Tafsiri - Kireno cha Kibrazili-Kiingereza - Querer Não é Poder, E Poder Não e Querer, Então...

How about:

Wishing To does not mean Being Able To
And Being Able To is not the same as Wishing To;
I Therefore Live Wishing
I Could Have You.

?

Hi Ian,

It's almost that! The Portuguese text uses verbs in their "short" forms, unfortunately those verbs in English have a little longer spelling or are not usually used as present participles.for they would sound weird, like "wanting". However the shortest way to say that would be:

"Wishing is not being able
and being able is not wishing
so I live wishing
for being able to have you."

Weird, isn't it?

Each language has its own Quirks, and its own Beauty...

Hello goncin,
this has been Here for a while.
I think I clearly understand it,
but what do you think we should do about it?

CC: goncin

Hi Mats, Hi Ian, Hi Lilly

The text in Portuguese is very similar to the French saying "Vouloir n'est pas pouvoir..."

I agree with Lilly that the best thing to do is to retranslate the text, into coherent English, for example, by using the "...ing" form rather than the infinitive:

Wanting is not being able to
And being able is no longer wanting,
So I live, wanting
to be able to have you.

I have also taken out all of the superfluous capital letters as they just add confusion to a text that is already difficult .

Hope this helps

Bises
Tantine

Thanks, Tantine!
We'll go with your excellent version!
---
Form of the last version of the translation before my edits:

Want is Not to Can,
And to Can is Not to Want,
So I Live Wanting
To Have You.

Hi Mats

I forgot to add above that "to can" means to put into a can (tin). "can" is a transitive verb that cannot be used in its infinitive form which has become obsolete, except in Scots.

Bises
Tantine

So if you have many cans of preserves, you'll never be in want:
To Can is Not To Want!

Hee hee hee hoo hoo hoo...
;;
Well, I thought it was funny...

Absolutely Ian san

I really laughed out loud!!

Thanks you both!

In fact, I tried myself to translate this into English, but that is so idiomatic in Portuguese... Tantine finally got it.