Glossary entry (derived from question below)
French term or phrase:
grandes qualités de sérieux
English translation:
great/remarkable conscientiousness
French term
Canada
International Multicultural Diversified
Native in: English (Variants: Australian, Canadian, New Zealand, British, UK, US) 
Works in: French to English
grandes qualités de sérieux
I am translating a reference letter for Australia and I am stumped on how to translate "grande qualités de sérieux"
The whole sentence is "Il a témoigné par ailleurs de grandes qualités de sérieux, d'abnégation, de fiabilité et d'esprit d'équipe"
Any suggestions?
Thanks
Jun 28, 2023 19:52: Yolanda Broad changed "Term asked" from "grande qualités de sérieux" to "grandes qualités de sérieux"
Proposed translations
great/remarkable conscientiousness
https://www.thomas.co/resources/type/hr-blog/conscientiousne...
| agree |
Carol Gullidge
1 hr
|
| agree |
Jessica Noyes
: I like "remarkable" here as well
4 hrs
|
| agree |
AllegroTrans
12 hrs
|
| agree |
abe(L)solano
14 hrs
|
India
- Because every word matters
Native in: English (Variants: Australian, French, Wales / Welsh, Singaporean, British, New Zealand, Scottish, South African, US South, Canadian, UK, Irish, Indian, Jamaican, US) , French
Works in: German to Italian, French to German
demonstrated a high level of seriousness
| agree |
Yolanda Broad
11 mins
|
| neutral |
Janice Giffin
: Good, but a bit wordy
58 mins
|
| neutral |
Carol Gullidge
: Sorry, but I can’t take the word “seriousness “ seriously in this context! It somehow doesn’t sound professional or precise
2 hrs
|
| disagree |
AllegroTrans
: Agree with Carol, it's effectively a false friend
13 hrs
|
| disagree |
Lara Barnett
: Exactly - false friend and not idiomatic to English usage.
2 days 22 hrs
|
Morocco
Literature,Marketing & Legal Translation
Native in: Arabic (Variants: Najdi, Standard-Arabian (MSA), Hassaniya, Moroccan, UAE, Kuwaiti) 
, Berber (Other) (Variants: Riffian, Central Atlas Tamazight, Tamazight , Standard Moroccan Tamazight, Tarifit , Tashelhit )
Works in: English to Arabic, French to Arabic, Arabic to English, and 21 more.
remarkable seriousness
| neutral |
Carol Gullidge
: Same comment as above. I can’t take the word “seriousness “ seriously!
2 hrs
|
|
You're right. It is probably "remarkable depth"
|
|
| disagree |
AllegroTrans
: Agree with Carol, it's effectively a false friend; and definitely not "depth"
13 hrs
|
| disagree |
Lara Barnett
: Not idiomatic and not used, especially in this context.
2 days 22 hrs
|
Italy
Accuracy, reliability and timeliness
Native in: English
Works in: Italian to English, Spanish to English
showed great diligence
She showed great motivation, maturity and commitment in assigned activities.....
https://inkforall.com/hey-ink-tool/write-a-good-reference/tips-for-writing-a-visa-reference-letter/
| agree |
Carol Gullidge
: I like diligence, although it fails to appear in your example sentence!
1 hr
|
|
That's true, but I found other words instead of 'seriousness', including commitment. I think both diligence and commitment express the intention of 'sérieux'.
|
|
| neutral |
Daryo
: "Reference letters should always be concise"- says who??? What makes you think you should rewrite a text to suit your personal style guide?
3 hrs
|
|
Oh my! I based my proposed answer on my experience translating reference letters for university professors on behalf of their students.
|
|
| agree |
Victoria Faucher
8 hrs
|
|
Thanks!
|
|
| agree |
Lara Barnett
: Absolutely agree about concise style, which is standard and not personal as suggested above.
2 days 20 hrs
|
|
Thank you!
|
Accurate, professional translations
Native in: English , Italian
Works in: Italian to English, French to English
very earnest
or something along these lines
Austria
Retd.T&I, Barrister & Austro-Advokat
Native in: English (Variants: Scottish, British)
Works in: Spanish to English, English to Spanish, French to English, and 5 more.
impressive bona fides
Il a témoigné par ailleurs de grandes qualités de sérieux : Otherwise, he bore witness to great bona fides
bona fides in American English ... 1. good faith; honesty, sincerity, reliability, etc. 2. proof or proofs of *honesty*, genuineness, etc.
Bona fides means ....*honest* and fair in their dealings, especially when making contracts or agreements. This term comes from Roman law and is still used today to describe someone's trustworthiness and credibility.
| neutral |
AllegroTrans
: Ah yes. Latin. Roman law. Contracts and agreements. There is no other world out there.
4 hrs
|
highly professional attitude
But I think that in a professional/HR context sérieux corresponds pretty closely to "professional attitude", and this would be a very common expression, as is le/du sérieux in a French HR context.
"Abnégation" is the other tricky one in your list. "Great dedication" might possibly work for this: I don't see abnégation as literally "denying oneself (for the benefit of others)", but "dedication" implies beavering away in the background, possibly with not much thought for one's own glory.
| neutral |
AllegroTrans
: I think "professional attitude" strays too far from "conscentious(ness)" and for all we know, this could be about a student
4 hrs
|
|
We need more context, that's true. I read this and thought "Pure HR-speak", though. In which case "professional attitude" is *exactly* what it means.
|
Cameroon
translator and transcriber / 5years exp
Native in: French , English
Works in: English to French, French to English
outstanding commitment,
he shows an outstanding commtment while working in this company.
Discussion