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Glossary entry

French term or phrase:

Grugeurs de temps

English translation:

Time Wasters

Added to glossary by mohanv
Nov 7, 2011 12:23
12 yrs ago
1 viewer *
French term

Grugeurs de temps

French to English Other Management
I would like to know the meaning of "Grugeurs de temps" I have come across this term in "Time Management". Can it be "Time waster" I welcome your suggestions. Thanks
Proposed translations (English)
4 +1 Time Wasters
4 +3 "Time cheats"
3 Time cheaters
3 time consumers
3 staff non-productivity
References
Definition:
Change log

Nov 7, 2011 12:36: B D Finch changed "Field" from "Tech/Engineering" to "Other"

Discussion

AllegroTrans Nov 7, 2011:
Yep so let's all do something else.....
philgoddard Nov 7, 2011:
Rather ironically, this question is itself "grugeur de temps"!
AllegroTrans Nov 7, 2011:
and I agree 100% with the last comment CONTEXT is essential for questions like this. Merely putting in a phrase in isolation is very unlikely to produce an answer in context or register with the original text. Potential responders cannot "see" the whole document, only the asker can. Please refer to KudoZ rules/suggestions for posting.
B D Finch Nov 7, 2011:
@Mohan Though it is still less than clear from the additional information you have now provided, it looks like it is the activities, rather than people who are the grugeurs de temps. If that is the case, then "time cheats" would certainly not fit. This is a lesson about not wasting time answering questions when inadequate information has been provided.
mohanv (asker) Nov 7, 2011:
This is referred in a large document analysing the activities [mainly of an individual] and identifying them as those which are important, urgent or not important/urgent and dealing with suggestions for effectively improving the usage of time. In my opinion, there is no scope for bringing the word "cheat" here
Catharine Cellier-Smart Nov 7, 2011:
@Mohan Yes but is this a free-standing title in a document, or part of a longer sentence?
What sort of document is it, and what is the register (level of formality) required?
mohanv (asker) Nov 7, 2011:
Under this subject, there are discussions about the ways of identifying and getting alerted by colleagues and others about the loss of time
There is also the following reference "les activités qui consomment du temps". I feel Time wasters may fit in properly as of now. However, I shall await for more appropriate suggestions, if there can be any.
philgoddard Nov 7, 2011:
We can't answer this without proper context.
Kelly Harrison Nov 7, 2011:
Yes, I suppose being paid to do something and doing nothing is 'cheating' and 'stealing' as much as fiddling ones timesheet or skiving off completely, in the eyes of most 'managers'.
B D Finch Nov 7, 2011:
Not necessarily informal According to Le Grand Robert (which I consider to be a better reference work than wiktionary or free dictionary etc.):
"1 Vx. Réduire en grains. ➙ Égruger.
2 (1660). Vx. Briser avec les dents. Gruger des noisettes, des bonbons. ➙ 1. Croquer. — Par ext. Gober, manger.
1 Perrin fort gravement ouvre l'huître et la gruge (…)
La Fontaine, Fables, ix, 9.

...
II (xviie). Mod. Littér. Duper qqn en affaires; le dépouiller de son bien. ➙ Spolier, 2. voler. Se faire, se laisser gruger. Il s'est laissé gruger par des aigrefins (→ 1. Aigrefin, cit. 1).
2 (…) on nous mange, on nous gruge,
On nous mine par des longueurs (…)
La Fontaine, Fables, i, 21 ..."
Plus various refs from Balzac.
Joshua Pepper Nov 7, 2011:
"Gruger" something is a term that I often came across in my school-boy life - I always was under the impression that it was very informal, so I'm surprised to see it in such a context.
Wiki renders the meaning nicely:
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gruger
But it can be used in many different ways:
A couple of example sentences:
"Il m'a grugé dans la queue" => "he pushed in front of me in the queue"
"Il m'a grugé un sandwich" => "he nicked my sandwich [when I wasn't looking]"
So basically, it means to con somebody out of something
In this context therefore, I think "time wasting" works very well, and that is probably the translation that I would use.
Catharine Cellier-Smart Nov 7, 2011:
More context please !!! More context = better answers

Proposed translations

+1
18 mins
Selected

Time Wasters

A Grugeur is somebody who steals or cheats or behaves dishonestly
Note from asker:
Thanks
Peer comment(s):
neutral AllegroTrans : a "time waster" is not a cheat or a dishonest person per se; I rather think what is meant here is someone who fiddles his/her time sheets or bunks off work too early, for example
18 mins
I think that the principal is the same
neutral kashew : The tag seems OK in a work-study context too.
3 hrs
agree Jean-Claude Gouin
2 days 1 hr
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thanks. I find this term as the most appropriate one which could fit in the various references and contexts of the passage. This term is used with reference to the activities. Incidentally, it is found that "time waster" is frequently used in several "Time Management" descriptions."
+3
21 mins

"Time cheats"

Though there is not much context provided, I assume that this is not the Sim game of the same name.

books.google.fr/books?isbn=2804138070...Lakhdar Sekiou, Jean-Marie Peretti - 2001 - Business & Economics - 814 pages
"Les -grugeurs de temps- sont universels et omniprésents dans le milieu de travail, Un -grugeur de temps-, c'est tout ce qui cause une interruption dans le travail ..."

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 27 mins (2011-11-07 12:50:59 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

The quotes were an unintended result of cut and paste. Sorry.

jerryjake.blogspot.com
"The Tele Eye Company should right away investigate the staff who are involved in time cheating. The staff should be punished if found guilty ..."

www.nyc.gov/html/doi/downloads/pdf/pr0502a02.pdf
"EMS TECHNICIAN ARRESTED IN $8000 TIME CHEAT SCAM ... "
Note from asker:
Thanks
Peer comment(s):
agree AllegroTrans
14 mins
Thanks AT
agree Verginia Ophof
3 hrs
agree Laurette Tassin
2 days 19 hrs
Something went wrong...
1 hr

Time cheaters

Isn'it the people who cheat/steal? (triche ‡ tricheur).
Note from asker:
Thanks
Peer comment(s):
neutral AllegroTrans : This is basically same as B D Finch's answer, I see no need to duplicate here
1 hr
I didn't know cheats can also be people, fair enough then :) and thanks for pointing this out
Something went wrong...
1 hr

time consumers

My first thought was "time waster", but looking at the link:
http://books.google.fr/books?id=HdIEc4eNNFUC&pg=PA708&lpg=PA...

(which BD also quotes) and its clear explanation of "grugeur de temp" along with other Ghits, I think the meaning is more about things/people that/who take up too much of your time; your time is not necessarily being wasted, but these "grugeurs" consume a lot of it, so need to be better managed. Hence "time consumers", or "time-consuming activities/people".
Note from asker:
Thanks. "Time-consuming activities" sounds better and appears relevant to the context. Let me wait for more suggestions
Something went wrong...
3 hrs

staff non-productivity

*

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 heures (2011-11-07 16:06:19 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Maybe take away "staff".
Note from asker:
Thanks
Something went wrong...

Reference comments

3 hrs
Reference:

Definition:

http://books.google.fr/books?id=HdIEc4eNNFUC&pg=PA708&lpg=PA...

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 heures (2011-11-07 15:52:13 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Also cited by BDF
Note from asker:
Thanks
Something went wrong...
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