Muriel Vasconcellos (asker) Aug 27, 2014:

@All Thanks for your thorough discussion. After I posted the question, and before I saw any answers, I came up with my own answer, which was 'undermine the relevance of the original tender'- very close to the suggestion made by Chris. I think this is a legitimate use of 'relevance' in English, though I usually translate "relevancia" differently, as Charles has suggested.

Wilsonn Perez Reyes Aug 26, 2014:

It means "relevance" here in my opinion, too.

Charles Davis Aug 26, 2014:

"Relevance" arguably makes sense in the context, but to say that "relevancia" has that meaning is another matter.

"relevant
Closely connected or appropriate to the matter at hand"
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_eng...

"relevance
1 a : relation to the matter at hand
b : practical and especially social applicability : pertinence <giving relevance to college courses>
2 : the ability (as of an information retrieval system) to retrieve material that satisfies the needs of the user"
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relevance

Compare these from the DRAE:

"relevante.
1. adj. Sobresaliente, destacado.
2. adj. Importante, significativo."

"relevancia.
1. f. Cualidad o condición de relevante, importancia, significación."

Pertinence or applicability, the essential meaning of relevance, forms no direct part of the meaning of relevancia, though what is relevante may well be relevant.

Now I accept that "important" can be "important in relation to something", and that this can lead us to translate it as "relevant". This may be such a case. But more often than not "relevant" is the wrong translation. Many people don't realise this.

philgoddard Aug 26, 2014:

I disagree with you, Charles. It means relevance here in my opinion.

Chris Neill Aug 26, 2014:

I'm supposing the tender has "social relevance" and although it could be argued that relevance could be interchanged for "importance" or "significance". "relevance" is the more acceptable term (at least in NGOs and international development and cooperation)

Chris Neill Aug 26, 2014:

Yes, I agree with you Charles, but I think in this case it is justified. Here's a definition from the Miriam Webster Dictionary

1
a : relation to the matter at hand
b : practical and especially social applicability : pertinence (giving relevance to college courses)

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relevance

Charles Davis Aug 26, 2014:

Relevancia Many of us have bees in our bonnet about certain words, and "relevancia" is one of mine. May I just point out that it usually means "importance" or "significance" (and I think it does here), rather than "relevance".

Muriel Vasconcellos (asker) Aug 26, 2014:

Sorry! I was having brain fog. The solution came to me after I posted the question.