Ci-joint
By Céline Graciet,
Brighton, UNITED KINGDOM
www.nakedtranslations.com
Get the List of 5,400+ Translation Agencies Now!
No Recurring Membership Fees!
Cliquez
ici pour voir ce version en Français
 I've
always been puzzled by the use of the expression "ci-joint"
(enclosed, as in "please find enclosed…")
in French; does it need to agree with the noun it
is linked to or not? Checking again today, I realised
that I've seen it used in different ways because its
use isn't fixed when it is in the middle of a sentence.
The general rule is:
It is invariable when it has an adverbial
value :
- at the beginning of a sentence
: ci-joint les factures… (please find enclosed
the bills…)
- in the middle of a sentence, immediately
followed by a noun : vous trouverez ci-joint
factures…
It agrees with the noun when:
- it is placed straight after the
noun and has the value of an attribute: les factures
ci-jointes…
- it is an attribute of the subject
: les factures sont ci-jointes…
In all other cases, it is up to
the writer to decide whether it should agree or not.
The Académie
française website gives interesting
examples of the stylistic choices made by famous French
authors :
Bernanos : "Vous trouverez ci-joint
les pages dactylographiées de mon roman"
(Please find enclosed the typed pages of my novel)
NO AGREEMENT
Hugo : "Je vous envoie ci-incluses
des paroles prononcées ici par moi au moment
de la proscription" (please find enclosed
the words I pronounced during the ban) AGREEMENT
Musset : "Je prends la liberté
de vous envoyer ci-jointes des rillettes"
(Please find enclosed some rillettes, which I've taken
the liberty to send you) AGREEMENT
The
article was originally published at: http://www.nakedtranslations.com/en/2005/05/000397.php
Read
more articles - Free!
E-mail
this article to your colleague!
Need
more translation jobs? Click here!
Translation
agencies are welcome to register here - Free!
Freelance
translators are welcome to register here - Free!
Subscribe
to TranslationDirectory.com newsletter - Free!
Take
part in TranslationDirectory.com poll - your voice counts!
|
