Is there a word I can use to translate the word "somehow", when it's used in a sentence like:
You somehow gave me an idea.
Google translate gives,
Vous m'avez en quelque sorte donné une idée.
But I think that « en quelque sorte » is a wrong translation: this wictionary suggests « en quelque sorte » might mean, "You nearly gave me an idea", or, "You gave me something which is nearly an idea".
The English meaning that I'm trying convey by "somehow" is, "it surely happened but I don't know how", so,
You certainly gave me an idea, but I don't know how you did it.
Something like,
Vous m'avez (je ne sais pas trop comment) donné une idée.
I'm looking specifically for a translation of "somehow", not for an idiom related to ideas: the sentence about "an idea" above is just an example. Another example would be:
He somehow managed to say goodbye.
Perhaps I could say, « quand même »: « Vous m'avez quand même donné une idée. »