Courting trouble if trust breaks down - meaning

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JACEK1

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Hello.

The above heading "Courting trouble if trust breaks down" is the title of an article that a workmate of mine asked me to translate into Polish for him.

To my way of thinking, "Courting trouble if trust breaks down" means "Playing with fire if trust deteriorates" or "Asking for trouble if trust deteriorates" or "Tempting fate if trust deteriorates" or even "Playing with death if trust deteriorates".

Do you think I am right?

Does "courting trouble" mean the same as "courting disaster/danger"?

What do you think?

Thank you.
 

teechar

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It might translate better if you change the "if" to "when."
 

Skrej

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I think the 'playing with fire' and 'courting death' examples are a bit extreme for merely courting trouble. Of your three, I think the 'asking for trouble' is the closest explanation.
 
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