https://www.proz.com/kudoz/spanish-to-english/poetry-literature/7022333-no-estoy-manca.html
Nov 24, 2021 08:16
2 yrs ago
43 viewers *
Spanish term

no estoy manca

Spanish to English Art/Literary Poetry & Literature Conversación
No me amenaces, ten cuidado, porque no estoy manca.

Gracias por su ayuda.

Discussion

Matthew McDonald Nov 24, 2021:
Interesting example, Luis Luis, I read the example you gave containing "ni que estuviera manco." What that seems to mean to me is that the boxer is saying "even if I only had one arm, I could still beat the other guy up" (this is a rough paraphrase, not an exact translation). Anyway, I think the original sense of the translation means something similar (although as others have pointed out, there isn't necessarily a lot of contextual info). Also, regarding the political correctness of the phrase, it's clearly non-PC in English to say something along the lines of what the boxer said, but it would be good to keep in mind the aim of the text so as not to remove something just for its potential to offend someone.
Luis Rey Ballesteros (Luiroi) (asker) Nov 24, 2021:
Simone and Cecilia: se trata de una discusión entre dos mujeres. Se insultan y amenazan. Muchas veces la frase aparece en el habla general como "ni que estuviera manco", en el sentido de que si alguien se atreve a atacar a X persona, se va a llevar una desagradable sorpresa, pues X no es presa fácil. Obra a manera de advertencia. Muchas gracias por el comentario sobre la cuestión de lo políticamente correcto. Adjunto un ejemplo boxístico:🥊 En ese sentido va... https://www.esto.com.mx/278256-nery-saguilan-confiado-en-ven...
Simone Taylor Nov 24, 2021:
I mentioned PC because one could be a Paralympic champion and have one or no hands, so this expression is considered a prejudice nowadays. I prefer the second suggestion. I can defend myself.
Cecilia Gowar Nov 24, 2021:
I agree with Simone, and not because of the PC factor. Although I believe Neil's suggestion is good, more context is needed.
Simone Taylor Nov 24, 2021:
More context? Can you give us more context, please? We are in dangerous territory here of being politically incorrect.

Proposed translations

+4
9 mins
Selected

I have two hands

Because "manco" means one-armed, and the speaker is warning a potential aggressor that they are fit and ready to take them on, so you want something along the lines of "'I've got both my arms/ I have two hands"... etc.

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Note added at 11 mins (2021-11-24 08:27:27 GMT)
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You might also consider less literal options along the lines of "I can defend myself"...

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Note added at 3 hrs (2021-11-24 12:00:26 GMT)
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PS: I hadn't considered that "I have two arms/both hands" might be considered non-PC or offensive in some way, but nowadays we have to tread carefully. I prefer the nonliteral option myself, as the others feel a wee bit strange.


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Note added at 9 hrs (2021-11-24 17:45:13 GMT)
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NB: When I say "something along the lines of" I mean something similar. There are lots of ways we can express the notion, but I think it will be difficult to find the "Goldilocks" solution.

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Note added at 9 hrs (2021-11-24 17:52:20 GMT)
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Google Transate offers a literal translation: "Don’t threaten me, be careful, because I’m not one-armed."
I might say: "Don't threaten me; you better watch out, because I can take care of myself."... "...you might get a surprise"… "you're cruisin' for a bruisin'... "...I'm no pushover", etc.
Peer comment(s):

agree Simone Taylor : Agree to I can defend myself, and nowadays it is best to stay away from anything that might be seen as prejudice or non-politically correct.
18 mins
"I can defend myself" also sounds less odd...
agree Toni Castano
20 mins
agree Cecilia Gowar
1 hr
agree Marouchka Heijnen
1 hr
neutral philgoddard : I just don't think either of these sounds very natural.
4 hrs
How about "You'll get a slap/You're cruisin' for a bruisin', then? And which part of "along the lines of" did you fail to grasp?
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Selected automatically based on peer agreement."
5 hrs

because I have two/a couple of strong arms

Another possibility.

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Note added at 5 hrs (2021-11-24 13:26:54 GMT)
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In other words, if you threaten me, I'll strike back.
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5 hrs

I'm not stupid/you'll regret it/I'll hurt you

We have very meagre context, so we don't know what's happening or whether she's threatening physical violence. But you need something that sounds like realistic dialogue, something a person would actually say.

As Jane's helpful reference shows, this doesn't literally mean "I have two arms". The idea here is "there's more to me than meets the eye".
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1 day 5 hrs

I have two strong fists

"No me amenaces, ten cuidado, porque no estoy manca"

Propuesta politicamente correcta

[Don´t threaten me, beware because I can fight you back], I have two strong fists
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Reference comments

43 mins
Reference:

https://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=man...


Compound Forms:
manco | mancar
Spanish English
no ser manco,
no ser cojo ni manco loc verb coloquial (tener experiencia) (slang) be no slouch v expr
be no dummy v expr
be pretty sharp v expr
be no-one´s fool v expr
Ese obrero no es manco: estoy seguro de que va a hacer un muy buen trabajo.
That workman is no slouch: I'm sure he'll do a great job.
Peer comments on this reference comment:

agree neilmac
2 hrs
agree philgoddard
4 hrs
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