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My Google-fu and Cantonese brain selected these translations for “frequent abuse leads to restrictions”/“you abuse it, you lose it”:

  • 濫用多就邀請限制 (lànyòng duō jiù yāoqǐng xiànzhì) frequent abuse invites restrictions
  • 濫用請對策 (lànyòng qǐng duìcè) abuse leads to countermeasures

(Basically, I try to find the combination of words that gives the most hits on Google and makes sense to me, a Cantonese speaker.)

It’s supposed to come off in an admonishing/I-told-you-so kind of way. The idea is that frequent abuse has motivated the establishment of stricter measures (like a child taking too often from the cookie jar, resulting in the jar going under lock and key).

Is there a an equivalent with more brevity? An equivalent that is more standard? I get a lot of characters for translations from English, but I don’t really have a good grasp of the nuances.

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  • 常濫用會導致限制。濫用導致限制。Because it is abused too frequently, it will be restricted to avoid the abuse.
    – young99
    Jun 24, 2017 at 4:01
  • 過度濫用權利, 權利就會受限制 you can replace 權利 with 特權 or 權益
    – Tang Ho
    Jun 24, 2017 at 10:10
  • How many ways of saying abuse (noun) are there? There must be a case that applies best to abuse of privileges (the kind that a regular person gets—such as a child from a parent—not a government official or company executive).
    – Kevin Li
    Jun 24, 2017 at 11:40
  • You may use 不知節制就會導致限制。
    – young99
    Jun 24, 2017 at 12:14
  • There is a proverb: 多行不义必自毙 Jun 30, 2017 at 7:58

2 Answers 2

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濫用 is only one of many aspects of abuse. Abuse is inappropriate way to use something. When you get the meaning, you are free from fixed expressions. Say, 愛用宜守規,違者得限制。

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  • That’s a pretty neat way of saying it. My interpretation: “proper use appreciated; abusers lead to limitations.” Like Teddy Roosevelt said: “speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.”
    – Kevin Li
    Jun 24, 2017 at 11:33
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How about:
Abuse it you lose it. 滥用失去。

No takers for rule breakers. 犯了规不会

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