Translation - art & business » Lighter side of trans/interp »
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Off topic: Translating from German: Pet hates
Thread poster: IanW (X)
writeaway
writeaway  Identity Verified
French to English
+ ...
Der Verantwortlicher/die Verantwortlichen Aug 11, 2003

same goes for the French 'le responsable' and the Dutch 'verantwoordelijke'. I did proofread one contract where the person went for it: the responsible.
 
John Bowden
John Bowden  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:02
German to English
Some great suggestions! Aug 12, 2003

It's always difficult to make those "nichtssagende" cliches which German companies love using sound natural in English: you know the sort of thing: "Ihr Partner rund ums Auto", "Überzeugen sie sich von unseren Leistungen" etc - especially when the client wants e.g. "partner" keeping in the English version, or knows a bit of English - "Aber 'überzeugen' heißt doch 'convince [or rather, 'conwince'], das finde ich aber in Ihrem Text nicht...". Grrrr!!
 
CathyFS
CathyFS  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:02
German to English
+ ...
Aaargh, words that do my head in! Aug 15, 2003

realisieren
ermitteln
durchführen
Angebot
Anfrage
Abgang
Augang
Einlagerung
Protokoll (on occasion)
Sperre ... I mean is it lock, block, stop quarantine......

There are oh so many more German words that are hard to convey nicely in the English language... and soooo may makey-uppy words that the Germans who write the texts we translate just string together to suit themselves. And non-native speakers complain about the complexity... See more
realisieren
ermitteln
durchführen
Angebot
Anfrage
Abgang
Augang
Einlagerung
Protokoll (on occasion)
Sperre ... I mean is it lock, block, stop quarantine......

There are oh so many more German words that are hard to convey nicely in the English language... and soooo may makey-uppy words that the Germans who write the texts we translate just string together to suit themselves. And non-native speakers complain about the complexity of the English language!!! ▲ Collapse
 
CathyFS
CathyFS  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:02
German to English
+ ...
What happened to my languages? Aug 15, 2003

Hey why didn't my languages display correctly above - I translate from German too! Checked my profile and nothing has changed there - hmm, I think I'm being sabotaged...

Sorry, different topic for a different day.
 
Kevin Fulton
Kevin Fulton  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 14:02
German to English
What's a Blende? Aug 18, 2003

In my current translation, it's a fixture, a reflector, a cover, depending on the context. Ein/ausblenden also makes me crazy.

Gezielt is another term that's meaningless, along with zweckmässig. All activities have a purpose, don't they?
Kevin
 
Heinrich Pesch
Heinrich Pesch  Identity Verified
Finland
Local time: 21:02
Member (2003)
Finnish to German
+ ...
Hub Aug 18, 2003

Gerade haben wir mit meinem schwedischen Kollegen viel Kopfzerbrechen mit dem Hub. Das finnische Wörterbuch hat dafür 12 verschiedene Entsprechungen. Aber auch Englisch ist da großzügig, wie viele Bedeutungen hat "drive" in anderen Sprachen?

Oder wahllos aufgeschlagen:
eject
efficiency
erect
erasure
usw.
 
Lorenzo Lilli
Lorenzo Lilli  Identity Verified
Local time: 20:02
German to Italian
+ ...
my 2 Pfennig Aug 18, 2003

Wobei/dabei, Konzept and Heimat - and of course many others that I've managed to forget for a while No doubt they'll come back soon.

And then one in English: ultimate. I just hate it! I'm never satisfied with the solution I choose, I always think there could be a better one.

[Edited at 2003-08-19 13:41]
 
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Translating from German: Pet hates






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