Unique words in your native language

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<a href="/sv/translator/siho92" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1367737">SiHo_92 <div class="author_icon" title="Page author" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 09.01.2018
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Hi there! I thought it might be interesting to create a forum topic about untranslatable words. What words do you have in your native language that defy translation? What do they mean?

I start with these two German words:

• "Geborgenheit" (noun), "geborgen" (adjective):
It describes the state of feeling safe (both physically and mentally) at a particular location and also comfortable and happy e.g. because you are at home or with the people you love. You have the feeling that nothing bad will happen to you.
Comparable English terms could be: "concealment/safety" and "comfortable/safe".

• "Weltschmerz" (noun):
When you compare the world's real state with what you've expected and you must find out that reality is much worse than your expectations, you have this feeling which is even in English called "weltschmerz".
Literal translation is "world pain". A comparable English term could be: "world weariness".

What words can you find? I'm looking forward to reading yours!

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<a href="/sv/translator/realachampnator-0" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1552557">RealAchampnator </a>
Medlem sedan: 08.11.2022

čecháček
That's a word to describe a narrow-minded Czech Person

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A few French ones:

"mitonner" is a verb that means something like "to cook with dedication, love and skill".
Maybe not as lofty as the Portuguese "saudade" or the Russian "toska", but I'd say you have to be French to fully understand it :D

"spleen" has been borrowed from English but came to mean a peculiar mix of boredom and sadness, made famous by Charles Baudelaire.

"se défenestrer" ("to out-window oneself") is a verb specifically meaning "committing suicide by jumping out the window".
The non-reflexive form also exists : throwing someone out the window !
Despite the popularity of the method, we don't have a verb for jumping off a bridge.

"dépaysement" ("out-of-country-ness") is a noun describing a feeling of being outside your usual frame of reference. It can be positive, like the excitement of discovering new places, or unpleasant, like a feeling of estrangement, depending on the context.

"yaourt" (yoghurt) can be used to describe the gibberish you sing when you imitate a language you don't know, in sentences like "this is yoghurt" or "he/she's doing yoghurt"

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<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015

The most famous among intraducible words in Venetan is "freschìn": it means "a (not too strong) smell of rotten water, or eggs, or fish. It comes from latin "fracesco" (= to get rotten). I know there is something alike in Argentina(oler a fresco) probably due to the important migration from Veneto to that country in the past.
When you take a walk in Venice, you can appreciate this fragrance. Also when dishes and glasses haven't been washed carefully.
The peculiarity of this word is its relativity. So when you say that a thing smells "da freschin" you must use a scale that changes its own basical value according the nature of the object. So, a freshly caught fish doesn't smell "da freschìn"; but your hands after having touched it, they do.

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<a href="/sv/translator/jadis" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1387945">Jadis </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.07.2018

It's "saudade", actually. ;) ("sodade" in Cabo Verde).
 
I can't think of any specific French words at the moment (I'm sure there still are plenty of them), but I can mention at least 2 very common words in a lot of languages, that do not exist in French, as incredible as it may seem : shallow and cheap. To express these concepts, we have to use clumsy expressions : peu profond, and bon marché / pas cher. This has always stunned me.
 
(Edit) Oh, and I found yet another one : sibling. This is quite impossible to translate in French (frère ou soeur, plural : frères et/ou soeurs ???)

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<a href="/sv/translator/siho92" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1367737">SiHo_92 <div class="author_icon" title="Page author" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 09.01.2018

Well, "sibling" is difficult to translate into German, too. The plural is no problem: "Geschwister" (="siblings"), but when it comes to the singular, it's tricky: Either you say "Geschwisterteil" (="part of siblings") or you use the diminutive form "Geschwisterchen" (="mini sibling") that you only use for younger actually new-born siblings.

But what I find funniest is the fact that when I was at school I've always been taught that there was no English translation for "Geschwister". We always had to use "brothers or sisters" – even at High School! It was here on LT when I first came across the term "siblings"! :o

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<a href="/sv/translator/rosmona-laffey" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1414622">Rosmona Laffey </a>
Medlem sedan: 06.03.2019

In Chinese, we've got a handful of unique words:
1.“摸鱼”(lit. to touch fish). It has become popular in recent years. When somebody looks as if (s)he is working but (s)he isn't, we'd say that (s)he is 摸鱼ing. It can also refer to drawing random things when bored.
2.“盘”(lit. to coil). When we want to let someone beat a person, we usually say“盘他!”(lit. Coil him!) Commonly seen in some dialects, but has become popular online.
3.“冲塔”(lit. to rush to the tower). It was originally used in League of Legends, meaning exactly what it means literally. Now it also refers to doing things that may give oneself some heavy "payback".
4.“打”(lit. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E6%89%93). This word is very common in everyday usage and i think it's one of the things that make Chinese difficult to learn. I haven't found any word in any language can be used in dozens of ways(btw, this word also has a meaning of "dozen"). What's worse, Chinese has “整” “给” “弄” and several other words that have many completely different meanings. They're so hard that even L1 speakers cannot distinguish them. Absolute nightmare for its learners.
5.“果然”(lit. *untranslatable*). If you know Japanese, then good news for you: Japanese word “やっぱり“ or "やはり" has basically the same meaning. But if you don't... Well, let me give you an easy explanation. When you know a thing has happened, and you've been knowing that the thing is gonna happen, then you can use the word.
I'm so glad that I'm an L1 speaker of Chinese!(

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<a href="/sv/translator/siho92" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1367737">SiHo_92 <div class="author_icon" title="Page author" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 09.01.2018
Dora Vysotskaya a écrit :

Puente — When Thursday is a holiday and you take off Friday to bridge the holiday to the weekend, or, likewise, when Tuesday is a holiday and you take off Monday to extend your weekend

We also have such a word in German: "Brückentag" (literally "bridge day"), but it's not as nice as the Spanish word. ;)

—————

Dora Vysotskaya a écrit :

Tocayo or tocaya: is a fun Spanish word that refers to someone who shares the same first name as you!

Wow, that is beautiful! *heart*

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<a href="/sv/translator/jadis" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1387945">Jadis </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.07.2018

"Quincena" also exists in French : quinzaine ("15 jours", but usually it refers to a period of 2 weeks, so... 14 days).
We have a more perverse expression, "en huit". If you say for example "jeudi en 8", it means on that Thursday coming after a period of 8 days from today, today included... (I never use it, it makes my brains hurt). It's also possible to say "en quinze" (after 14 days)...
We also say "un pont" for a long week-end, and even, if you manage to join 2 long week-ends (like in May for example) : un viaduc (a viaduct !)

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Some modern Russian language example: устаканиться (ustakanit'sja) a verb with a meaning of to self-stabilize, to self-regulate. It is very widely used now.  The funny part that its root is "стакан" - a Russian word for a glass beaker or a tumbler. One "stakan" is roughly a one third of a bottle.

Juniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/caroline-zw" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432274">Caroline-ZW </a>
Medlem sedan: 02.09.2019

We have a Dutch word for "friolero": "koukleum" [ˈkɑukløm]

Juniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/caroline-zw" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432274">Caroline-ZW </a>
Medlem sedan: 02.09.2019

In Dutch we have the noun "geborgenheid" and like in German the adjective "geborgen".

But there are some German words that we use without translating them, like "sowieso" ("anyway") and "Weltschmerz".

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<a href="/sv/translator/don-juan" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1110108">Don Juan <div class="moderator_icon" title="Moderator" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 05.04.2012

In Portuguese we have 'saudade', which is a strong nostalgia for something or someone (ex.: if you love someone who moved far away, in a way that you don't see them as often as you did, you can say 'tenho saudade dele/dela'). It's semantically stronger than 'I miss her/him/them'.

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<a href="/sv/translator/lizzzard" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1241111">Lizzzard </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.04.2015

Башлять - in Russian slang means "to pay to gain benefit or to solve a problem"
comes from another expression - "баш на баш" - which means "an equivalent exchange".
The expression traces its history from cattle traders exchanging animals. Баш - from the Turkic word "head" (a unit of cattle).

Expert
<a href="/sv/translator/jadis" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1387945">Jadis </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.07.2018

There is one German word I never knew how to translate, and yet it is very much in use : zwar. Even with the dictionary open at the right page under my eyes, I can't make anything out of it (en effet, en fait, certes ?). Und zwar...

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<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015

I see that many words that Vera thought be peculiar of Spanish are quite commons at least in neolatin languages. I try to list all the words I read till now that could be translated in Italian:

depaysement = spaesamento
pardo = bruno/ brunastro
quincena = quindicina
friolero = freddoloso
consuegro = consuocero
puente = ponte(same meaning)
desvelado = insonne
tocayo = omonimo
摸鱼”(lit. to touch fish) = (venetan) destatarar.

I found that in Venetan there's a word that exists in English but not in Italian: the verb "sorar"(english = soar).
It comes from latin "ex-aurare" = hower and dissolve in the air.
It's mainly use in its meaning of "get colder", because it's an effect of evaporation.
We say, e.g.: 'A sopa 'a xe de bojo, 'assa che 'a se sore!" (= the soup is hot, let it cool!)

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<a href="/sv/translator/siho92" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1367737">SiHo_92 <div class="author_icon" title="Page author" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 09.01.2018

Oh yes, how come I haven't thought of this word yet? :D Maybe coz it's so commonly used that we Germans hardly notice it anymore…
Often, it's kinda gap filler, so when I see it in a song I simply skip it! ;) But sometimes it can be translated with "although": "Zwar habe ich alles geplant, aber es endete trotzdem in einem Disaster." = "Although I've planned everything, it ended up in a disaster."
Your example "und zwar" might be translated "which is": "Ich habe eine tolle Idee! Und zwar könnten wir das so machen." = "I've got a great idea which is doing it this way!" (Although I have to admit that even here it'd sound better to skip the word "zwar": "I've got a great idea! We could do it this way.") You see, even German speakers have troubles defining what it actually means.

BTW, I'm so pleased that people seem to find this topic as fascinating as I do! *thumbs_up* Thanks a lot! Keep going!

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<a href="/sv/translator/jadis" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1387945">Jadis </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.07.2018

Yes, that's what I feared ! How can the same word both mean "although" and "which is", which are nearly perfect opposites, I just can't imagine. I guess that sometimes the word could be translated in French by "en fait" (=actually), which a very common filler in French nowadays, especially among young people. But then, how translate "Zwar habe ich alles geplant" ("même si j'ai tout prévu" ?), and above all, how to know when it means one thing and when the other one ? I have no idea. :|

 

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<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015

The root of both verbs "pagare"(=to pay) and "pacare"(=to appease) is the same: "pecus"(= cattle).
Obviously there is a close relation with "pecora"(sheep) and "pecunia"(=money).
It's the same (old) story everywhere...  ;)

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<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015

“zwar”… I don’t know German except a few words (it’s a pity!) but it sounds to me like a contraction of “ das ist wahr”. 
It could be plausible, in my opinion, because the sentences you wrote could be written this way:

1)“Zwar habe ich alles geplant, aber...”( = it’s true that I’ve planned everything, but…)

2) "Ich habe eine tolle Idee! Und zwar könnten wir das so machen."
Here, “zwar” could be intended as a reinforcement of “könnten wir das so machen”?
Something like: “which is really doing this way”?

Tell me if my imagination runs too fast  ;)

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Jadis a écrit :

But then, how translate "Zwar habe ich alles geplant" ("même si j'ai tout prévu" ?), and above all, how to know when it means one thing and when the other one ? I have no idea.

zwar -> es ist wahr[, dass][... aber] -> c'est vrai [que][...mais]

Zwar habe ich alles geplant [aber] -> True, I've got it all planned, but... -> "même si j'ai tout prévu,..." ou "d'accord, j'ai tout prévu, mais..."

C'est drôle, je ne vois pas de difficulté avec ce mot. Mais je me trompe peut-être.

Seniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/olga-kalinkina" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432789">Olga Kalinkina </a>
Medlem sedan: 08.09.2019

In Russian we have different words for each brother-in-law and sister-in-law, depending on the family relation: зять (zjat') - sister's husband,
шу́рин (šurin)' - wife's brother, де́верь (dever') - husband's brother, своя́к (svojak) - wife's sister's husband
sister-in-law - неве́стка (nevestka) brother's wife, золо́вка (zolovka) husband's sister, своя́ченица (svojačenitsa) wife's sister
Funny thing is that Russians themselves often don't remember who is who. :-)

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<a href="/sv/translator/jadis" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1387945">Jadis </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.07.2018

Je fais peut-être un blocage des méninges là-dessus. C'est curieux, mais je ne me souviens pas qu'en 8 ans de cours d'allemand au collège et au lycée, on m'ait jamais expliqué ce mot, que j'ai découvert plus tard, c'est peut-être pour ça... Peut-être aussi que je fais des associations inconscientes erronées avec des mots commençant par "zw" (Zwang, Zweifel, Zweck ?) En tout cas mon dico est remarquablement laconique sur cette entrée : zwar, adverbe : zwar... aber = certes... mais ; zwar... und = à savoir. Aucun exemple. C'est peu.

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Oui, ça arrive . Perso c'est la différence entre "gaze" et "stare". J'ai appris ça à Donjons et Dragons en parlant de méduses et de basilics, alors forcément c'est pas très précis. :D

J'ai appris une bonne partie de mon allemand sur le tas à Berlin, j'imagine que c'est là où le "zwar" est devenu naturel.

Oops... Sorry for derailing the thread. I'll be a good boy now.

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<a href="/sv/translator/siho92" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1367737">SiHo_92 <div class="author_icon" title="Page author" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 09.01.2018

"своя́к (svojak) - wife's sister's husband" ⇒ That is cool!

"Russians themselves often don't remember who is who." ⇒ I guess so! :D

Juniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/caroline-zw" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432274">Caroline-ZW </a>
Medlem sedan: 02.09.2019

Some nice ones in Dutch (source: https://www.expatica.com/nl/education/language-learning/10-cool-dutch-wo...) :

"Uitbuiken"
There might not be an English-word equivalent but uitbuiken is a universal act; it means to sit back and let your belly out – literally ‘out-bellying’ – after a long meal to help digestion.

"Uitwaaien"
The refreshing act of going for a walk and getting some air, translated literally as ‘to blow out’.

"Uitzieken"
This is a word you might hear from Dutch doctors that advocate the body’s natural healing ability. Uitzieken translates to ‘sick it out’ and essentially means waiting out an illness and taking it easy until you recover.

"Hè hè"
This is a hearty expression of satisfaction after a job well done or a hard day, for example, removing your shoes or sitting down for the first time in hours.

"Voorpret"
The feeling of excitement before an event is translated literally as ‘pre-fun’.

"IJsberen"
Translated literally to ‘polarbearing’, if that was a word, IJsberen is the verb to pace around in deep thought. The word is a useful one, although the imagery of pacing captive polar bears, reportedly the inspiration for this word, pulls on the heartstrings.

"Gezellig"
A word that lies at the heart of Dutch culture, gezellig has no direct translation in English but is basically used to describe anything that evokes feelings of coziness, enjoyment or feel-good vibes. Some might say ‘conviviality’ comes close, in the way of having a ‘jolly time’, but hè gezellig rolls off the tongue more often than ‘how convivial’.

To paint an image, one might say, “Gezellig zat ik daar met een goed boek aan het vuurtje,” or, “I sat gezellig by the fire with a good book.” It can also be used to describe a nice home, a fun event, a beautiful sunset or a good conversation with friends. Just make sure you’re not caught out for being ‘un-gezellig’, like texting while someone’s talking.

"Afbellen"
Modern daters might find this word useful, as the Dutch have a dedicated word for cancelling plans over the phone, literally translated as ‘off-calling’, and different to cancelling a subscription (afzeggen) or cancelling plans in general (afzeggen).

"Gedogen"
The Dutch take pride in toting tolerance as a cultural trait, and certainly the county’s drug and prostitution laws are more lenient than some of its neighbours. Gedogen, then, is to take a lenient stance or turn a blind eye to something, like the Netherlands’ drugs gedoog policy.

"Lekker"
This word in itself can be roughly translated into tasty, except that it can be applied to almost anything, from having a nice body to nice conversation. It has filtered into many Dutch phrases; ga lekker zitten means to make yourself comfortable, or lekker puh is what children might say when they’re one up, as in ‘so there’ or ‘serves you right’. A modern twist takes it further: Wearing orange? Dat vind ik wel lekker (Like it).

What can’t be translated into English, however, is the accompanying gesture: when you’ve got a mouthful of something delicious, wave your hand across your cheek and smile; everyone will understand that what you’re eating is, indeed, incredibly tasty, or lekker.

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Olga Kalinkina a écrit :

In Russian we have different words for each brother-in-law and sister-in-law, depending on the family relation: зять, шу́рин, де́верь, своя́к, золо́вк, etc ... Funny thing is that Russians themselves often don't remember who is who. :-)

Nice! And at least four more special terms for "mother-in-law" & "father-in-law", as well as one for "daughter-in-law". I remember using those terms on random to get some laughs.

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In Anatolian Dialects one calls her husband's sister, (she must be married) as 'Görümce',
In daily Turkish you can call somebody who is older than you (he must be male) as ''Ağabey'', it is written ağabey but pronounced ''Ağbi''. Under the same conditions you can call a female person as 'Abla', as well
In high Turkish, when someone says 'You look so handsome today' and then you can say 'Teveccühünüz' which means 'If you think that I look handsome, I would be handsome already'.
In daily and urban Turkish, you can see someone who says repeatedly 'Ian', This cannot be translated into any language but we can translate it as hey, but not same things
In everyday Turkish, no matter high, urban or daily, You will always see someone who says 'ya'. Just like lan it cannot be translated either. It may not make any sense to your language but Turks use this for accenting his thoughts

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I have just read Caroline's comment about nice Dutch words. My favorite one is definitely "ometje"! "om" (around) is a prepositon, but in Dutch you can use it with the diminutive form! So here it means a short walk for example with the dog. When I started to learn Dutch I was really astonished that this is also possible! :)

Juniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/caroline-zw" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432274">Caroline-ZW </a>
Medlem sedan: 02.09.2019

Hello Vera, yes, "ommetje" (with 2 "m"), that's a nice one, too! :-)

Something I also like to share, by the way, is "klompenpaden" (more on https://klompenpaden.nl/welcome/). I'm not even sure if it's already in a dictionary...

What are Klompenpaden?
Klompenpaden (literally translated as ‘wooden shoe paths’) are roundtrip walks in our rural landscape. The Klompenpaden will lead you along historical and unpaved paths through pastures, arable land, and across old estates. You can discover this part of the country’s local history, and enjoy the atmosphere created by nature and farmers.

Juniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/caroline-zw" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432274">Caroline-ZW </a>
Medlem sedan: 02.09.2019

I don't find any translation for our Dutch (Frysian) word "klunen", just a description: to walk over land while wearing ice skates (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/klunen).

For a visible explanation: e.g. at 03:20, or even better 03:50 in this nice old video:
http://in.beeldengeluid.nl/collectie/details/expressie/78807/false/true

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<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015

There is an untranslatable word in venetan:
"cataradeghi"(or "radegoso"), that means "a person who always looks for a pretext to argue or fight".

It was quite hard to find its roots. Its meaning probably is "erratica-finder". "Erratica" is a latin word that means "plants escaped from their seedbeds and grown scattered on vacant lots".
We find a similar concept in the idiom "uscito dal seminato"( escaped from farmland = stepped off the path) to say "someone whose behaviour is socially inacceptable": it could be plausible, I guess.
Is there anything alike in other languages?

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In French we have "bagarreur" or "querelleur", similar to "brawler" (except "bagarre" is not specifically about fistfight) and "quarrelsome". Nothing with such a poetic etymology though.

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<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015

You are right to stress the difference between a simple quarrel and a fistfight. And maybe to say that a "cataradeghi" loves to fight is a little bit exaggerate. Cataradeghi loves quarrels, he's a negative, a niggling, but not a violent one.

Juniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/delimeat" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1437133">DeliMeat </a>
Medlem sedan: 30.10.2019

I'm a bit late to the party, but I really liked this topic so here are a few Swedish examples :)

Vabba - to stay home from work to take care of a sick child. It's a verbified form of the abbreviation "VAB" which means "care for child".

Hoppilandkalle - the person who sits at the front of a smaller boat and jumps to the dock and stops the boat from hitting it/ties it to the dock

Badkruka - a person who is a wuss when it comes to swimming in cold water

Björntjänst - literally a "bear favor", when you do something a favor but the end result is negative, so essentially when you try to help but end up making things worse.

Fika - Both a verb and a noun. It's when you sit down with people to take it easy, drink some coffee and eat something sweet. Usually a sweet bun or some cookies.

Påtår - when you get a second cup of a coffee after your first one. Often used during fika. Almost all restaurants in Sweden have a free "påtår" so you get a second cup of coffee for free

Seniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/olga-kalinkina" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432789">Olga Kalinkina </a>
Medlem sedan: 08.09.2019

Funny, we also have a "bear favor"' in Russian, I wonder where had it come from.

Supermedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/almitra" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432222">Almitra </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.09.2019

It comes from fables. Since fables go back millennia, they found their way into many languages and cultures. Originally, it was about a bear who wanted to help a sleeping man by swinging at flies with a rock and smashed his head in the process.

Juniormedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/delimeat" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1437133">DeliMeat </a>
Medlem sedan: 30.10.2019

Oh, that's interesting, I didn't know that! :D

Retired Editor Absolute Amateur
<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015
Almitra a écrit :

It comes from fables. Since fables go back millennia, they found their way into many languages and cultures. Originally, it was about a bear who wanted to help a sleeping man by swinging at flies with a rock and smashed his head in the process.

There is something similar in Venetan: "copàr peòci col pico" (= to kill lice with a pickaxe), to symbolize the backwardness and the rusticity of persons acting this way, mainly referred to old peasants. It seems quite close to the bear that kills flies by throwing stones...

Expert
<a href="/sv/translator/jadis" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1387945">Jadis </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.07.2018

French version (Jean de La Fontaine).

Supermedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/almitra" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432222">Almitra </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.09.2019
annabellanna a écrit :

There is something similar in Venetan: "copàr peòci col pico" (= to kill lice with a pickaxe), to symbolize the backwardness and the rusticity of persons acting this way, mainly referred to old peasants. It seems quite close to the bear that kills flies by throwing stones...

I think the 'bear' idiom has a slightly different meaning, i.e. to do someone a favour they never asked for or to do so poorly, doing more harm than good. The Venetan idiom seems to have a more appropriate Russian equivalent: "забивать гвозди микроскопом" (=to hammer nails with a microscope), i.e. to do something ass backwards, use inappropriate tools or an outdated method to do the job.

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<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015

Well,I realize that I haven't been clear enough. I wanted to stress the similitude between the two images, the one of the bear with his stone and the one of the old peasant with the pickaxe, both in order to kill little bugs and accidentally crashing a head, due to their clumsiness and/or their poor brilliance. I understand quite well that the meaning of the fable and that of my venetan phrase are different.
Actually the one of the microscope it is almost equivalent, I agree.

Expert
<a href="/sv/translator/jadis" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1387945">Jadis </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.07.2018

True, but in the fable the bear is supposed to be the man's friend, he's sincerely willing to help him, only he's very clumsy. And the moral is : better a wise foe than an ignorant friend (and not : don't use a microscope to hammer a nail  :)   ) (Good Lord, I never had such an idea, but I will consider it).

Supermedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/almitra" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432222">Almitra </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.09.2019

Hey, no worries, we're just exchanging bits and pieces of our cultures, trapped in idioms like prehistoric insects - in amber. And I see what you mean. I was just trying to come up with a more precise Russian equivalent. The one with the microscope is not perfect either, for it's faily recent - the end of the 20th century. I'll try to find a more 'venerable' one.

Supermedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/almitra" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432222">Almitra </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.09.2019

Come to think of it, the idiom "to kill lice with a pickaxe" vaguely reminds me of the Russian expression: "из пушки по воробьям" (= use a cannon to shoot at sparrows), meaning "to use a lot more force or effort or a grossly inappropriate tool for a minute task".

Supermedlem
<a href="/sv/translator/almitra" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1432222">Almitra </a>
Medlem sedan: 01.09.2019
Jadis a écrit :

I never had such an idea

Good, you're not supposed to. I sincerely hope the expression was not based on pseudoscientific endeavours of a real individual, for it pains me to think that such exceptional specimens live among us. But your guess is as good as mine.

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<a href="/sv/translator/siho92" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1367737">SiHo_92 <div class="author_icon" title="Page author" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 09.01.2018
DeliMeat a écrit :

Björntjänst - literally a "bear favor", when you do something a favor but the end result is negative, so essentially when you try to help but end up making things worse.

In German, we have a verb with a similar but not exactly the same meaning: "verschlimmbessern" (literally: "to make better-worse"). It means that you want to fix something but in fact you make it even worse by trying to fix it. It's not connected to a favour though.
I'm a bit sad that we don't have an expression like "bear favour" for this in German.

Editor
<a href="/sv/translator/anerneq" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1112972">Anerneq <div class="editor_icon" title="Revisore" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 10.05.2012

There aren't many I can think of in Italian. Some words may not have a translation in English, but have one in other languages I know, so I find it hard to find a word that I struggle to translate in each of the languages I know.

A word that I think is totally untranslatable is "prepotente". Everytime I try to translate it, the dictionary only gives me synonims of "arrogant" which is very imprecise. "Prepotente" is being stubbornly arrogant. You are "prepotente" when you're so stubborn that not only you choose to ignore people who are correcting your bad behaviour, but you also consider yourself so superior in comparison that you keep behaving bad, because you think they have no right in telling you what you should do, because you think you're capable of telling good from evil, even when that is not the case. It's way more powerful than a simple "arrogant".

There are two words I want to mention. They're not really untranslatable, but they don't have a direct translation in any language I know. They're also very common, so it's worth mentioning them.

The first one is "mica". It's a simple negation, but it carries an unexpressed meaning that can only be understood by context. You basically use it to negate what you think people are thinking about you. For example, someone has stolen something from you and the other person says "mica sono stato io". It would literally mean "it wasn't me", but what it's really saying is "I know you think it was me, but you're wrong". Depending on context, it might also mean "it wasn't ME, it was that other person". Depending on context again, it might also imply you're quite offended as in "are you really accusing me of stealing from you? I woukd never do such a thing".
Basically the reason why it's so untranslatable is that it depends so much on the context that it's impossible to come out with a corresponding word in each and every case, because "mica" carries so much more than its literal meaning of "not".

My favourite one though is "magari". I really like this word because it has a lot of meanings and they too might depend on context.
The most basic meaning is when you wish something was real, but you know it's impossible or unlikely to happen:

"Magari piovesse"
Broad translation: "if only it rained"
Actual meaning: "I really wish it was raining, but it never rains during summer"

It carries a similar meaning even when used as an answer:

"Vorresti uscire con Maria?"
"Magari"
Broad translation: "D'you want to date Maria?"
"Wish I could"
Actual meaning: "I can't possibly date her, because I'm totally out of her league and she would never come close to a guy like me".

It's also used for a hypothesis:

"Come mai fa così freddo?"
"Magari perché non hai il cappotto."
Broad translation: "Why is it so cold?"
"Maybe because you're not wearing your coat".
(Here I've cheated a little bit because the tone is obviously sarcastic).

Similar to the meaning above, it's also used for possibilities as a synonym of "maybe".
I like it best when it's used for an emphatic effect when you want to stress the fact you doubt what someone is saying:

"Ha viaggiato per tutto il mondo: Cina, Canada, Australia, Argentina..."
"Sì, magari anche su Marte"
Broad translation: "S/he's travelled all over the world: to China, Canada, Australia, Argentina..."
"I bet s/he's even been to Mars"

Honestly "magari" has even more meanings, but I can't think of any other at the minute.

Retired Editor Absolute Amateur
<a href="/sv/translator/annabellanna" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1240490">annabellanna </a>
Medlem sedan: 27.03.2015

Hi, DarkJoshua. Did you ever notice that "mica" has a lot of equivalents that change according the geographical zone, but all with the meaning of "a very little thing", as a synonimous of "nothing"?

For example, "mica" comes from Latin(= a crumb), and in Lombard is "minga"; in Salentine they say "filu"(a thread); in Tuscan, "punto"(a point).
(In Venetan, to express "a very little amount" they say" 'na s-cianta"=a sparkle).

"Magari" comes from ancient Greek "makarios"(="bless you!") and is, more or less, the equivalent of Spanish"ojalà"(that comes from Arabic and means "may God"). You have shown all its meanings, I guess. Very compliments!

"Prepotente" could be better translated as "bully", maybe, more than "arrogant", do you agree?

Editor
<a href="/sv/translator/anerneq" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1112972">Anerneq <div class="editor_icon" title="Revisore" ></div></a>
Medlem sedan: 10.05.2012
annabellanna a écrit :

Hi, DarkJoshua. Did you ever notice that "mica" has a lot of equivalents that change according the geographical zone, but all with the meaning of "a very little thing", as a synonimous of "nothing"?

For example, "mica" comes from Latin(= a crumb), and in Lombard is "minga"; in Salentine they say "filu"(a thread); in Tuscan, "punto"(a point).
(In Venetan, to express "a very little amount" they say" 'na s-cianta"=a sparkle).

I've actually thought about this, but I don't know these languages, so I don't know to what degree they vary from how standard Italian uses "mica". That's why I preferred to stress the fact I was talking only about the languages I know.
From what you said, I understand "mica" doesn't have the same meaning it has in Italian. All these variations come from a form of emphatic negation which was present in Ancient French as well. If you said "je ne marche pas" it had the meaning of "I won't walk a step more". That's where "mica" comes: you can imagine how a sentence like "non mangio mica" originated from the meaning of "I'm not eating a crumble more". Also do they use "punto" in Tuscany? I thought that was something Tuscans took from the French? Or is it the other way around?

annabellanna a écrit :

"Magari" comes from ancient Greek "makarios"(="bless you!") and is, more or less, the equivalent of Spanish"ojalà"(that comes from Arabic and means "may God"). You have shown all its meanings, I guess. Very compliments!

I thought about "ojalá" some time after I posted the comment... but "magari" has some meanings "ojalá" doesn't have. The Portuguese have a similar word too, but I can't remember it...

annabellanna a écrit :

"Prepotente" could be better translated as "bully", maybe, more than "arrogant", do you agree?

Maybe in some contexts, but not all the times. "Bully" carries a violent meaning that "prepotente" has too, but while for the latter is more of a violent attitude, for the former it could be either physical violence or psychological violence aimed at humiliating the victim. A bully can be "prepotente", but a "prepotente" is not always a bully.

Guru
<a href="/sv/translator/zarina01" class="userpopupinfo" rel="user1295512">Zarina01 </a>
Medlem sedan: 13.06.2016
Olga Kalinkina a écrit :

In Russian we have different words for each brother-in-law and sister-in-law, depending on the family relation: зять (zjat') - sister's husband,
шу́рин (šurin)' - wife's brother, де́верь (dever') - husband's brother, своя́к (svojak) - wife's sister's husband
sister-in-law - неве́стка (nevestka) brother's wife, золо́вка (zolovka) husband's sister, своя́ченица (svojačenitsa) wife's sister
Funny thing is that Russians themselves often don't remember who is who. :-)

I think it's the same thing in languages like persian and arabic as well

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