La voz passiva-- ¿Cómo se dice "it must be done right"?
The sentence I am attempting to translate is as follows:
"When working on a high-visibility contract that must be done right, it is usually necessary to spend extra time."
I'm mainly running into trouble with the phrase "must be done right." On the translate function, I got "debe ser hecho bien." Is this correct? How do you typically construct passive phrases in Spanish when using a helping verb, such as "may" or "can"?
This is my translation of the sentence. Please let me know if you spot any other errors.
**
Cuando está trabajando en un contracto de visibilidad alta que debe ser hecho bien, es usualmente necesario que pasar tiempo adicional. **
19 Answers
This:
"Cuando está trabajando en un contracto de alta visibilidad"
is not the translation of this:
"When working on a high-visibility contract".
Because, "When working", does not indicate who.
"Cuando está trabajando", can only be said when we know WHO is working.
You need, "se" if you are going to translate it that way (so literally) but, as my solution suggests, you can avoid this altogether.
I just didn't understand how it could ever come out right with such a start.
Normalmente hay que dedicarle más tiempo a un contrato de alta visibilidad ya que tiene que quedar muy bien hecho.
"Cuando **se **está trabajando en un contrato de alta visibilidad que se debe hacer bien, normalmente es necesario **dedicar **tiempo extra".
Bien, 'normalmente' es una opción, al igual que 'extra'.
Gracias,
Bueno, otra mejora aún.
Estoy de acuerdo con el "**se **está trabajando", y con el **dedicar **.
Aquél lo hace más general/menos personal, y éste, más formal/profesional.
Good, another improvement yet.
I am in agreement with "**se **está trabajando", and with **dedicar **.
The former makes it more general/less personal, and the latter, more formal/professional.
'When working on a high-visibility contract that must be done right, it is usually necessary to spend extra time.?
I would translate that sentence like this:
"Cuando **se **está trabajando en un contrato de alta visibilidad que se debe hacer bien, normalmente es necesario **dedicar **tiempo extra".
Bien, 'normalmente' es una opción, al igual que 'extra'.
Gracias,
By the way, did you see my comment on "dispuesto"?
Do you mean, on my "disponible" thread?
Yes, and I have thought about copying it to hand out if I am ever asked to teach a Spanish class again. It sounds "textbook" to me! Very well put. Copyright permission ... '?
I am working on a transcription/critical translation--"critical" meaning that I have to critique the Spanish of the speakers--and I prefer to verify before I note something as being incorrect. Hence, the "disponible" question, as well as most of my questions since joining this forum.
My lighthearted reference was really to Heitor's comment in my 'Hacer de baño? thread, that you sometimes come off as a bit smug, as well as Heidita's & Robert Austin's comments about being taken as rude (bottom of pg. 1). The comment of yours that I thought could be a little terse was the one on "segurazón" (just the "desde luego" part). At first I said, "Ouch," but then I remembered that it was not my word, and that I was just checking before I slapped the guy who said it.
I would just say "se debe estar hecho verdad."
Unfortunately, that wouldn't be correct; it is a rather literal translation, using the wrong verb (it should be "ser", not "estar"), and the wrong translation for "right" ("verdad" means "truth", not "correct"). However, you can say "Se debe hacer bien/correctamente".
I would just say "se debe estar hecho verdad."
I defer to you, Lazarus. I have assumed that you are a native Spanish speaker, and in my short time on this forum I have come to respect your opinions, however blunt and "unfriendly" they may come across (to tie in to a previous thread). No, I really don't think that--just acknowledging your comment on the other thread.
Your Spanish appears to be better than many natives I've come across, which is why I didn't correct you, and I simply pointed out that I would have said it differently. Maybe we just have different preferences when it comes to speak Spanish, that's all.
By the way, did you see my comment on "dispuesto"'
tiene que ser hecho bien Other possibilities for the passive that sound more awkward would be things like ...
"que se tiene que hacer bien"
"que debe hacerse correctamente"
Strange, those two sentences sound perfectly natural to me. It is "tiene que ser hecho bien" the only one that I don't like. I know it is totally correct, and it is used in written Spanish, but among all the acceptable options, it is the last one I'd chose.
I defer to you, Lazarus. I have assumed that you are a native Spanish speaker, and in my short time on this forum I have come to respect your opinions, however blunt and "unfriendly" they may come across (to tie in to a previous thread). No, I really don't think that--just acknowledging your comment on the other thread.
Cuando está trabajando en un contracto de visibilidad alta hay que hacerlo correctamente, es usualmente necesario que pasar tiempo adicional.
This is a run-on sentence that would translate something like ...
"When working on a high-visibility contract it has to be done right, it is usually necessary to spend more time."
The problem is the adjective phrase "that has to be done right." Since it is a subordinate clause, you have to introduce it with "que" (that) or "[comma] el cual tiene que ..." (which ...). The latter really calls more attention to this qualification, in a way distinguishing the high-visibility contracts that have to be done right from those that do not. But I doubt anyone would come away from it with that understanding.
Also, I would recommend placing "alta" before "visibilidad", and "usualmente" before "es"; these sound less awkward to me.
tiene que ser hecho bien Other possibilities for the passive that sound more awkward would be things like ...
"que se tiene que hacer bien"
"que debe hacerse correctamente"
Strange, those two sentences sound perfectly natural to me. It is "tiene que ser hecho bien" the only one that I don't like. I know it is totally correct, and it is used in written Spanish, but among all the acceptable options, it is the last one I'd chose.
¡Muchas gracias, Hhmdirocco y Lazarus! I appreciate the help!
'When working on a high-visibility contract that must be done right, it is usually necessary to spend extra time.?
The word that introduces an adjective phrase, of which the word that (which can also be interchanged with which) is the subject. This adjective phrase describes the noun contract.
My suggestion would be:
'Cuando está trabajando en un contrato de alta visibilidad que tiene que ser hecho bien [o correctamente], usualmente es necesario tomar tiempo adicional.?
You could also say, "debe ser hecho bien", but in my opinion, "tiene que" carries more force, since we assume that all work "should" be done well, which is one translation of the verb deber (another of which is, of course, "must").
Other possibilities for the passive that sound more awkward would be things like ...
"que se tiene que hacer bien"
"que debe hacerse correctamente"
I would use "tomar tiempo" instead of "pasar tiempo", because special jobs call for one to "take" more time with them, and not just "spend" more time (which could be spent doing nothing, as I have heard the expression "pasar tiempo" sometimes refer, however incorrectly, to wasting or killing time). These differences are more or less subtle, so I defer to the native speakers/experts in this forum to fine tune your translation.
I wish you well.
How does this literally translate into English, "a job that there is which to do well"?
Mmmmm... literally it can't really be done, but "would be "a job that there is to do correctly". "Hay que..." can be translated as "... has to be done" or "One has to...".
By the way, check the previous posts, as I keep changing my mind (bad habit!) while others are typing their answers.
Thanks!
How does this literally translate into English, "a job that there is which to do well"? I suppose it has always been my problem to look at my Spanish in terms of what makes sense in English, since I have only been studying the language for three years. Is this a typical construction for phrases of that sort?
And an example of a "high-visibility" job that this sentence refers to could be an important contract, i.e. analyzing a part which caused the failure of a satellite launch, trying to determine the cause of a plane crash, etc.
