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Glossary entry

Romanian term or phrase:

a saruta apăsat

English translation:

His kiss was pressing

Added to glossary by Lara Barnett
Jun 1, 2013 07:43
11 yrs ago
Romanian term

a saruta apăsat

Romanian to English Other Poetry & Literature
El o saruta apăsat si oarecum brutal.
Proposed translations (English)
4 +1 His kiss was pressing
4 +2 to kiss hard
Change log

Jun 5, 2013 19:17: Lara Barnett Created KOG entry

Discussion

Lara Barnett Jun 4, 2013:
@theLeguma FOllowing your forum post about how urgent and insistent a "pressing kiss" is, does this pressing kiss sound "urgent" or "insistent"?

"Suddenly, his hands grasp my face, and his mouth drops to mine in a SOFT, PRESSING KISS. He lingers, and before he can pull away fully, I kiss him back. The gears that turn the world click back into place. I feel my body relax because this, right here, is where I'm meant to be."
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8534317/17/Yosemite-Decimal

I don't think so!
Lara Barnett Jun 4, 2013:
@ theLeguma If this is your opinion that is fine. But please note that I am also a native UK English speaker, a professional translator and know this term well. And this term does not necessarily mean "insistent" when used to describe a kiss.
I suggested that you (or whoever) uses the Proz English forum. Instead you have gone to a non-accredited forum where users credentials are not checked.
Not a problem at all. I have better things to do.
In the meantime, pressing may not be the correct term, but I suggested searching on the validity of this as an English adjective. It has taken 38 postings to actually convince at least one person that the term, which may possibly be a bit strong for the context, exists at all. "Pressing" is often used to expressing insistence and force, but when describing a kiss, can also imply other motives or emotions. Please note one of the original quotes in my answer: "The kiss was pressing, but tender. Roy forgot everything through the kiss,... "http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8624413/5/Burn-Baby-Burn
That is all I have said.
Svetlana Virjnevschi Jun 4, 2013:
@Lara I have to say I am also not quite happy with "pressing" in this example, as many on this forum are, but after all it's up to the Asker to decide what fits the context best :)
Lara Barnett Jun 4, 2013:
@ Svetlana Your example is possible but has the same meaning as saying "his kiss was pressing" and most people on this discussion forum do not seem happy with that.
With regard to using "rough" as an adverb. As a native English speaker I can assure you that this is not correct in this case and has a very specific usage in the example given.
Svetlana Virjnevschi Jun 4, 2013:
@Lara I agree with you on "rough/-ly", my first instinct was to use it as an adverb too, but then it would not have sounded so well (btw, "rough" can be also used as an adverb acc. to http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/rough_13)
Perhaps "his kiss was firm/strong and rather/somewhat harsh/brutal"?
Lara Barnett Jun 3, 2013:
@ Svetlana That could work, but I find the complete combination rather confusing. To kiss "firmly" would mean that he kissed her in a positive and reassuring way, yet to kiss in a "rough" way has a very negative nuance. But bear in mind that "rough" is an adjective and cannot really qualify a verb (to kiss). You would need an adverb for this, and would need to say "kiss her roughly" which does not flow very well in English. And yet on the other hand, this would almost be the same as saying "his kiss was pressing", which most other people in this discussion do not agree is correct.
Svetlana Virjnevschi Jun 3, 2013:
How about "he kissed her firmly"? ...(and rather rough)
Lara Barnett Jun 3, 2013:
"His kiss was strong" How about his? Although in English this has the same sense of "pressing kiss". I do believe that as non native speakers it is easy to read too much into the word "Pressing" and to devise other meanings out of it.
I do not take offence, but I believe that more care should be given to the usage of the English language by non native speakers, and to the fact that our own nuances, and literal vs figurative uses, will never be the same as the language of another country.
However, to re-iterate the fact, there is not much difference to an English person with "strong kiss" or "pressing kiss", and neither term implies any sort of displeasure, force, harshness, or violence - as suggested by ION.
Lara Barnett Jun 3, 2013:
@ theLeguma I was not suggesting that the kiss was "urgent, important, forceful" . I was giving examples about the usage of "pressing" in English. However, if you still doubt my use of the term, please ask the English native speakers in the English/English forum.
Please note, I am not taking personally anything you have mentioned or commented on. However, if you find arguments from an English native speaker unconvincing, I will take personally the fact that there are translators who are not willing to respect the rules of the language that I and my fellow native speakers, have sometimes spent years learning, perfecting and using.
Andra Foca Jun 2, 2013:
@ Lara
I totally agree with you when you say “There is no harm in using a figurative translation if it renders the same meaning, fits the register and context, flows easily and conveys exactly the same idea and feeling in the target text. Most of the time when we translate we must consider the register and style of the original source text.”, the problem is that is does not work in this situation and absolutely all the examples that you have given work against your argument because they show that "pressing" as an adjective has only the meaning of "urgent, important, forceful etc" and that only figuratively. The majority of links provided in your search show "pressing" used as a participle in the construction of present or past continuous. The last example is not conclusive either.
Let me explain why the adjective "pressing" does not fit here. The sentence in Romanian has only one meaning and there is no ambiguity about it. How do you manage to convey the same idea and feeling when you are actually changing the meaning completely? I repeat myself, the text talks about the act of kissing someone by putting a certain noticeable pressure on the lips, that is it.
Lara Barnett Jun 2, 2013:
@ theLeguma Just because I have used an adjective in the figurative sense of the word in the target text, it does not mean that I have misunderstood the literal sense of the source text. It is possible, and sometimes necessary, to use a figurative word in place of a literal one if the context, register, style and overall idea requires it.
Lara Barnett Jun 2, 2013:
@ Ion Please note that I do understand what the source language is saying and I am aware that it is not figurative. However, simply to translate literally, word for word would give a very strange rendition in the target language. There is no harm in using a figurative translation if it renders the same meaning, fits the register and context, flows easily and conveys exactly the same idea and feeling in the target text. Most of the time when we translate we must consider the register and style of the original source text. This is what I did, and have found that "kissing hard" is a slightly lower register than original source text, and risks sounding crude. As you say yourself that there is a risk of losing the "romance" when translating into another language, the crudeness conveyed by "kiss hard" in English terminology would definitely obliterate any sign of romance in the event.
Additionally, I originally marked this as neutral in the alternative answer given by Alexandranow. However, as she marked me down as a disagree when I know my answer to be correct, I saw no reason to change hers to a disagree.
ION CAPATINA Jun 2, 2013:
@Lara I was talking about the SOURCE language. We should ALWAYS understand the source text first, before even jumping to translation. It is not "figurative" at all, it's a passionate kiss, pressing "hard" the other person's lips, "kissing hard" as they might call it. And English is spoken not only in UK but a lot of other people call it native language.
I would also say that some texts lose the "romance" when they are translated from a "romance language" into something else.
Cristina Crişan Jun 2, 2013:
oh dear Lara, in the note that you've added to your answer you give examples that you say illustrate the [and I quote]: figurative uses of "pressing" in the sense of both "needing urgent attention" and "insistent".
If these senses are figurative, may I inquire about the literal sense of this word (as an adjective)?
Lara Barnett Jun 2, 2013:
@ MCristy I also think it is about physical pressure applied with the lips. My explanation was about the term "Pressing". Ion thought that it implied pain and could not therefore not be used to describe a kiss. I was merely explaining the meaning behind the term figurative use of "pressing". When we say a "pressing kiss" the idea is that the kiss is slightly forceful due to some sort of heightened feeling such as passion or urgency or insistence etc, After I explained this, Ion then misinterpreted what I was explaining and suggested that I was implying that there was pain in the kiss rather than pleasure. To justify my reason for using "pressing" (which I should not have to do to somebody who claims to be a translator into English), I then explained the basis of why the English use the adjective "pressing" in this sense. I apologise if this has mislead you, but yes, the idea I have (and the idea of "pressing kiss") is both physical and emotional.
Cristina Crişan Jun 2, 2013:
somebody enlighten me! What does the source term - a săruta apăsat - mean?
Is it not about physical pressure applied with one's lips? What is it then?
What is discussed here?
Lara Barnett Jun 1, 2013:
@ Ion You misunderstand the usage of "pressing". As you will see from my long comment to MCristy, its usage here is not to describe the physical actions of the mouth - nothing is being physically pressed and the verb "to press" is not involved here. "Pressing" has a figurative usage when it can be used as an adjective describing an emotion or motive. Please see websites suggested in my earlier post to MCristy.
ION CAPATINA Jun 1, 2013:
Pressing/hard/smacking etc I'm an engineer, but "pressing" still sounds too technical for me for a romantic thing to do, it's supposed to be a kiss....what's next, welding, cutting (edge), injection molding kiss?
Lara Barnett Jun 1, 2013:
@ MCristy The reason this is a figure of speech is because "pressing" is being used as an adjective in the figurative sense (i.e. suggesting urgency, force or strong emotion.) "Pressing" is not being used here as a gerund of the physical/literal sense of the verb "to press". The idea is not that he is only physically applying the kiss, the aspect is more emotional and motivational.
"Pressing" is being used here as an adjective in a figurative (i.e. abstract) way. For more information see the examples of the figurative uses of "pressing" in the sense of both "needing urgent attention" and "insistent" on this web page:
http://zikkir.net/words/Citations:Pressing
I think you do not understand because you are associating the verb "to press" (as in the physical movement) with the figurative use of "pressing" which is actually used to describe urgency, insistence or force. More examples here:
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/press...
Maybe if you think of the noun "pressure" you will understand how this idea can be used in both a physical and a figurative way. My suggestion to the question involves the figurative use of these words.
Cristina Crişan Jun 1, 2013:
Thank you, Lara. I must however confess that I fail to understand why do you, natives, use "pressing" as a figure of speech to describe a kiss in which actual pressing occurs.
Lara Barnett Jun 1, 2013:
@ MCristy There is no part of language that we can technically apply to my use of "pressing", other than saying it is being used as an adjective, but is not literal. By this, I mean to say that the term "a pressing kiss" is a "figure of speech" https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/figure of speech
It is very difficult to apply strict technical and grammatical rules to figures of speech. However, if you study the first "noun" definition in this link: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pressing?s=t
you will find that this is the idea behind the sense of pressing in this figure of speech.
I hope that you can understand it now and will perhaps use the term yourself if needed (as a native speaker would!).
Lara
Cristina Crişan Jun 1, 2013:
I am not saying anything. I have asked Lara to clarify this usage for us, non-natives.
Lara Barnett Jun 1, 2013:
Pressed incorrect "Pressed" is wrong. My suggestion is a figure of speech. A "figure of speech" is an expression used in English which is not literal, and does not necessarily conform to the strict technical rooms of grammar. This is something that the English, and possibly other languages, use which is commonly understood among native speakers. An explanation of "Figure of speech" can be found here: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/figure of speech
Daniel Grigoras Jun 1, 2013:
so it should be "pressed" then is that what you're saying
Daniel Grigoras Jun 1, 2013:
it cannot be a noun? why? because it is not a noun in the source phrase or what?
Cristina Crişan Jun 1, 2013:
out of genuine curiosity Lara, what part of speech is "pressing" in your examples?

It cannot be a noun or an adjective:
http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/pressing?q=...

Could it be the "ing" form of the verb? Is it describing the action that the kiss was involved in?
Daniel Grigoras Jun 1, 2013:
"kissed hard" I also found this one; I have to agree that the authors employing this expression don't ring any bell to me and most probably are not great names in the English literature; moreover, some of the literature using it is just plain Blue (porn);

anyway, English abounds in colloquialism and idiomatic phrases, and I don't think this is the worst example; actually, maybe it's not that bad at all, compared to others
Daniel Grigoras Jun 1, 2013:
to kiss hard search google books; it is used by native English writers; see: https://www.google.com/search?q="to kiss hard"&btnG=Căutare ...

Proposed translations

+1
58 mins
Selected

His kiss was pressing

This is a very common expression and often used in literature.

You could say: "His kiss was pressing and rather forceful."
Or alternatively: "His kiss was pressing, even a little rough." ***

(I would use the second choice above)

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 day1 hr (2013-06-02 09:41:20 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

For more information see the examples of the figurative uses of "pressing" in the sense of both "needing urgent attention" and "insistent" on this web page:
http://zikkir.net/words/Citations:Pressing

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 days4 hrs (2013-06-03 12:27:01 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

As an alternative, you could say "His kiss was strong", but as I have said in the discussion box, there is not much difference here with "pressing".
"His kiss was strong, yet gentle. It was passionat, but still a bit shy."
http://www.wattpad.com/11923235-my-new-friend-a-phanfiction-...

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 days15 hrs (2013-06-04 23:04:06 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

"She wondered, as he brought her down from release with a GENTLE, PRESSING KISS to her neck, if he was like this with all of his girls."
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6117066/1/Robin-Falls

"Suddenly, his hands grasp my face, and his mouth drops to mine in a SOFT, PRESSING KISS. He lingers, and before he can pull away fully, I kiss him back. The gears that turn the world click back into place. I feel my body relax because this, right here, is where I'm meant to be."
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8534317/17/Yosemite-Decimal

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 days15 hrs (2013-06-04 23:06:32 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

" She reached up, kissing him gently on the mouth, not a light peck, but a TENDER, PRESSING KISS and his eyes closed just as she pulled away. He swayed for a second before opening them and she was looking right into him"
http://lifeonmartha.livejournal.com/652199.html
Example sentence:

"His kiss was pressing, urgent, as his arms ightened around her waist, and he drew her close, running his fingers down her back..."

"The kiss was pressing, but tender. Roy forgot everything through the kiss,... "

Reference:

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=uNP-KfGuSIYC&pg=PA112&lpg=PA112&dq=%22kiss+was+pressing%22+-SEX&source=bl&ots=sFFuNaIXww&sig=yeDYEtok--kI

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8624413/5/Burn-Baby-Burn

Peer comment(s):
agree Virág-Lilla Rácz
5 hrs
Thank you.
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "thanks"
+2
19 mins

to kiss hard

a săruta apăsat- to kiss hard

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 19 mins (2013-06-01 08:02:56 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5zRS3ci-Bk
Peer comment(s):
neutral Lara Barnett : This would be an awkward phrase to use in this way grammatically. It can be used but you have given no credible example of how you would structure it into this sentence. Most native English speakers would agree.
39 mins
agree ION CAPATINA : It sounds (and feels) good
14 hrs
agree Andra Foca
3 days 5 hrs
Something went wrong...
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