English to Latin translation?

November 29, 2006 9:20 AM

Can anyone translate a phrase into Latin for me?

I'm making up a family-crest-like-thing that says on the top: " It could be worse ". Can anyone here put that in Latin for me?

even better if you can add " and has been " which I may put at the bottom.

posted by small_ruminant to writing & language (16 comments total)

if your desperate

http://www.translation-guide.com/free_online_translators.php?from=English&to=Latin

which translates your request to: is could exsisto peior

obviously not correct...but....with a bit of tinkering and research you could come up with something sorta correct...
posted by killyb at 11:07 AM on November 29, 2006

My attempt: Sit peior (et fuerat)

A more naturalistic word order:

peior sit et fuerat
posted by phoenixy at 11:18 AM on November 29, 2006

Thank you!

(I am afraid of the online translators.)
posted by small_ruminant at 12:21 PM on November 29, 2006

phoenixy, is it pronouced like it looks like it looks (to an American English speaker)?
posted by small_ruminant at 12:25 PM on November 29, 2006

Shouldn't that last word be fuit instead of fuerat? Present perfect instead of pluperfect? Or maybe that's no good because the translation would be ambiguous as either "was" or "has been."
posted by stopgap at 2:59 PM on November 29, 2006

My attempt: Sit peior (et fuerat)

I think that's wrong: I seem to recall the subjunctive is used to express wishes or desires, so this would mean "let it be worse".

My suggestion is that you use the verb posse 'to be able', so that you get something that literally translates as 'it is able to be worse': peior esse potest
posted by nomis at 3:39 PM on November 29, 2006

As for 'and has been', I'd say: et sic erat antea (literally 'and it was thus before')
posted by nomis at 3:41 PM on November 29, 2006

hmm. now I'm not sure which.
posted by small_ruminant at 3:43 PM on November 29, 2006

I think nomis has it; that phrase can translate more loosely as "it is possible for it to be worse."
posted by FelliniBlank at 5:10 PM on November 29, 2006

You may want to watch the gender: peius is the neuter form (for "it could be worse") whereas peior indicates he/she could be worse. I would also omit the esse for just peius potest... mottos should go for simplicity, IMO.

"(And has been)" I'd do as "(fuitque)" -- the -que being a more graceful form of et.
posted by Xelf at 5:42 PM on November 29, 2006

Yeah, I wondered about the gender Xelf. I kind of took peior to be referring to an understood noun like vita 'life', but I think neuter peius is actually better.
posted by nomis at 7:01 PM on November 29, 2006

I was going for a contrary-to-fact subjunctive, but nomis's translation sounds better anyway (and is definitely right on the aspect thing--I was wrong there with the pluperfect, although imperfect would probably work too).
posted by phoenixy at 7:14 PM on November 29, 2006

thank you so much! I think I'll go with Xelf's since it's for a motto- nice and succint. But thanks to all of you.
posted by small_ruminant at 10:38 PM on November 29, 2006

succinct, I meant
posted by small_ruminant at 10:41 PM on November 29, 2006

None of these suggestions is quite right.

The first problem is that 'peius' usually means morally worse. The second problem is that it is being used here as a comparative adjective without any clear indication of what it refers to (i.e. you are saying 'it could be worse', but 'it' could be anything -- a house, a dog, a tree). What you actually mean, of course, is 'things could be worse' -- for which it would be more natural to say 'in peius' (as in Virgil, 'sic omnia fatis in peius ruere', 'everything gets worse') rather than using 'peius' on its own. So 'peius potest (fuitque)', if it means anything, would mean 'this thing is capable of getting more corrupt (and has been more corrupt)'. Which is not really what you mean.

One possible alternative would be 'in deterius cadere potest, et olim cecidimus' (literally, 'it is possible to fall into worse trouble, and in the past we have fallen'), which is a bit clunky but does get closer to your intended meaning.
posted by verstegan at 3:43 AM on November 30, 2006

okay. thanks. I'm glad I checked back in. I used to translate things (but not to or from Latin) so I know how many nuances you have to take into consideration for these things. Thank you.
posted by small_ruminant at 7:52 AM on November 30, 2006