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I'd like to translate the sentence "We need sunburn cream, bath towels and such."

Wir werden heute an den Strand fahren. Was brauchen wir fürs Sonnenliegen?

Wir brauchen Sonnebrand-Creme, Badetücher und oder so.

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  • 3
    Just remove the oder. Its und so. Jan 4, 2014 at 5:05
  • 1
    "und so was" oder "und dergleichen" bzw. "und so weiter" ginge ebenfalls.
    – Ingo
    Jan 4, 2014 at 14:15

4 Answers 4

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The most colloquial way is the one suggested in the other answer

... und so (was).

But there are several other versions that are more suitable for print.

... und solcherlei Dinge.

A bit overcomplicated, might work in novels or texts that make use of all the language has to offer. I can see that in a comedic text for instance.

... und dererlei Dinge.

Same as above but even more high brow and it doesn't have the least bit of a wink to it (solcherlei has). I can see that in literature.

... und dergleichen.

That is maybe the most neutral choice for print. It is not as mundane as und so but it lacks the "ornamentiness" of the other two.

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  • "and such" has a kind of old fashioned sound to it which is perfectly matched by "und dergleichen".
    – gnasher729
    Sep 23, 2014 at 10:39
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RienNeVaPlus above is right: It's just

Wir brauchen Sonnencreme, Badetücher und so.

Sonnenbrand-Creme sounds strange. And instead of "Sonnenliegen" use "Sonnenbaden".

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"and such" is more specific than "und so". the latter one doesn't refer to a similar type of items, while the former does.

Wir sollten Sonnencreme, Badetücher und solcherlei mitnehmen.

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  • 1
    IMO, "und so" does refer to a similar type of items. I think it's a short form of "und so etwas".
    – nwellnhof
    Jan 4, 2014 at 20:26
  • sure a short form, but 'so etwas' is still different from 'solcherlei' or 'derartig'. persoanlly, i consider 'und so' as an expression of lazyness, i.e. to think :)
    – jitter
    Jan 5, 2014 at 18:54
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(Being German) I can say that "und solcherlei" is definitely wrong!
Common idioms are "und so" or "und sowas" as well as the abbreviations "etc." and "usw." (the latter means "und so weiter").

A slang/sloppy version could also be:

"Wir brauchen Sonnencreme, Badetücher und so'n Kram" (or "... und so'n Zeug").

"... und dergleichen" is neutral and could be used in written text, while still being OK for direct speech.

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