempre essere un utile esercizio di allenamento.

Consiglio una partecipazione attiva e visibile postando la tua versione tra i commenti in fondo a questa pagina. In questo modo riceverai un mio commento o suggerimento in tempo più o meno reale. Ma per chi non se la sente, si può semplicemente annotare la propria versione e controllarla attraverso i miei commenti lasciati per gli altri.

Ecco la nuova frase:

Che tempi strani quelli in cui viviamo. Mi chiedo come sarà il futuro quando i nostri figli saranno cresciuti.

Buon divertimento!

Puoi esercitarti quanto vuoiQUI.


Your comments are always very welcome.


Author: Tony

Born and raised in Malaysia between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Educated at Wycliffe College in Stonehouse, Gloucestershire, England. Living in the foothills of Mount Etna since 1982 and teaching English at Catania University since 1987.

39 thoughts on “Translation Exercise • 92”

  1. I nearly forgot to do my translation duty, Tony! Just in time for the next one!

    Anyway here’s the last Friday’s translation.

    Che tempi strani quelli in cui viviamo. Mi chiedo come sarà il futuro quando i nostri figli saranno cresciuti.

    What strange times we’re living in. I wonder what the future will be like when our children are grown up! 

    Liked by 1 person

  2. gChe tempi strani quelli in cui viviamo. Mi chiedo come sarà il futuro quando i nostri figli saranno cresciuti.Buon diverti

    good afternoon,

    how strange the days we are living (in) are.i wonder what the future Will be like when our Kids Will have grown up.

    Like

    1. Well, Roby, if you use your “how strange” version, then you do need the “in” after “living”. However, I think the “what strange times” version would be more typical here.

      The last verb should be a “present perfect”, Roby as it’s a “proposizione temporale al futuro” and the “futuro anteriore” should be translated with a present perfect. Otherwise you’ve got too many futures!

      Like

      1. ohhh i see prof ,thanks a lot.

        We have *when*temporale and we can t use the future tense.i forgot.

        p.s thanks for posting these versions prof.they Always turn out tò be extremely useful.

        Like

    1. Hi Angelo. Your version is quite comprehensible but there are a few things to note:

      1. You can totally eliminate “the ones in which”: it’s not needed in the English version.
      2. When you have a “proposizione temporale al futuro” in English, you should translate the “futuro anteriore” with a “present perfect” – in this case: “when our children have grown up.”

      Look here.

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  3. Che tempi strani quelli in cui viviamo. Mi chiedo come sarà il futuro quando i nostri figli saranno cresciuti.

    What strange times we live in. I wonder what the future will be like when our children grow up.

    Like

    1. Good, Dino, but personally, I would put the first verb in the present continuous to underline the idea of “in this period” and the last verb in the present perfect, the equivalent in English of the “futuro anteriore” in Italian.

      However, your version is perfectly acceptable. 🙂

      Like

  4. Hi prof

    What strange times we live in. I wonder what future will be when our children are growing up.

    Thank you very much

    Like

    1. Fully comprehensible, but there are a few things to sort out:

      1. Personally, I would use the present continuous for the first verb as it underlines the idea of “in this period”. However, the present simple is also possible.
      2. “Future” needs a definite article, as in Italian: “the future”.
      3. You need “like” after “be” (the expression is: what + to be + like)
      4. The last verb should really be a present perfect (the equivalent in English of the “futuro anteriore” in Italian).

      Like

  5. Che tempi strani quelli in cui viviamo.
    Mi chiedo come sarà il futuro quando i nostri figli saranno cresciuti.

    What strange times those we are living in.
    I wonder what the feature will be like when our children are grown up.

    Like

    1. You let yourself be fooled by that “quelli”, Paolo. It’s totally unnecessary in English.

      feature ➝ future (typo?)

      “are grown up” is all right, but it is “static”
      “have grown up” is “dynamic”, and perhaps better here.

      Like

      1. Got it, I’ll try again.

        Che tempi strani quelli in cui viviamo.
        Mi chiedo come sarà il futuro quando i nostri figli saranno cresciuti.

        What strange times (those) we are living in.
        I wonder what the future will be like when our children have grown up.

        Liked by 1 person

  6. What strange times we are living in. I wonder what the future will be when our children are grown up.

    Like

  7. what strange times we live in. I wonder what the future will be like when our children grow up

    Like

    1. Very good, Giovanna.

      My only comment would be that perhaps a present continuous at the beginning would give more the idea of “in this period”. However, the present simple is equally possible.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. what strange times we are living in. I wonder what the future will be like when our children grow up

        thanks Tony ✨

        Liked by 1 person

  8. Good morning, Teacher

    Che tempi strani quelli in cui viviamo. Mi chiedo come sarà il futuro quando i nostri figli saranno cresciuti.

    What weird times we’re living in.

    I wonder how the future will be when our children will be grown up

    🙄

    Like

    1. Pretty good, Anita.

      The only problem in your version is that future tense at the end. It should be either a present tense or, perhaps better still, a present perfect (proposizioni temporali al futuro).

      Although “how the future will be” is all right, I think it might be more typical for a native speaker to say, “what the future will be like”.

      Like

  9. what strange times those we’re livin’ in.I wonder what the future will be like when our sons have grown up

    Like

    1. Good Davide.

      Just two small points here. There’s no need for “those” in the first part, and I would use “children” in the second part because “sons” is specifically masculine in English. An alternative would be to say “sons and daughters”.

      Liked by 1 person

  10. Hi Tony, good morning!

    What strange times we live in. I wonder what the future will hold (will be) when our sons have grown up

    Like

    1. Nice, Gaetano. Just a couple of small points.

      The “hold” version is generally either used on its own or with a follow-up such as “will hold for him etc”. It doesn’t work very well followed by a second clause. “Will be” is more suitable here, but it needs “like” to complete the meaning.

      Personally, I would use the present continuous for the first verb to give that sense of “in this period”, but the present simple is also possible.

      Like

        1. Ok Tony:

          What strange times we are living in. I wonder the future will be when our children have grown up

          Like

            1. OK. The only thing that’s missing now is the article before “future”, but it’s obviously a “typo” as you used it previously! 🙂

              Like

  11. Che tempi strani quelli in cui viviamo. Mi chiedo come sarà il futuro quando i nostri figli saranno cresciuti.

    What strange times the ones we are living in/ getting through! I wonder how the future will be like when our children are grown up.

    Like

      1. What strange times we are living in! I wonder what the future will be when our children are grown up.

        Thanks

        Like

        1. Dani, you’ve changed “how” to “what”, but you’ve also eliminated “like” which is a necessary part of the “what…(to be)…like” construction!

          Like

          1. Yes, I did. I seeeeee… It’s like “what’s the weather like?” As usual, I make a mess.

            What strange times we are living in! I wonder what the future will be like when our children are grown up.

            Thanks again

            Liked by 1 person

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