"La collection est mal accueillie par la presse."

Translation: The collection is badly received by the press.

[Alex247537]

So I have run into this problem now twice in the lesson, but shouldn't badly received and received badly both be accepted?

[Leslie483050]

As a native english speaker, badly received and received badly have two different meanings to me.

Badly received - refers to the subject of the sentence, as a compound verb What was badly received? The collection.

Received badly - refers to the verb, as a verb modified by an adverb. How was it received by the press? Badly, as in the transmision of the collection/ receipt of the collection photos was bad. In this case, badly doesn't modify the subject.

I do note that the french use the present tense, where I think english speakers would use "was."

[lulularosa]

I think we can preserve the French present tense in English by saying "The collection is being badly received ..."

[captaingarbonza]

Yes, I was thinking this as well. Even though they're using the same words, the construction is different. "Badly received" acts like an adjective modifying "the collection". In "received badly", "badly" would be an adverb modifying the verb "received" instead. The French construction seems to be using the adjective form so the English should follow suit.

[Scott743138]

Poorly received is also accepted

[Martyn413385]

The present tense may work for this in French (does it?) but the English translation is rather odd and unlikely to be said in conversation. We would usually place this event in the past, because it implies the journalists have made adversely critical reports about it. Hence: "The collection was badly received by the press" makes much more sense. The present tense might work if the statement was on a storyboard, or perhaps if some journalists present at the show were in the process of booing the models on the catwalk and you were on the phone at that moment to someone else!

[tUFIfpFd]

Have to agree with this. Translating it into present tense in English seems really weird to me.

[mxkieran]

should be "is being badly received". see post above

[NimrodKapon]

Acuillie shouldnt have é at the end (accueillié) as it is a passive form?

[doublelingot]

No. This is an 'ir'-verb. Il est bien accueilli. Elle est mal accueillie.

[DOette]

Received badly should also be accepted

[Abel355]

According to my dictionary, the passive form is "accueilli". So I think e at the end (accueillie) is added because the subject is feminine.

[--Roody--]

With these passive sentences, it's hard to figure out which is the subject and which is the object.