“猛女“ 是什么意思？

[ayala]

well, i know my questions are pretty annoying but i'm working on some newpaper articles and it's more difficult than i thought...

this article is about 猛女，i guess it means "strong", or "daring" but i'm not sure...

does this term has another (known) meaning? something that have to do with sexual behavior?

any reply will be appreciated!

[Megacn]

猛女 is an informal word that will probably not appeared in formal newspapers.

It means that a woman who dare to do something which other women dare not to do.

[Megacn]

A woman who has the capability of doing something which other women are incapable of doing can also be intitled 猛女.

[middle kingdom]

This phrase is often used in daily conversation. The speaker tends to have a paradox of feeling that on one hand, he/she may admire the extraordinary talent and courage the woman (meng nv) possesses revealed by the thing she does; on the other hand, the tone of the speaker seems a bit acid since he/she is shocked to some extent and feels uneasy. The word "meng" literally means "strong", but the meaning of it goes further. It describes the mental quality and has nothing to do with hot girls. However, people do not usually adopt this phrase to talk about pretty women even though they are high intelligent ones. But occasionally it can also describes the women who have the physical strength and characteristics of men.

[ayala]

your replies are very helpful.

well, this specific text is an article from a women's magazine and the author describe 猛女

as women who act like the protagonists of "SEX AND THE CITY". someone that men like to be with but will never marry, or someone who scares men away...

so, i wonder if i should translate it as: "srtong women" or "daring women" or just "violent women".

any sugestion?

[middle kingdom]

Neither "strong women", nor "daring women", nor "violent women" can reach the essence of this Chinese phrase. The translation work seems very interesting, ayala. It is even involved with androcentrism and feminism, the way the society treats modern women. People won't call a man of high ability or a strong personality analogically.

How about "striking woman", or "awesome woman"?

[wisp chou]

we can call tough guy "猛男",and i think i'll help you to understand the meaning of “猛女”

[anonymoose]

formidable woman?

[ayala]

it helps a lot!

however, according to your respons it's clear that this expression isn't easy to translate...

Anonymoose: "formidable woman" isn't right for the specific context of the article since the author (male) definitely denounce those women. he sees them as a threat, a negative phenomenon. however, i saw other texts in which this translation could work.

Middle kingdom: you're absolutely right. this article does involve androcentrism views, and the author is obviously anti-feminist. this is why "stiking", or "awesome woman" won't be right, cause it can't express the author point of you...

anyway, i'm still thinking of the right way to translate it, so if you have any other suggestion, please let me know!

thanks,

Ayala.

[skylee]

Not really relevant, strictly speaking, but I am reading 碧血劍 and have come across this word with a meaning which is rare nowadays -> 22. 強人 [qiang2ren2], n., robber.