Neopolitan

OK, using an online translater I see that the menu at a cafe being served "de minuit a l'aube" means "midnight has the paddle". Is that the same as "you get the axe at midnight"? Or in other words they serve the menu until midnight?

Grand Cafe in Paris by the Opera.

kerouac

"From midnight to dawn." "Aube" means both dawn and steamboat paddle.

cocofromdijon

I'm with kerouac

Christina

how bizarre that an online translator would choose that definition of "aube" which isn't even included in some of my French/Eng dictionaries. I never knew it meant paddle. I'm reading La Promesse de l'Aube right now for a French literature class, and I will ask my teacher if the title really means the promise of the steamboat paddle, I'm sure she was think that amusing. Given it is Romain Gary who does try to be witty, I wonder.

That's a good place to eat, I like the Grand Cafe. They serve a good steak, if you want.

Neopolitan

This is for after the ballet, so late night. I thought the place was open 24/7, and that's why I was unclear.

It's kind of funny that I perceived the "midnight has the paddle" as being like our slang "get the axe". Midnight to dawn -- OK that makes sense.

Thanks all.

I always knew those on-line translators could be a riot.

kismetchimera

You must have a good translator Neapolitan.. Yes Aube is dawn and also a paddle..

Neopolitan

Hope I never get a spanking at dawn. I'll be so confused I won't know which end is up.

kappa

I think you put "a" without the French accent (accent grave) on it so the translator recognized it as "a", the 3rd person/singular form of the verb "avoir" (=have-has) and not as a (= to).

PatrickLondon

That's the problem with online translators. Wasn't there an old joke about computer translation in which "Out of sight, out of mind" became "invisible idiot"?

kappa

Ok, for a try I put "de minuit a l'aube" with the accent on "a" on the translation site. The result is "midnight at dawn". There it got "l'aube" right. I kind of like this funny translation. And it did not take "a" as a verb at least. Useless neverthless.

sheila

Only an ammurican could get "spank" and "paddle" in the same sentence

Intrepid1

There are actually quite a few people who would show up at that place if they thought an actual paddling were going to take place.

clairobscur

That's why using an online translator when conveying/understanding the correct meaning is important (like for instance, when sending mails to an hotel) isn't a good idea.

Online translators should only be used when you only need to known the general meaning of a relatively long text (say, an article about a town you intend to visit)

Neopolitan

So true. I've used an online translater in reverse -- when a hotel sent me a letter in German for example. When I ran it through the translater I learned my cousin was a prepaid scorpion who was staying on a floating mattress in the frozen dessert or something to that effect.

I'd never enter English and then send off the results.

cigalechanta

Neo. I mentioned on another thread where when I had the site translated from French to english, several places said, "farts accepted... or permitted.
I thought it was an error til I did research, it means pets.
So I guess I won't ask about burping

Neopolitan

Well it's nice to know that the dog we once had would be accepted in either case. Talk about cutting the cheese.

Christina

so, I told my French class last night Neaopolitan's funny story about the menu and online translator. Everybody got a laught out of that. My teacher (who is a native Frenchwoman) didn't even know that was one meaning of the word "aube", but said the other meaning of it she knew was that it means a girl's white First Communion dress. So, we all looked it up in the Petit Robert, and sure enough, it had all three meanings (I think the white dress comes from a word for linen or something). Petit Robert said it wasn't just a steamboat paddle, though, but any kind of a paddle or fin on something going around, like it could be the fin on a windmill or something like that.

Neopolitan

So Christina, let me see if I got this right. If we go to the Grand Cafe at midnight and wait, we're going to see a girl in a white communion dress get paddled at dawn? Will they add an entertainment charge for this?

Christina

umm.... I'm not going to comment on that one, I think that would be more likely in some other areas of Paris.

try the filet mignon, it's served with good potatoes au gratin.