Thread: Help with an e-mail: English to Spanish

Originally Posted by qwertyuiopenri

Hey guys, I'm new and I've tried every machine online translation, but I really wanted a "real human" translation for this email I plan on sending to someone.
Thanks in advance!

here's the email

"Daniella, you are a wonderful girl, but I still have the sense that you feel uncomfortable spending time with me alone. I understand that this is all new for the both of us, but my main goal as a boyfriend right now is just to spend time with one and get to talk and hangout together. Just the two of us, I would love to hear your thoughts on what it means to be in a realtionship, and how it's been for the past week or so. I hope you understand this message. We could talk online, it's cool with me."

Daniella, eres una chica maravillosa, pero todavía tengo la sensación de que te sientes incómoda cuando estás sola conmigo. Entiendo que todo esto es nuevo para los dos, pero mi principal objetivo como tu amigo/novio en este momento es pasar el tiempo contigo y que hablemos y estemos juntos. Sólo tú y yo, me gustaría saber lo que significa para tí tener una relación, y cómo te has sentido en las últimas semanas. Espero entiendas este mensaje. Podríamos conversar online, está bien por mí.

I have doubts with the words in red. Isn't is "you" instead of "one"?

Note: talk online - conversar online is quite usual. You can also say "conectarnos y charlar a través de la computadora". That's the idea.

boyfriend: do you mean "amigo" (friend) or "novio" (that's a closer relationship)

Hope it helps!

"boyfriend: do you mean "amigo" (friend) or "novio" (that's a closer relationship)"

Hola Merce!!!

Your question brings up an interesting point in translations. I am sure you know this but this is one of the quirks in English.

"BOYfriend" almost ALWAYS means novio here in the U.S. The accent is on boy. If someone wants to use the same words to indicate that the person is just a friend they would probably say "a boy FRIEND" with an "a" in front, the two words separated, and emphasis on friend. There are many other ways to say that you have a male friend, of course, but boyfriend is pretty much reserved for somebody who is more than just a friend.

Strangely though, the word girlfriend is different. Females frequently refer to their female friends as girlfriends; however, a male would NEVER refer to another male as a boyfriend! (with obvious exceptions!! )

Originally Posted by lauracipolla

EXCELLENT EXPLANATION, VICENTE!!! wow! thanks.
So, is it safe to say that the use of "a" (indicating one of many) in the case of "just friends" would make it 100% clear? (well, unless of course you have many "significant others" -i.e., boyfriends). (BTW, I recently saw "significant other" translated as "significante otro"... AHHHHH )

laura

No Laura, I don't think it would. If you say "a boyfriend" it would be as you said...that you probably have significantes otros...jejeje. If you said "a boy FRIEND" they MIGHT get it but it is better to say "guy friend" or "male friend" or something like that in order to be 100% clear.

Let me put it this way: If you happen to be talking about me with your boyfriend please do not describe me as "a boyfriend". Call me a guy you know, a male acquaintance, a buddy, a dude, or anything else but not a boyfriend. I'm too young to die!!

I don't know if it is used much anymore but in earlier days a mature woman would refer to her "gentleman friend" which meant a man she was dating and was a more polite and dignified way of saying boyfriend.

hmmm... you made me think, vicente (great for you!). wouldn't this ambiguity be derived from some liberation "mania"... a way of avoiding "declaring" if a determined individual is one of your many friends (male or other), a traditional (old-fashioned) boyfriend (or gentleman friend) or one of them, or just a friend who has some special permits... or even if your friend is a boy, a man, a male, a "not-so-male" or "none-of-your-business"... sorry... I got philosophical and digressed... haha

Originally Posted by lauracipolla

hmmm... you made me think, vicente (great for you!). wouldn't this ambiguity derived from some liberation "mania"... a way of avoiding "declaring" if a determined individual is one of your many friends (male or other), a traditional (old-fashioned) boyfriend (or gentleman friend) or one of them, or just a friend who has some special permits... or even if your friend is a boy, a man, a male, a "not-so-male" or "none-of-your-business"... sorry... I got philosophical and digressed... haha

Well, as I said earlier, it's a quirk. Frankly, I have no idea how it got that way. I guess it's sort of like amigo in Spanish. If a girl says a guy is her amigo then one could think she means novio, right? So that prompts the question..."Do you mean you're going out with him or is he just a friend?"
So in order to avoid confusion maybe they just decided to let "boyfriend" equal "novio".

Another piece of romantic protocol: As you know, here a boyfriend/girlfriend is often referred to as one's "sweetheart". You can have several boyfriends but you can only have one sweetheart. That does not mean, however, that you cannot call each of your boyfriends "Sweetheart".