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Glossary entry

French term or phrase:

pelle à verre

English translation:

glass spade/shovel

Added to glossary by Stephen Rifkind
Mar 18, 2010 06:25
14 yrs ago
French term

pelle à verre

French to English Art/Literary Cinema, Film, TV, Drama theatre/opera
Context: almost none. This is a prop to be entered into the Magic Flute opera. No picture, no context, no nothing.
Proposed translations (English)
3 glass spade/shovel
2 fiberglass shovel
Change log

Mar 18, 2010 13:00: Stéphanie Soudais changed "Term asked" from "pelle a verre" to "pelle à verre"

Discussion

Bourth (X) Mar 18, 2010:
Maybe it's for shovelling up leftovers from the manufacture of Cinderella's original souliers en vair. Or maybe it's cold up there on the stage and they need a pullover.
Alison Sabedoria (X) Mar 18, 2010:
Can you tell us what the overall setting is? Period costume. "modern office" setting, etc...? If set in a glassworks or recyling depot a glass shovel might make sense, but then wouldn't it be a cullet shovel? Oh well, never mind me... back to the drawing board! =[

Proposed translations

5 hrs
French term (edited): pelle a verre
Selected

glass spade/shovel

a shovel or spade made of glass
Peer comment(s):
neutral Tony M : Apart from the sheer impracticality of such a device, how can one explain the use of 'à' where one would more usually expect 'en', surely? Note it might be a 'pelle à tarte' — that I could imagine being made of glass (I've seen them made of china!
16 mins
Hi Tony, you have a point, but as it is a prop, does not have to be practical. I did a long search on "Magic Flute" props before I responded, and there is a wide range of strange items, depending on the production.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "I appreciate the effort. I still have no idea, but sometimes the "simple" answer is correct. "
7 hrs

fiberglass shovel

A fiberglass shovel might be safer as a prop than a metal shovel. I found one item that suggests that this might be what they are talking about.

http://www.fiskars.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisp...

Pelle Magic Garden Tête polyamide renforcé fibre de verre
Les outils pour enfants Fiskars Magic Garden sont résistants et sûrs pour ratisser, sarcler, cultiver comme les adultes. La panoplie complète de l'apprenti jardinier, Idéal pour jardiner comme des pros !
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