French term
France
The Human Translator
Native in: English
Works in: French to English, Russian to English, Spanish to English, and 2 more.
Tant bien sans faux.
Pourquoi parlait-elle doucement
Pourquoi ses lèvres peintes l’empêchaient-elles de vous embrasser sur la joue
Tant de questions qui restaient sans réponses,
Tant bien sans faux.
| (tant) bien s'en faut |
Aude Sylvain
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Non-PRO (1): Rob Grayson
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Proposed translations
so many (questions) to which there are no wrong answers
I really have no clue...just a guess...
I hope this helps.
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Note added at 2 hrs (2010-02-11 16:51:03 GMT)
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tant bien de questions = so many questions
sans faux = sans fausses réponses possibles?
France
Tempus fugit sic carpe diem
Native in: French
Works in: French to English, English to French
(really)far from it
were likely to remain that way
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Note added at 40 mins (2010-02-11 15:10:36 GMT)
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Oops! Just noticed that there was a 'to' missing from my explanation. Should read: So many questions that were left unanswered and, so it seemed, were likely TO remain that way.
Belize
Near Native Proficiency in Source langua
Native in: English
Works in: Portuguese to English, Dutch to English, French to English
as well as undeniable
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Note added at 1 hr (2010-02-11 15:58:32 GMT)
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I guess what I was trying to say is "so many unanswered questions -not to be ignored - Sans faux: faultless, blameless, undeniably true, etc.
or: as well as undeniable true
| Geez this is fun !! Verginia, you have me puzzled. "So many questions unanswered - as well as undeniable" |
So pretty without fake
| disagree |
Chris Hall
: Sorry, but this does not mean anything in English. Our job as translators is to make it mean something.
8 hrs
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Non plus en français !
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Nowhere near to be answered
United Kingdom
Regained in translation
Native in: English (Variants: British, US) 
Works in: Italian to English, French to English
So clear from it.
So clear from it.
I'm convinced this is indeed a play on "bien s'en faut" ("far from it", as Rob says), but it's not so obvious what meaning to attribute to the actual words "sans faux". If we interpret it as something like "and there's no falseness in that", i.e. "that's undeniable", then I think this line could work: the "So clear", short for "That's very clear", merged with "clear from it", a variation on "far from it". This also conveniently preserves the same rhythm as the French, with four monosyllabic words.
Reference comments
France
Also a senior lawyer - 12 years in IP
Native in: French 
Works in: English to French, French
(tant) bien s'en faut
http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=793915
http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=884128
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Note added at 8 mins (2010-02-11 14:38:32 GMT)
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see also
CNRTL http://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/falloir :
− Absol. Il s'en faut. Loin de là. Mais je ne sais pas l'arabe assez bien pour cela, il s'en faut (Gobineau, Corresp. [avec Tocqueville], 1859, p. 302). Elle n'est pas la plus laide, il s'en faut (Colette, Naiss. jour, 1928, p. 25) :
(...)
− Absolument
α) Peu s'en faut. Presque. Il a fini son travail ou peu s'en faut (Ac. 1878-1932).
β) Tant s'en faut. Loin de là, bien au contraire. Bien que M. et Mme De Cambremer ne fussent plus, tant s'en fallait, de la première jeunesse (Proust, Sodome, 1922, p. 1087)
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Note added at 15 mins (2010-02-11 14:45:59 GMT)
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I think an English translation could be "far from that".
In your text:
so many of questions remain unanswered,
and the narrator is (really) far from getting answers to all these questions (= a *very important* number of Q got no reply)
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Note added at 17 mins (2010-02-11 14:47:24 GMT)
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The above is an explanation, not a proposed translation (it's ugly!).
I am going to try to find a better translation in Eng!
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Note added at 29 mins (2010-02-11 14:59:31 GMT)
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Well I was a bit puzzled by the spelling in fact... Or it's a play on words and I'm missing something.
I'm not on FB (any longer), I saw several namesakes there but it's not me!
| Nice work Aude, can you tell me what it means? |
| OK I've got it. Still a bit puzzled in this context, but the writer's style is full of oblique twists. BTW couldn't find you on Facebook :( |
| Rob: not by a long chalk (?) |
| agree |
Rob Grayson
: œuf corse // The sense is "far from it" or "not by a long way" – finding a suitable equivalent to follow "so many unanswered questions" is a challenge!
12 mins
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thank you Rob. "far from that" is really ugly in that context though... what would be the correct Eng wording? / thank you, yes it is!
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| agree |
Philippa Smith
: You'd have to get right away from the French, maybe something like "The truth so hard to find"...
29 mins
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thank you Philippa - I like this one
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