Glossary entry (derived from question below)
English term or phrase:
conversational minutiae
French translation:
moindres détails de la conversation
Added to glossary by
Thierry Darlis
May 8, 2021 12:30
3 yrs ago
78 viewers *
English term
United States
conversational minutiae
English to French
Other
Linguistics
This precise clockwork dance that happens when people speak to each other is what N.J. Enfield, a professor of linguistics at the University of Sydney, calls the “conversation machine.” In his book How We Talk, he examines how conversational minutiae—filler words like “um” and “mm-hmm,” and pauses that are longer than 200 milliseconds—grease the wheels of this machine. In fact, he argues, these little “traffic signals” to some degree define human communication.
Proposed translations
(French)
Proposed translations
2 hrs
Selected
moindres détails de la conversation
"minutiae:
small and often not important details "
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/fr/dictionnaire/anglais/min...
« minutiae :
menus détails »
(Le Grand Robert & Collins)
« Fouillant dans les moindres détails de la conversation, Enfield - un linguiste à l'Université de Sydney - propose que ces légères pauses et sons apparemment inarticulés sont en fait vitaux pour la communication. »
https://fr.shinshu-navi.com/without-these-words-languages-ca...
D'autres sites, également plus ou moins fiables, proposent le même extrait, dont je ne trouve pas la source.
Voir aussi : https://www.proz.com/kudoz/english-to-german/linguistics/682...
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Note added at 15 hrs (2021-05-09 03:59:14 GMT)
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Que je parle d'extrait, je veux dire la traduction que je cite. Le texte en anglais, lui, n'est pas difficile à trouver.
small and often not important details "
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/fr/dictionnaire/anglais/min...
« minutiae :
menus détails »
(Le Grand Robert & Collins)
« Fouillant dans les moindres détails de la conversation, Enfield - un linguiste à l'Université de Sydney - propose que ces légères pauses et sons apparemment inarticulés sont en fait vitaux pour la communication. »
https://fr.shinshu-navi.com/without-these-words-languages-ca...
D'autres sites, également plus ou moins fiables, proposent le même extrait, dont je ne trouve pas la source.
Voir aussi : https://www.proz.com/kudoz/english-to-german/linguistics/682...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 15 hrs (2021-05-09 03:59:14 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Que je parle d'extrait, je veux dire la traduction que je cite. Le texte en anglais, lui, n'est pas difficile à trouver.
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
1 hr
JACQUES LHOMME
France
France
Native in French
France
Expertise in several areas
Native in: French 
Works in: German to French, English to French
temps morts et interjections
Une suggestion. Cordialement
+2
13 hrs
Saeed Najmi
Morocco
Morocco
Native in French
Specializes in field
Morocco
Juggling languages: a science and an art
Native in: Arabic (Variants: Standard-Arabian (MSA), Moroccan) 
, French
Works in: English to Arabic, French to Arabic, Arabic to English, and 3 more.
petits signaux de la conversation
In an interview published in The Atlantic ''Enfield compares ''conversational minutiae'' to “traffic signals” that ''keep conversations from going off the rails'' and ''allow us to connect up to each other in interaction and ride along in this machine.''
He says:'They don’t have any content, they don’t tell you anything about what I’m about to say, but they do say, “Wait please''... .''
In sum, they are little conversational signals that indicate to the listener that the we are ''editing'' our speech. ''Things never come out perfectly, and we have to edit on the fly. That’s what these words do.''
He says:'They don’t have any content, they don’t tell you anything about what I’m about to say, but they do say, “Wait please''... .''
In sum, they are little conversational signals that indicate to the listener that the we are ''editing'' our speech. ''Things never come out perfectly, and we have to edit on the fly. That’s what these words do.''
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Daryo
12 hrs
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Thanks Daryo
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| neutral |
ph-b (X)
: Si conversational minutiae (le terme demandé) = « petits signaux de la conversation » (votre réponse), comment allez-vous traduire les traffic signals qui suivent dans le texte source (même paragraphe et paragraphe suivant) ?
13 hrs
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| agree |
Helene Carrasco-Nabih
: ou : signaux presque imperceptibles de la conversation
19 hrs
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Merci pour le commentaire et l'approbation.
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1 day 8 hrs
Helene Carrasco-Nabih
Morocco
Morocco
Native in French
Morocco
Global Cooperation, Environment, Energy
Native in: French (Variants: Moroccan, Standard-France)
Works in: German to French, English to French
English term (edited):
conversational minutiae + traffic signals
signes presque imperceptibles de la conversation + panneaux de circulation langagiers
signes presque imperceptibles de la conversation + panneaux de circulation langagiers
1 day 20 hrs
Daniela B.Dunoyer
France
France
Native in French
Specializes in field
France
Editorial translator IT>FR / FR>IT
Native in: French (Variant: Standard-France) , Italian (Variant: Standard-Italy)
Works in: Italian to French, French to Italian, French, and 1 more.
éléments conversationnels apparemment insignifiants
ou bien : éléments apparemment insignifiants du discours (ou qui entrent dans une conversation)
Discussion