Uploaded August 2012 | Updated September 2026, 19 hours ago
Sometimes when you're translating you hit a brick wall. The main line of the song you're translating does not make sense when literally translated. While very literal translations are good sometimes, they usually don't help people understand the complex trends and usage of a language. Also, you always have to worry about people using your videos to study English.
Let's break up the main line that Tiana sings about 5 times. J'irai au bout du rêve. J'irai = first person future tense of aller (to go - can be used to refer to the future like in English). Au bout is the tricky part. À bout is a VERY idiomatic expression that can be used in dozens of ways (à bout de bras = at arms length; à bout de forces = exhausted; au bout du compte = all things considered). In a very literal sense it means "to the end of something." Tiana is going to get to the end of her dream. Du is a contraction of de (of) + le (the). I hope you agree that "I'm going to the end of the dream" is not a good enough translation. I did my best but I didn't have many ideas. Please leave suggestions of how you would translate it!
Sometimes when you're translating you hit a brick wall. The main line of the song you're translating does not make sense when literally translated. While very literal translations are good sometimes, they usually don't help people understand the complex trends and usage of a language. Also, you always have to worry about people using your videos to study English.
Let's break up the main line that Tiana sings about 5 times. J'irai au bout du rêve. J'irai = first person future tense of aller (to go - can be used to refer to the future like in English). Au bout is the tricky part. À bout is a VERY idiomatic expression that can be used in dozens of ways (à bout de bras = at arms length; à bout de forces = exhausted; au bout du compte = all things considered). In a very literal sense it means "to the end of something." Tiana is going to get to the end of her dream. Du is a contraction of de (of) + le (the). I hope you agree that "I'm going to the end of the dream" is not a good enough translation. I did my best but I didn't have many ideas. Please leave suggestions of how you would translate it!
