When a note discusses a translation issue that is addressed in translation Academy (tA), the note should end with a link to the pertinent article. The following is a list of the articles that the Notes should cite, with a sample note for each issue and a link to the corresponding article. (If an article title is highlighted in yellow, that indicates that the article is planned but has not yet been written.)
These articles are designed so that translators can access and refer to them in a just-in-time manner as they encounter these particular issues in the text. Translators and translation managers should also read and study the other articles in tA as general-education material in order to be equipped for their work.
Jesus is figuratively addressing something he knows cannot hear him, the city of Jerusalem, in order to show his listeners in a strong way how he feels about it. Alternate translation: “I am very upset with the city of Jerusalem” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-apostrophe]])
Yahweh could be saying this as an aside in order to express his evaluation of the people of Edom. If this would be confusing in your language, you can continue his address to Edom in the second person. Alternate translation: “There is no understanding in you” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-aside]])
*were bowing down and prostrating themselves* (Esther 3:2)
These two phrases mean basically the same thing. The repetition is used to emphasize that the officials knew how important it was to obey the king’s command and honor Haman in this way. If it would be clearer in your language, you could combine these phrases. Alternate translation: “were bowing down all the way to the ground” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-doublet]])
*the time of my departure is here* (2 Timothy 4:6)
Paul is referring to his death as a **departure**. This is a delicate way of referring to something unpleasant. Alternate translation: “soon I will die and leave this world” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-euphemism]])
This phrase expresses a single idea by using two words connected with **and.** The word **rejoiced** tells how the people of Susa **cheered**. If it would be clearer in your language, you could express this meaning with an equivalent phrase. Alternate translation: “shouted joyfully.” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-hendiadys]])
Nehemiah is showing honor to King Artaxerxes. Here, **to eternity** is an exaggeration that refers to a long life. Alternate translation: “Long live the king” or “May you have a long life” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-hyperbole]])
*unless we go and buy food for all these people* (Luke 9:13)
The disciples are not making a serious suggestion here. They actually mean to communicate the opposite of the literal meaning of their words. Alternate translation: “and we certainly can not go and buy food for all these people” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-irony]])
*But you should not have … and you should not have … and you should not have* (Obadiah 1:12)
Yahweh uses a repetitive series of sentences in verses 12–14 to show how badly the people of Edom have treated the people of Judah. This repetitive style of speaking or writing is called a “litany.” This is a list of the charges against the people of Edom. Yahweh goes on to say in verses 15 and 16 that he has found them guilty of all of these charges and that he will punish them. Use a form in your language that someone would use to list things that someone has done wrong. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-litany]])
Here the king uses a figure of speech that expresses a strong positive meaning by using a negative word together with a word that is the opposite of the intended meaning. Alternate translation: “with diligence” or “diligently” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-litotes]])
*from east and west, and from north and south* (Luke 13:29)
Jesus speaks figuratively of all directions in order to include everything in between. Alternate translation: “from all over the world” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-merism]])
*have shipwrecked regarding the faith* (1 Timothy 1:19)
Paul speaks figuratively of these people as if they were a ship that had sunk. He means that they no longer believe in Jesus and no longer live as his followers. If your readers would not understand what it means to be **shipwrecked**, you could use a comparable example from your culture. Alternatively, you could express Paul’s meaning in a non-figurative way. Alternative translation, “no longer belong to Jesus” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])
Luke is figuratively describing something Jesus would say by association with his **mouth**, which he would use to say something. Alternate translation: “something he said” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metonymy]])
*Until when will be your journey? And when will you return?* (Nehemiah 2:6)
These two phrases mean the same thing. The king says the same thing twice, in slightly different ways, to show that he is genuinely interested in Nehemiah’s situation. You do not need to repeat both phrases in your translation if that would be confusing for your readers. Alternate translation: “How long would you be away?” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-parallelism]])
*The pride of your heart has deceived you* (Obadiah 1:3)
Here, **pride** is spoken of figuratively as though it were a person who could deceive someone. If this might be confusing for your readers, you could express this meaning in a non-figurative way. Alternate translation: “Because you are so proud, you have deceived yourselves” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-personification]])
Jesus is figuratively using the past tense in order to refer to something that will happen in the future. He is doing this to show that the event will certainly happen. Alternate translation: “your house will be left to you alone” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-pastforfuture]])
*Who is the liar, if not the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ?* (1 John 2:22)
John is using the question form for emphasis. If it would be clearer in your language, you could translate his words as a statement or an exclamation. Alternate translation: “Anyone who denies that Jesus is the Messiah is certainly a liar!” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-rquestion]])
*has become like a wave of the sea, wind-blown and tossed* (James 1:6)
The point of this comparison is that anyone who doubts will be like the waves in the ocean, which keep moving in different directions. In your translation, you could express this meaning in a non-figurative way. Alternate translation: “will keep changing his mind about what to do” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-simile]])
Jesus refers figuratively to **bread**, one common food, to mean food in general. Alternate translation: “the food we need that day” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-synecdoche]])
*rather than the stewardship of God* (1 Timothy 1:4)
If it would be clearer in your language, you could express the idea behind the abstract noun **stewardship** with a concrete noun such as “work.” Alternate translations: “rather than helping us to do God’s work” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-abstractnouns]])
*they knew that this work was done by our God* (Nehemiah 6:16)
If it would be clearer in your language, you could say this with an active form. Alternate translation: “they knew that our God had done this work” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-activepassive]])
*it was hidden from them* (Luke 9:45)
If it would be clearer in your language, you could say this with an active form, and you can say who did the action. Alternate translation: “God hid it from them” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-activepassive]])
Collective Nouns
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grammar-collectivenouns (Article does not exist yet)
Distinguishing versus Informing or Reminding with relative clauses https://git.door43.org/unfoldingWord/en_ta/src/branch/master/translate/figs-distinguish/01.md
*the household of God, which is the church of the living God* (1 Timothy 3:15)
This phrase gives us further information about **the household of God**. It is not making a distinction between a household of God that is the church and one that is not the church. Alternate translation: “the household of God, that is, the church of the living God” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-distinguish]])
*every word will not be impossible for God* (Luke 1:37)
If it would be clearer in your language, you could translate this double negative as a positive statement. Alternate translation: “every word will be possible for God” or “God is able to do anything he says” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-doublenegatives]])
The second criminal is leaving out some of the words that a sentence would need in many languages to be complete. If it would be clearer in your language, you could supply these words from the context. Alternate translation: “And we are receiving this punishment justly” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-ellipsis]])
Jesus is speaking of these trees in general, not of one particular **fig tree**. Alternate translation: “the fig trees” (See: rc://en/ta/man/[[translate/figs-genericnoun]])
Paul is using the adjective **righteous** as a noun in order to describe a group of people Your language may use adjectives in the same way. If not, you could translate this with a noun phrase. Alternate translation: “people who are righteous” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-nominaladj]])
Since the Greek word that ULT translates as **enticed** often means to use bait to trap prey, James may be stressing the result (the captured prey being **dragged away**) by speaking of it before the method that was used to achieve it (baiting a trap). Alternate translation: “dragged away after being enticed” or “enticed and dragged away” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-events]])
James is using the possessive form to describe a **word** that is characterized by **truth**. Alternate translation: “by the true word” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-possession]])
Although the term **brother** is masculine, John is using the word in a generic sense that includes both men and women. Alternate translation: “a fellow believer” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-gendernotations]])
The pronoun **he** refers to Peter, not to the man who was insisting that Peter was one of Jesus’ disciples. Alternate translation: “while Peter was speaking” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-pronouns]])
Luke uses the word **himself** to emphasize the surprise of Jesus actually appearing to this group. Alternate translation: “none other than Jesus himself stood” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-rpronouns]])
Esther is addressing the king in the third person as a sign of respect. Alternate translation: “If it seems like a good idea to you, O king” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/[[figs-123person]])
When John says **we**, he is speaking of himself and some other disciples who spoke to this man, so **we** would be exclusive. However, when John says **us**, he seems to be referring to the disciples and Jesus traveling together, and since he is speaking to Jesus, **us** would be inclusive. Your language may require you to mark these forms. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-exclusive]])
In this letter, with one exception, the words **you**, **your**, and **yourself** refer to Timothy and so are singular. A note will discuss the one exception in [6:21](../06/21.md) where “you” is plural. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-yousingular]])
Since Jesus is speaking to two men, **you** would be dual in both of these instances, if your language uses that form. Otherwise, the word would be plural. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-youdual]])
Even though Jesus is speaking to the crowd, he is addressing an individual situation, so **you** and **your** are singular throughout this verse. But if the singular form would not be natural in your language for someone who was speaking to a group of people, you could use the plural forms of **you** and **your** in your translation. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-youcrowd]])
Use your best judgment about whether the formal or informal form of **you** would be more natural in your language here. Jesus is speaking as an adult son would to a father with whom he had a close relationship. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-youformal]])
Consider natural ways of introducing direct quotations in your language. Alternate translation: “prophesied, and this is what he said” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-quotations]])
*commanding them to tell this to no one* (Luke 9:21)
If it would be clearer in your language, you could express this as a direct quotation. Alternate translation: “commanding them, ‘Tell this to no one’” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-quotations]])
Here the book begins to quote the letter that Tattenai and his associates sent to King Darius. It may be helpful to your readers to indicate this with an opening quotation mark or with whatever other punctuation or convention your language uses to indicate the beginning of a quotation. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-quotemarks]])
*she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice together with me, for I have found the drachma that I lost’* (Luke 15:9)
If it would be clearer in your language, you could translate this so that there is not a quotation within a quotation. Alternate translation: “she calls together her friends and neighbors and tells them to rejoice with her because she has found the drachma that she lost” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-quotesinquotes]])
*Everyone who goes beyond and does not remain in the teaching of Christ does not have God* (2 John 1:9)
If it would be natural in your language, you could reverse the order of these phrases. Alternate translation: “Everyone who does not remain in the teaching of Christ but goes beyond does not have God” (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-infostructure)
This is an imperative, but it should be translated as a polite request, rather than as a command. It may be helpful to add an expression such as “please” to make this clear. Alternate translation: “Please give us” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-imperative]])
*Be clean* (Luke 5:13)
This was not a command that the man was capable of obeying. Instead, this was a command that directly caused the man to be healed. Alternate translation: “I heal you from your leprosy” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-imperative]])
The word **then** indicates that the events the story will now relate came after the event it has just described. If it would be clearer in your language, you could show this relationship by using a fuller phrase. Alternate translation: “Once this group had returned to Judah” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-time-sequential]])
In this verse Nehemiah is describing something else that was also true of the conditions in Jerusalem during the time period he is describing. You can make this clear in your translation with an appropriate connecting word or phrase. Alternate translation: “At that time” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-time-simultaneous]])
Luke is providing this background information to help readers understand what happens next. You can introduce his statement with a word that will indicate this. Alternate translation: “Now the people were expecting” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-time-background]])
*for us to be something like a firstfruits of his creatures* (James 1:18)
This is a purpose clause. James is stating the purpose for which God **desired to give us birth**. In your translation, follow the conventions of your language for purpose clauses. Alternate translation (without a comma preceding): “so that we would be like a firstfruits of his creatures” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-logic-goal]])
*he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes* (1 John 2:11)
If it would be clearer in your language, you could reverse the order of these phrases, since the second phrase gives the reason for the result that the first phrase describes. Alternate translation: “because the darkness has blinded his eyes, he does not know where he is going” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-logic-result]])
**And** introduces a contrast between what was expected, that all the invited guests would come to the dinner, and what happened, that they all declined to do that. Alternate translation: “But” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-logic-contrast]])
John is speaking as if this were a hypothetical possibility, but he means that it is actually true. If your language does not state something as a condition if it is certain or true, and if your readers might misunderstand and think that what John is saying is not certain, then you can translate his words as an affirmative statement. Alternate translation: “Since you know that God is righteous” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-condition-fact]])
*If this man were a prophet, he would know who and of what type the woman is who is touching him, that she is a sinner* (Luke 7:39)
This Pharisee is making a conditional statement that sounds hypothetical, but he is already convinced that the condition is not true. He has concluded that Jesus must not be a prophet, because he allowed this sinful woman to touch him and a prophet would have known she was sinful and not allowed that. Alternate translation: “Jesus must not be a prophet, because if he were, he would know that the woman who is touching him is a sinner” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-condition-contrary]])
*if anyone competes, he is not crowned if he has not competed lawfully* (2 Timothy 2:5)
Paul is using a hypothetical situation to teach Timothy. Alternate translation: “suppose an athlete did not compete by the rules. Then he would not be crowned” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-hypo]]
If it would appear in your language that Luke was making a statement here and then contradicting it, you could reword this to avoid using an exception clause. Alternate translation: “Jesus only allowed” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/grammar-connect-exceptions]])
*But Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”* (Luke 23:34)
See the discussion of textual issues at the end of the General Notes to this chapter to decide whether to include this sentence in your translation. The next four notes below discuss translation issues in the sentence, for those who decide to include it. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-textvariants]])
**Father** and **Son** are important titles that describe the relationship between God and Jesus. Alternate translation: “God the Father and Jesus his Son” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/guidelines-sonofgodprinciples]])
*the rooster will not crow today before you deny three times that you know me* (Luke 22:34)
A **rooster** is a bird that calls out loudly around the time the sun comes up. If your readers would not be familiar with this bird, you could use the name of a bird in your area that calls out or sings just before dawn, or you could use a general expression. Alternate translation: “before the birds begin to sing in the morning, you will deny three times that you know me” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-unknown]])
Some English translations call this prophet Abdias, but Obadiah is the form of his name most commonly used in English. Use the form of the name that is in your source language or a similar form that sounds like a name in your language. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-names]])
Note: Since some languages have different conventions for the names of men and women, it is helpful to specify whether a name is that of a man or a woman. Also, you do not need to write a separate note for each name in a list of names; you can write a single note for an entire verse.
*Carpus* (2 Timothy 4:13)
This is the name of a man. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-names]])
*Claudia* (2 Timothy 4:21)
This is the name of a woman. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-names]])
*who stood at a distance* (Luke 17:12, assumed knowledge)
Luke assumes that his readers will know that the **lepers** were not reluctant to engage Jesus. Rather, this was a respectful gesture, since they were not allowed to approach other people. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could indicate that explicitly. It may be helpful to make this a separate sentence. Alternate translation: “They stood at a distance, as they were required to do” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-explicit]])
*And the one who blew the ram’s horn was beside me* (Nehemiah 4:18, implicit information)
The implication is that Nehemiah stationed this person next to him so that he could sound a danger signal if needed. If it would be clearer in your language, you could say that explicitly. Alternate translation: “And I stationed someone next to me who would blow a ram’s horn if we needed a danger signal” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-explicit]])
These were Jesus’ younger brothers, the other sons of Mary and Joseph who were born after Jesus. Since the Father of Jesus was God and their father was Joseph, they were actually his half-brothers. That detail is not normally translated, but if your language has a specific word for “younger brother,” it would be appropriate to use it here. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-kinship]])
In your language, it might seem that the phrase **conceived in the womb** expresses unnecessary extra information. If so, you can abbreviate it. Alternate translation: “before he was conceived” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-explicitinfo]])
By **these things**, Jesus likely means his identity as God’s Son and God’s identity as his Father: He says of those identities in the next verse that only people to whom he reveals them can understand them, just as he says here that **these things** are revealed only to certain people. Since the expression is explained in the next verse, you do not need to explain its meaning further here. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-extrainfo]])
If it would be helpful to your readers, you could express this in terms of modern measurements. Alternate translation: “25 meters high” or “75 feet high” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-bdistance]])
A cor was equivalent to about 220 liters. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could express the quantity in modern measurements, as UST does, “500 bushels of wheat.” Alternatively, to help your readers recognize that the biblical writings come from long ago when people used different measurements, you could express the amount using the ancient measurement, the **cor**, and explain the equivalent in modern measurements in a note. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-bvolume]])
If it would be helpful to your readers, you could express this in terms of modern measurements. Alternate translation: “it weighted 34 kilograms” or “it weighed 75 pounds” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-bweight]])
In ancient times, a silver shekel weighed about 11 grams or about a third of an ounce. You could try to express the equivalent in terms of modern money values, but if you did, that could cause your Bible translation to become outdated and inaccurate, since those values can change over time. Instead, you could say something general like “40 silver coins” or give the equivalent weight or use the biblical term in the text and explain the weight in a note. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-bmoney]])
You could convert the Hebrew day and month into an approximate date on the calendar that your culture uses. However, the Jews used a lunar calendar, so if you use a solar calendar, the date will be different every year and the translation will not be entirely accurate. So you may just want to give the number of the day and the name of the month on the Hebrew calendar. Alternate translation: “by the third day of the month of Adar” (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/[[translate-hebrewmonths]])
The **talent** was the largest unit of money and **10,000** was the largest number in the counting system of the time. It is possible that Haman used these terms to represent a very large, but not precise, amount. Alternate translation: “a huge amount of silver” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-numbers]])
*in the second year … in the second month* (Ezra 3:8)
If your language does not use ordinal numbers, you can use cardinal numbers here. Alternate translation: “in month two of year two” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-ordinal]])
This action was an expression of strong rejection in this culture. It showed that someone did not want even the dust of a town to remain on him. If there is a similar gesture in your culture, you could consider using it here in your translation. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-symaction]])
Writing Styles (Discourse)
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Blessings (Article does not exist yet)
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*Grace, mercy, and peace from* (2 Timothy 1:2)
After stating his name and the name of the person to whom he is writing, Paul adds a blessing to Timothy. Use a form that people would recognize as a blessing in your language. Alternate translation: “may you experience kindness, mercy, and peace within you from” or “I pray that you will have grace, mercy, and peace from” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-blessing]])
*it finds it swept out and put in order* (Luke 11:25)
Jesus speaks about the person whom the demon left by continuing the metaphor of a house. You could express this metaphor as a simile if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: “the demon finds that the person it left is like a house that someone has swept clean and organized by putting everything where it belongs” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-exmetaphor]])
*he was passing through between Samaria and Galilee* (Luke 17:11)
Luke provides this background information about Jesus’ location to help readers understand what happens in this episode, in which Jesus engages a group of men that includes both Jews and at least one Samaritan. Alternate translation: “Jesus was traveling along the border between Samaria and Galilee” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-background]])
This is a comment about what happened after the story as a result of the events within the story itself. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-endofstory]])
*If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar* (1 John 1:10)
John is using a hypothetical situation to help his readers recognize the serious implications of disregarding sin. Alternate translation: “Suppose we say that we have not sinned. Then we are calling God a liar” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-hypo]])
This introduces a new event that happened some time after the events the story has just related. The story does not say how long after those events this new event happened. Alternate translation: “Some time later” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-newevent]])
This introduces Ezra as a new character in the story. The expression “the scribe” identifies him as a teacher who had carefully studied the Law of Moses. Since he is a new participant, if it would be helpful to your readers, you could call him something like “a man named Ezra, who was a teacher of the Law of Moses” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-participants]])
To help Simon the Pharisee understand what he wants to teach him, Jesus tells a story. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could say that explicitly. Alternate translation: “Then Jesus told Simon this story to help him understand: ‘There were two debtors’” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-parables]])
*I am writing to you, little children* (1 John 2:12)
In order to show that John is writing something like poetry in this verse and the next two verses, some translations set the statements in these verses farther to the right than the rest of the text, and they begin a new line at the start of each statement. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-poetry]])
*People who are well do not have need of a physician, but those who have sickness* (Luke 5:31)
Jesus begins his response by quoting or creating a proverb, a short saying about something that is generally true in life. This proverb draws a figurative comparison: Just as sick people need to see a doctor to be healed, so sinners need to see Jesus in order to be forgiven and restored. But since Jesus explains the comparison in the next verse, you do not need to explain it here. Rather, you can translate the proverb itself in a way that will be meaningful in your language and culture. Alternate translation: “People who are well do not need to see a doctor; people who are sick do” (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-proverbs]])
The number seven is a symbol of completeness and perfection. The “seven spirits” refers either to the Spirit of God or to seven spirits who serve God. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/writing-symlanguage]])
*For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out from the man* (Luke 8:29)
If your language would put the reason before the result, you could create a verse bridge by moving this sentence to the previous verse, after the man bows down to Jesus but before he speaks. You would need to change the tense of the verb to fit the context. Alternate translation: “Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man” (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-versebridge)
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