This site uses cookies. Some of these cookies are essential to the operation of the site, while others help to improve your experience by providing insights into how the site is being used. For more information, please see the ProZ.com privacy policy.
Cookie settings
DR
fixed fee at margins

Glossary entry

English term or phrase:

single largest

English answer:

largest ever

Added to glossary by Nikos Mastrakoulis
Dec 9, 2005 12:54
18 yrs ago
2 viewers *
English term

single

English Art/Literary Linguistics
This project is the single largest expedition that our organization has ever undertaken.


I'm proofreading a translation where the word "single" was translated literally. My question is: we often hear this and similar expressions "the single largest...", but does the word "single" actually mean anything here, or should it be dropped from the translation?

Merci!
Responses
4 +3 incomparably [used for emphasis]
4 +1 I don't like it myself
4 seem to be a well used phrase
4 (see below)
1 the only one

Discussion

Nesrin (asker) Dec 9, 2005:
Thank you very much, Nikos. My instinct was, like Robert, that it's useless, althought it did seem expressive. You hit the nail on the head though, and that's exactly what I've done in my Arabic translation (translated it as "the largest ever").

Responses

+3
6 mins
Selected

incomparably [used for emphasis]

'single' here is used for emphasis. It can be dropped from the translation if you provide that emphasis some other way, e.g. 'incomparably largest', 'largest ever' etc.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 34 mins (2005-12-09 13:29:02 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

To emphasize, I repeat: Strictly speaking, it can be dropped from the translation, *only* provided you provide the corresponding emphasis in some other way. I suppose the target language isn't English, is it?
Peer comment(s):
agree Peter Shortall
1 hr
Thank you!
agree Alfa Trans (X)
2 hrs
Thank you, Marju!
agree Romanian Translator (X)
2 days 22 hrs
Thank you, Awana!
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "thanks again!"
2 mins

seem to be a well used phrase

Results 1 - 30 of about 1,600,000 for "single largest"
Note from asker:
Yes airmailrpl, I understand that it is a widely used phrase. My question is: does it serve a function? Does it need to be translated?
Something went wrong...
3 mins

the only one

yes I think it emphasize on the uniqueness of the project.
Something went wrong...
5 mins

(see below)

In your example, it seems to be mere fluff, and should be dropped. In other instances, it might actually have meaning. It might, for example, distinguish a discrete episode or instance from an aggregate of such episodes or instance (e.g., "single largest mountain" versus "largest mountain range"; see reference).

Good luck.
Reference:

http://b4.boards2go.com/boards/board.cgi?&user=IMountains3

Something went wrong...
+1
7 mins

I don't like it myself

"Largest single" (3,160,000 Google hits) seems to make more sense to me.
Or if "single largest" means something different, could someone tell me what the difference is?
Peer comment(s):
neutral Nikos Mastrakoulis : Well, the "largest single person" on Earth, i.e. fat & unmarried, need not be the same as the "single largest person on Earth", i.e. incomparably fat :-) // Hope not, else it would be kind of discriminatory, wouldn't it? :-)
3 mins
Yes, you have a point there. But this is about a "single largest" expedition. The "largest single expedition" wouldn't be solely for the unmarried, would it?
agree fareedeh ghassemi (X)
5 hrs
Thank you.
Something went wrong...
Close search
Term search
  • All of ProZ.com
  • Term search
  • Jobs
  • Forums
  • Multiple search