Glossary entry (derived from question below)
French term or phrase:
il faudra le recul du temps
English translation:
only time will tell
Added to glossary by
Andy Tolle
Aug 2, 2009 17:25
14 yrs ago
1 viewer *
French term
Belgium
Works in: French to English
il faudra le recul du temps
French to English
Science
Esoteric practices
The writer talks about a certain discovery he has done and the coincidences that were needed to make this discovery. He explains how many mayor discoveries, like the one of radioactivity (discovered by Becquerel: he noticed a piece of uranium ore, accidentally placed on a photographic paper that was forgotten in a drawer) needed many coincidences to see the light.
A piece of the text:
Or, j'estime - et il faudra le recul du temps pour pouvoir porter un jugement sur cette affirmation - j'estime avoir bénéficié d'un hasard au moins aussi important que celui dont le tiroir de Becquerel a été le théâtre.
A piece of the text:
Or, j'estime - et il faudra le recul du temps pour pouvoir porter un jugement sur cette affirmation - j'estime avoir bénéficié d'un hasard au moins aussi important que celui dont le tiroir de Becquerel a été le théâtre.
Proposed translations
+9
1 hr
Selected
only time will tell
… whether I was right.
3 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "I agree with Tony's opinion here: when I saw this translation I felt a sense of "that's it".
Thanks for all the suggestions. I appreciate it."
8 mins
Estelle Demontrond-Box
Australia
Australia
Native in French
Australia
Qualified Translator & Published Writer
Native in: French (Variant: Standard-France)
Works in: English to French, French to English, French
when some time has elapsed, one can judge
or
It will be some time before...
It will be some time before...
+1
19 mins
Marco Solinas
Native in English
Accurate, professional translations
Native in: English 
, Italian
Works in: Italian to English, French to English
Related KudoZ points
:
4
only from the perspective of time
"..., and only from the perspective of time will it be possible to assess this statement,..."
2 hrs
You will need to let time go by and then...
Hello,
Avec le recul (du temps) = you gain perspective from letting time go by. The "temps" is sometimes not said.
I hope this helps.
Avec le recul (du temps) = you gain perspective from letting time go by. The "temps" is sometimes not said.
I hope this helps.
48 mins
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
Native in English
Psychologist, Court-certified legal
Native in: English 
Works in: French to English
Related KudoZ points
:
2
with a little hindsight...
*
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Note added at 55 mins (2009-08-02 18:21:19 GMT)
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Or, j'estime - et il faudra le recul du temps pour pouvoir porter un jugement sur cette affirmation - j'estime avoir bénéficié d'un hasard au moins aussi important que celui dont le tiroir de Becquerel a été le théâtre.
With a little hindsight, I reckon that I was (have been) every bit as fortunate as Becquerel was with the drawer.
When I think about it, I reckon that sheer luck has had as much to do with it as the drawer did for Becquerel.
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Note added at 7 hrs (2009-08-03 00:25:49 GMT)
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A little hindsight will be necessary, but I reckon that chance has played just as important a role for me as as it was for Becquerel.
OR (present tense in the first part, with future rendering in the second part, thus )
With the benefit of hindsight, it may turn out that in much the same way as the drawer came into play for Becquerel, chance will have had a lot to do with this!
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Note added at 55 mins (2009-08-02 18:21:19 GMT)
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Or, j'estime - et il faudra le recul du temps pour pouvoir porter un jugement sur cette affirmation - j'estime avoir bénéficié d'un hasard au moins aussi important que celui dont le tiroir de Becquerel a été le théâtre.
With a little hindsight, I reckon that I was (have been) every bit as fortunate as Becquerel was with the drawer.
When I think about it, I reckon that sheer luck has had as much to do with it as the drawer did for Becquerel.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 7 hrs (2009-08-03 00:25:49 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
A little hindsight will be necessary, but I reckon that chance has played just as important a role for me as as it was for Becquerel.
OR (present tense in the first part, with future rendering in the second part, thus )
With the benefit of hindsight, it may turn out that in much the same way as the drawer came into play for Becquerel, chance will have had a lot to do with this!
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
Tony M
: OK — though I still don't feel 'hindsight' is quite the best idea here; to me it always conveys the idea of "if only I'd known that...", which I think is a little different from "standing back and taking the long view of things"
2 hrs
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The original is in the future, yes, and my suggested renderings need tweaking for that. However, "with the benefit of hindsight" can be used. See new suggestions.
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