Heading translation

[Stephen Liu]

Hi folks,


I find it difficult translating following heading;

Talking about cost on food in Paris
Parle de coût sur l'alimentation à Paris

Please help. TIA


B.R.
satimis

[Frank]

Hello Stephen,

"Talking about" has no direct French equivalent. The easiest way to translate such a title is to say "About cost of food in Paris":

À propos du coût de l'alimentation à Paris
or
Au sujet du coût de l'alimentation à Paris

Or, if you really want to, you can specify what kind of talk it is, like:

Controverse au sujet du coût de l'alimentation à Paris

Or if you want to take the path of least resistance, you can just say:

Le coût de l'alimentation à Paris

[Stephen Liu]

Hi Frank,


À propos du coût de l'alimentation à Paris
can be translated as;
Concerning the cost of food in Paris

propos
n. talk, remark; intention, goal, aim


Au sujet du coût de l'alimentation à Paris
can be translated as;
About the cost of food in Paris

Au sujet
on the subject

Controverse au sujet du coût de l'alimentation à Paris
can be translated as;
Discussion about/on the cost of food in Paris

Le coût de l'alimentation à Paris
The cost of food in Paris

Simple and straight forward.


B.R.
satimis

[Neil Coffey]

When you're translating titles and headings, it's really best to think about the context. As well as Frank's suggestions, other possibilities might include:

(Des) opinions sur le coût/prix de l'alimentation à Paris

e.g. a newspaper reporter has interviewed some Parisians, and is now writing a section on those opinions.

Comment parler du coût de l'alimentation à Paris

A heading in a phrase book explaining how to talk about food prices.

And surely other possibilities...

As you can see, the translation could be vastly different depending on the exact context/meaning intended.