Glossary entry

English term or phrase:

withholding

Spanish translation:

retraída/alejada/desapegada

Added to glossary by Michael Powers (PhD)
Apr 14, 2009 00:45
15 yrs ago
4 viewers *
English term

withholding

English to Spanish Social Sciences Psychology marital and sex therapy
M often felt she was losing control of herself and J felt entitled to the use of her body. She became withholding and less sexually desirous as she attempted to reestablish her emotional boundaries. J felt controlled whenever he tried to follow M’s suggestions. As far as he was concerned, he’d be admitting he was wrong and she was right. Even when he waited longer before inserting his finger, M could feel his anger and resentment. J thought she should just let him do it and “she’d see that she liked it.” He accused her of setting her mind not to like it just to make him feel bad. Even when M “went along with him,” John was frustrated by her lack of passion and interpreted it as a negative reflection on his adequacy. He then blamed her for his bad feelings. Together, their reactions gave rise to perfunctory foreplay and lackluster sex—a situation that’s painfully familiar to many couples.

Discussion

jack_speak Apr 14, 2009:
withholding She is trying to regain control by denying what he wants and becoming less desirous. In fact, the translation should be akin to "stingy" - not to the extent she is greedy - she's not withholding out of greed, she's withholding for psychological manipulation. I can't find a good translation. The best I can think of is tacaña - but I'm not sure if that is more "greedy" than "stingy." Maybe better to translate "she began to deny him..."
Thoughts, anyone?

Proposed translations

+1
4 mins
Selected

retraída/alejada/desapegada

Suerte
Peer comment(s):

agree Andres Pacheco
0 min
Muchas gracias, Andrés.
neutral jack_speak : I think these are synonymns of "withdrawn" instead of withholding. // De nada, Darío. Puedo estar equivocado. Estamos todos siempre aprendiendo, igracias a Dios!
21 mins
Hola Jack. Son sinónimos de withdrawn, pero a mi entender se adecúan muy bien al contexto. Gracias por tu comentario.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Muchas gracias por todas las contribuciones - Mike :)"
4 mins

reservada

...
Peer comment(s):

neutral jack_speak : I think this is a synonymns of "withdrawn" instead of withholding.
29 mins
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37 mins
English term (edited): She became withholding

Comenzó a negarle

What the heck, this is what I think it really means. Good luck. If I think of something better I'll post.

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Note added at 38 mins (2009-04-14 01:24:07 GMT)
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Also- think of how you could translate "she began to hold back"- which is less definitive than DENY
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8 hrs

dejó de entregarse / empezó a cerrarse a él

Una opción sería: "Dejó de entregrarse a él / empezó a cerrarse a él y su deseo sexual disminuyó a medida que intentaba etc."
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9 hrs

esquiva

Opción. (Bah, no le llevaba el apunte). ¡Suerte!

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Note added at 9 horas (2009-04-14 10:21:13 GMT)
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También "remisa"
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50 mins

mezquina

Can be used as a verb: Comenzó a mezquinar sus (afectos)/a mezquinarse

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Note added at 17 hrs (2009-04-14 18:44:04 GMT)
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Taking a second (daytime) look at the question and my answer, I think the adjective 'mezquina' is a tad too strong, as it would seem to describe her character and not the relationship. I still think the verb form 'mezquinar/se' might serve.
Peer comment(s):

agree jack_speak : It seems like your interpretation is the same as mine and your answer maybe even better! How could I disagree?
1 hr
Thanks, Jack! I appreciate your generosity! Christine Walsh
disagree Olivia : It's not a common term, too technical for the context
1 day 1 hr
Thanks for your opinion. Actually, it's quite common here, particularly in the verb form.
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1 day 1 hr
English term (edited): She became withholding

Se volvió distante / Se distanció / Se tornó distante

I prefer the first one.
Although all my suggestions are more figurative than literal means of witholding, I think they aply better to the context.
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