30 Comments
The nuances between the two seem to be disappearing nowadays. Since durant is very seldom used in daily speech, it has become more formal, but that's about it.
You can find more detailed answers here and there, mostly about the fact that durant is supposed to emphasize the duration of what is talked about, and to imply that the action lasts for the whole {thing specified after durant}; while pendant only gives the time frame during which the (possibly brief) action takes place. I wish this distinction were systematic, as it would make our language more precise, but I must say there is actually a large overlap, and the formal vs. less formal difference seems good enough unless you want to nitpick about finer shades of meaning.
Does this mean that "throughout the night" is a possible translation? I tried that answer just to see but DL rejected it.
[First, let me just acknowledge that this post is kind of what I meant by "nitpicking" in my previous comment. So feel free to ignore this :) ]
I think "throughout the night" would be best expressed as "durant toute la nuit" or "pendant toute la nuit" if you want to make sure to be understood. In theory durant might be enough to imply throughout, but since this more precise meaning of durant is disappearing, you may need to add this "toute la" or something to that effect (see here). And indeed, DL rejecting your translation seems to support my point.
("toute la + noun" = (literally) "all the + noun" = "the whole + noun" or "throughout the + noun").
can I say in French "lanimal boit pendant la nuit" ? if yes, is the meaning of the phrase changed?
I could go either way; I think there is a slight difference that might be important in certain situations. I think 'during the night' implies a specific night (e.g. 'last night'), and 'at night' is probably referring to night in general, not a specific night. Can anyone comment on what the intended meaning of the French sentence is?
Except that either one could be used the opposite of how you suggest classifying them just as easily.
To wit:
"He parties during the night" - sounds perfectly to me as a general expression depending on context
"He did it at night" probably refers to a specific night and is specifying the part of the day
I just don't think English is as well-segmented as people might like.
As a native English speaker, could you explain them to me? I could maybe think of some cases where one might sound more natural than the other, but it seems like they're basically the same.
At night implies that the action referred to is habitual. During the night gives no information as to whether the event is usual or not.
I'm guessing by your name that Spanish is more comfortable for you, Pedro. So, unlike Spanish, in which /b/ and /v/ are identical (both are a voiced bilabial fricative), French is just like English in that /b/ is a voiced bilabial stop, and /v/ is a voiced labiodental fricative.
You make v the same way as f, with your teeth and lip, but softer, with your voice and not with a lot of air, like Z. Or like M or N I guess, with a hum.
So
S-Z is like
F-V
and b is like D, just with your lips.
SO
T-D is like
P-B
I hope that's not too confusing.
Is throughout acceptable? Or is there a French word that is better linked to throughout than during?
'Partout dans' and 'tout au long de' work for 'throughout'.
e.g. Il voyageait partout dans ce pays.
Still believe that "The animal drinks at night" is an acceptable interpretation.
why is "The animal drinks at night." considered correct if it has obvious differences with the sentence "during the night"?
Is there a difference between the usage of "pendant" and "durant?"
I said "during the night". The first suggested translation that appears for "durant" is during. Why is this incorrect?
The animal drinks at night was counted as wrong, when "during the night" and "at night" mean the same thing.
My answer, "The animal drinks at night." Response from DL, "You used the wrong word." Corrected to, "The animal drinks overnight." I then clicked on 'Discuss' and see the following translation at the top of the page, "The animal drinks during the night." To me, 'at night' and 'during the night' connote the same message; at some unspecified point(s) between nightfall and dawn the animal drinks.
