Wortauswahl - Choosing the best word out of a list of alternatives.
3
votes
3answers
126 views
What's the difference between “manch” and “viel”?
They both mean "many," right? But are they used in different contexts or ways?
The question arises from my German translation of the following song.
...
3
votes
2answers
82 views
Difference between “bis auf”, “bisher”, and “bis zu”?
My understanding is that they all mean "up to." But could they mean "up to in different contexts, some in time, for instance, and other with regards to space?
3
votes
3answers
204 views
Is There Another Way to (Poetically) Say “Sie ist schön?”
In one of my translations, I used: "[Deine Mutter] hat Schönheit. The original is a line in Gershwin's Summertime.
My translation was:
Sommerzeit, und das Leben ist leicht.
Fische beissen, wenn ...
3
votes
2answers
201 views
When to use 'Ich bin', 'es geht mir', 'Ich habe' and 'mir ist'?
If you wanted to translate "I'm hot" into German, like "I'm burning up cause it's hot outside", it would translate to "Ich bin heiß" which has a bad connotation. So it is translated to "Mir ist heiß".
...
3
votes
3answers
155 views
Translation of “intervention” as in “orchestrated attempt by family and friends to give someone help with an addiction.”
The English word "intervention" can have the following meaning (taken from wikipedia):
An intervention is an orchestrated attempt by one, or often many, people (usually family and friends) to get ...
3
votes
2answers
156 views
Word choice: “manuell” or “von Hand”?
I've been toying with learning German for a few months now, and I'm trying to use my basic knowledge to update the translation to one of my iPhone apps. What word should I use for "manual" as in "set ...
3
votes
1answer
230 views
Wann heißt es “Nutznießer”, “Nießnutzer” und wann “Genuß”?
Im täglichen Sprachgebrauch kenne ich das Wort "Nutznießer", mit dem eine Person umschrieben wird, die einen Nutzen oder einen Vorteil aus einem Vorgang zieht.
Ich fasse einen Entschluss: Im ...
3
votes
4answers
433 views
Wann benutzt man “ob” und wann benutzt man “wenn”?
Ich habe drei Jahre Deutsch studiert. Ich habe natürlich "wenn" benutzt, aber ich habe nie "ob" benutzt. Ich weiß, dass beide auf Englisch "if" bedeuten. Ich habe "wenn" sehr oft gehört, "ob" jedoch ...
3
votes
2answers
179 views
Weniger informeller Ausdruck für “weg-abstrahieren”?
Der Satz
A und B sind gute Ansätze, welche aber die Eigenschaft E von der Problemstellung P wegabstrahieren.
kommt mir sehr umgangssprachlich vor. Ich würde aber gerne diese Bedeutung mit einer ...
3
votes
1answer
220 views
“Selbständig” or “Selbstständig”? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Selbständig vs. selbstständig
Both "selbständig" and "selbstständig" exist, being used in the same context in German. Still, I am not sure if there is a ...
2
votes
3answers
334 views
What is the difference between “vorne” and “vorher”?
They both mean "before," right? But does one refer to "time," and the other to "space?" And am I using them correctly in the following translations of popular American songs?
First, from Guys and ...
2
votes
4answers
325 views
“Kilometer pro Stunde” vs. “Stundenkilometer”
Manchmal unterläuft sogar den Nachrichtensprechern der Lapsus, "Stundenkilometer" statt "Kilometer pro Stunde" zu verwenden.
Von einem seriösen Wissenschaftler, wie zum Beispiel einem Physiker, habe ...
2
votes
3answers
202 views
What is the difference between “verdachten” and “vermuten”?
What is the difference between "verdachten" and "vermuten" and am I using the proper words in my translations of the popular American songs:
(Du weiss) ich liebe dich, sehr geliebte
Jedes Tag ...
2
votes
1answer
168 views
What are differences between “des” and “darum”?
What are differences between "Des" and "Darum"? Apparently they both mean "therefore", do they?
Here are some contexts:
"Meine Mutter war eine Wienerin, D'RUM habe ich Wien so gern."
"DES ...
2
votes
2answers
1k views
What is the difference between “musste”, “muss” and “müsste”?
What are the differences between the following sentences:
Wir wussten nicht, dass die vorhandene Rechtestruktur auch abgebildet werden musste.
Wir wussten nicht, dass die vorhandene ...
2
votes
2answers
142 views
Can “sonst” Sometimes Be Used as a Substitute for “oder”?
My understanding is that "oder" means "or," and "sonst" means "otherwise," or "or else."
The context is another verse of the poem I presented a couple days ago. Both the English and German text are ...
2
votes
1answer
83 views
How to replace relative pronoun “was” in this sentence?
This is how I would say the following sentence, but when I write it in a formal e-mail, how can I replace the "was" which seems too colloquial for this register:
Der Cataloger macht genau das, was ...
2
votes
4answers
133 views
Which is correct, “geschätzte Stunden” or “abgeschätzte Stunden”?
I want to ask someone what the "estimated hours" are for a project.
Which is correct:
Was sind die geschätzten Stunden für dieses Projekt? / Wie viel Stunden würdest du schätzen?
Was sind ...
2
votes
1answer
186 views
Wie sagt man “Make Someone Happy” auf Deutsch?
Would it be "lass eine glücklich, or "mach eine glücklich? Or some third phrase?
This comes from another of my translations of the popular American song Make Someone Happy.
A more complete ...
2
votes
2answers
127 views
When is it appropriate to say you have “Sehnsucht” for someone?
A few years ago I wrote something to a female German teacher who I was quite fond of (not in a romantic way), and it included the phrase:
Ich habe Sehnsucht nach dir.
I was shooting for a ...
2
votes
1answer
168 views
Translating emotional sensitivity words
I'm trying to distinguish the differences between English words that express emotional or psychological sensitivity, in particular "pity", "compassion", "sympathy", "empathy", "pathetic", and ...
2
votes
1answer
56 views
Philosophie des Geistes - Sprachphilosophie - common rules to merge substantives
Are there rules or is it just a relict of history and convention if substantives are merged? "Philosophie des Geistes" is a distinct discipline and so a proper name. But then there is also ...
1
vote
5answers
370 views
Eine Frau kann “zierlich” sein. Wie nennt man einen ebensolchen Mann?
Für eine kleine Frau haben wir das Attribut "zierlich", das auf nette Art beschreibt, das sie zwar klein, aber doch "fein gestaltet und graziös" ist.
Kann man einen Mann auch "zierlich" nennen, ohne ...
1
vote
1answer
77 views
“Nice summary +1”: Wie sagt man das hier?
Leo zeigt viele Möglichkeiten auf:
der Abriss
die Aufstellung
die Auswertung
der Auszug - Text
die Inhaltsangabe
die Inhaltsübersicht
der Kurzbericht
die Kurzfassung
das ...
1
vote
2answers
89 views
Alternate sentence construction using “lassen”
The sentence: "Er hat Reim in seinem Gedicht benutzt."
My instructor has suggested that I rewrite the sentence using "a more sophisticated construction, such as one with 'lassen'." How would I do ...
0
votes
2answers
109 views
Schuld oder Scham
Wikipedia spricht davon, dass Überlebende von Flugzeugabstürzen sich gelegentlich für ihr Weiterleben schuldig fühlen, obwohl sie objektiv keine Schuld am Flugzeugabsturz tragen. Weder haben sie ...
0
votes
1answer
166 views
Which is a Better German Translation of “Will”?
Is it "Wunsch", "Wille" or something else?
The context is an original poem. Both the English and German text are mine.
Wo ist sie, die eine (or jemand)?
Die so "schön, und starke sei. ...
