Spanish - English translation

Question

I would like to ask your help to translate this Spanish saying into English:

Un vaso de agua no se le niega a nadie.

My attempt:

Nobody should deny a glass of water to a person.

Thanks in advance.

See my comment under bosque's. - Jubilado, Aug 28, 2015

Answer 1

Un vaso de agua no se le niega a nadie.

My attempt:

Nobody should deny a glass of water to a person.

Your English sounds excellent- I might be more likely to say "anyone" than "a person", but that is just the way I talk, the difficulty I have is that I do not have a good enough feel of Spanish to know if negar used like that (without deber) conveys the "should".

On my own I would have said (as I would not have read the obligation into it the way it is written):

No one is denied a glass of water or No one is refused a glass of water.

If "should" really is conveyed by the Spanish, I might say:

No one should be denied a glass of water.

Conceptually to me that says the same as what you wrote but I know that translation purists might say otherwise.

I agree with "Nobody is denied a glass of water" (This is something you might find in a café or restaurant.) - Daniela2041, Aug 28, 2015

Thanks, Daniela. :) - bosquederoble, Aug 28, 2015

I think "No one is refused a glass of water" is the best especially if it is some sort of personal or business policy . - Jubilado, Aug 28, 2015