English to Latin translation

April 17, 2014 4:14 PM

What is "The storm cannot be stopped; but it can be survived" in Latin?
posted by cake vandal to Writing & Language (6 answers total)

Maybe -- Tempestātem tacēre non pote, sed sustinere pote.

To still the storm is not possible, but to endure it is possible.
posted by empath at 8:14 PM on April 17, 2014

Something like that.. i probably have the cases wrong.
posted by empath at 8:15 PM on April 17, 2014

Hmm, I'll take a stab

Tempestas non reicietur, sed obduretur.

Which literally translates to "The storm will not be stopped*, but it might be endured."

*This verb, reicio, is apparently in nautical usage to refer to ships being buffeted by storms, so it felt poetically appropriate from other synonyms.

Granted, it doesn't have the sense of power/agency in your request. I may return after more thought.
posted by Maecenas at 8:17 PM on April 17, 2014

How about:

Tempestas non tranquillari potest, sed transiri.

Literally: "A/The storm cannot be calmed, but it can be passed through."

Or: Tempestas non tranquillanda sed transeunda.

"A/The storm is not to be calmed, but passed through."

(I like the previous commenters' versions too, except that I don't think tacēre can be used in this sense of "stilling" something.)
posted by zeri at 8:59 PM on April 17, 2014

I'd go for gerunds, something like;

Superandam, non desinendam, est procellam

but my Latin is very creaky so caveat emptor et hoc genus omne.
posted by Segundus at 10:21 AM on April 18, 2014

Gratias!
posted by cake vandal at 4:21 PM on April 21, 2014