Questions tagged [phrase-request]
Suche geläufige Wendung - Questions on finding a phrase that fits a meaning.
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A German equivalent for "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
I know we get a lot of requests here for translations of idioms and expressions, and many times they don't exist. (Something I often point out myself.) But I thought this might deserve some discussion ...
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How to check correctness of german free writings
Is there a site where my daughter could check correctness of her german writings, e.g. Aufsätze, Argumentation, Erörterungen? She could have some errors in expressions (im Ausdruck).
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Humorous double negation
So you know how in English people might humorously answer a question like
Do you want to go?
in a kind of faux denial, with
I don't not want to go.
Is it possible to express the same sentiment in ...
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"wer alle" / "welche alle" - is it correct german?
How can we express "who all" in german?
"Wer alle..."?
For example - group of more people vising you at your house, and you want to offer some drink. And you want to emphasize that ...
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Can I use "Ich bin erreichbar..." as "I'm available..." (scheduling an appointment)
I want to schedule an appointment at the dentist's.
I read that "erreichbar sein" means "to be reachable" and you can use it when you talk over the phone, but I was wondering if I ...
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How to say "I am available.." in German? (scheduling an appointment)
I want to schedule an appointment at the dentist's.
Can I write something like this?
Guten Tag Herr Miller,
Ich bin verfügbar:
am Dienstag ab 11:00 – 15:00 Uhr
am Donnerstag ab 11:00 – 15:00 Uhr
am ...
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What does this question mean: "Wohnst du zur Miete?"
I don't understand this question:
Wohnst du zur Miete?
I started learning German at Lingoda School (online.) I am a beginner (A1 level), and I have no clue what some phrases mean. I cannot provide ...
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Wie nennt man jemanden, dessen Kritik sich an einer Utopie orientiert und welcher keine Lösungen bereit hat?
Gibt es ein Wort für jemanden, der alles an einer Utopie misst, aber keine Lösungen bereit hat?
Natürlich braucht es Utopien als Richtungsweiser zur Weiterentwicklung des wissenschaftlichen Wissens. ...
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Do we have to say "Uhr" when we give the time?
I just can't tell if it's dropped because it's a list of how to say different times and the creator of it just didn't care, or if that's actually fine when providing the time.
Question:
Wie spät ist ...
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"Not if but when ..." and "Not when but if ..."
In English, there are sometimes exchanges like the following:
Person A: If Bob finishes his thesis, ...
Person B: When Bob finishes his thesis ...
The effect of B's response to A, and their use of ...
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Deutsches Äquivalent zu: »That’s the way the cookie crumbles.«
That’s the way the cookie crumbles.
Gebrauch:
said when something slightly unlucky has happened that could not have been prevented and so must be accepted.
Gibt es ein Äquivalent auf Deutsch? „So ist ...
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How do you say "Availability to travel to workplace" in German?
I am creating a resume for working remotely and I want to mention that I am available to travel to the workplace, but we need to talk about this availability before signing the contract.
I am thinking ...
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How to translate the English expressions "it's up to you" and it's down to you" into German?
In english the expression "it's up to you" leaves the decision to you. Whereas the expression "it's down to you" leaves the responsibility for an action down to you.
I used Google ...
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Was ist ein Wort für eine Gruppe oder jemanden, von der oder dem man sagen würde, dass sie keine Chance in etwas haben?
Beispiele 1:
Greuther Fürth ist deutlich Letzter auf der Tabelle, sie sind wahre ________
Acht Leichtathleten stehen auf der 100-Meter-Linie... Markus und Lucas kommentieren die Leichtathleten, und ...
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Deer in Headlights Punchline
When somebody is caught by the element of surprise she or he looks strange Sometimes like a Deer in Headlights.
Is there a way to say that in german in a way that flows verbaly aka not using a ...
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Isn't it demanding to ask for something with "Ich möchte"?
When they tell a waiter what food they'd like, why do Germans say "Ich möchte _" even though that translates as "I want _". Saying you want something sounds demanding in English. &...
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Ist das korrekt? "bitte entschuldige meine verspätete Antwort"
Ich beantworte eine E-Mail eines Kollegen mit einer Verspätung und will mich dafür entschuldigen. Wäre es korrekt, wenn ich schreiben würde: »Bitte entschuldige meine verspätete Antwort«? Oder besser: ...
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Time off in German
I have an appointment during my work hours . I would like to ask time off for this time plus 2 hours.
Ich habe einen Termin um 15 Uhr. Darf ich von 14 Uhr bis 16 Uhr freinehmen?
Did I translate it ...
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Is there a German phrase literally resembling "you can eat it" that means "food is good"?
Someone had told me that when asked "how's your food?" in Germany people sometimes responded with something along the lines of the German equivalent to "you can eat it", to mean ...
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Deutsches Äquivalent zu „put your neck/ ass on the line“
Die englische Redewendung
put your neck on the line (en-GB)
put your ass on the line (en-US)
wird auf der Seite von The Free Dictionary by Farlex wie folgt erklärt:
To personally assume or expose ...
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What's the saying for when you have the exact change to pay for something?
I just went to collect an item I bought over Ebay and wanted to tell the seller that I had the exact amount of cash with me and he didn't need to worry about handing over change. How do I say this? I'...
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How to say "eat out", e.g. at a restaurant? [closed]
English has got an expression to eat out, meaning eating but not preparing the meal for yourself (i.e. restaurant, fast food, kebab etc.). What are ways to express the same in German?
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Word for expressing a mix of happiness and frustration
I was just wondering if such a word exists in German, does anybody know?
A mix of happiness and frustration.
Context: I have a job to do, I will be happy when it is done but in the meantime I feel ...
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How to say "I can't believe what I am looking at/seeing?"
There are many areas of the German language I struggle with due to the uncertainty of expressing certain nuances of the actual sentiment of the sentence I am trying to express. One of the biggest is ...
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question with 'wie lange/wie viel...'
I have a question on how to correctly say 'how long is it until.../ how many days till.../ how many days are left till...' in German and which one is more common. For example should I say
how many ...
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What is the German equivalent of a rhethorical “What can I do?”?
In English there is a very specific usage of the phrase “What can I do?” that has nothing to do with the literal usage of that question. It’s when that phrase is used as a rhetorical question where ...
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How to say the conjunction “now that” in Geman? [closed]
If I want to say something like:
Now that I have all the files, I can start working.
How much money is left on my account, now that I paid for all that stuff?
How do I say this now that in German?
I ...
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Deutsches Äquivalent zu »My Word Is Not Gospel«!
Auf Englisch, wenn man seine Meinung äußert und gleichzeitig betonen will, dass sie nur eine Meinung und nicht unbedingt wahr ist, und ihr nicht wie ein Gesetz zu folgen ist, sagt man
My word is ...
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»Parochial« und »parochialism« auf Deutsch
Ich übersetze gerade ein philosophisches Buch eines Physikers, in dem die englischen Wörter parochial und parochialism oft vorkommen. Damit meint der Autor so viel wie Engstirnigkeit, oder einen engen ...
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Is there a German word for immense relief after a great work or effort?
Such as spending many hours or days on a great task, and when finished having an immense sens of relief, or a lightening of load?
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German equivalent of “Mutual weirdness forever”
mutual weirdness forever
is a common form of congratulation for weddings, and gift cards with this wording can be found in endless numbers.
How would you say this in German? I need this for a gift ...
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Wort oder Redewendung für neu betrachtete Kindheitserinnerungen
Ich suche ein Wort oder Redewendung die folgende Situation bzw. Gefühl beschreibt:
Wenn man zum Beispiel Jahre später in das frühere Haus/Dorf/... seiner Kindheit zurück kommt und alles sehr viel ...
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What's an indifferent way to answer "Wie geht's?"
I'm trying to be more expressive and nuanced in my German. In English, I can answer the question "How's it going? How are you?" in three different levels of energy:
Indifferent/Lukewarm:
"It's not ...
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"More scientific" replacement for "Abstellgleis"
I'm looking for a more scientific word than "Abstellgleis" in the following context:
Nach der Übergabe des Projektes an die Open-Source-Gemeinschaft scheint das Projekt auf dem Abstellgleis ...
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Frage zur gewünschten Ankunftszeit formulieren
Ich frage mich, wie man am besten die optimale Ankuftzeit / Reinkommen-Zeit erfragt.
Angenommen mich erwartet morgen ein neuer Arbeitsgeber und ich möchte ihn fragen, welche Uhrzeit seinerseits am ...
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How do you say "to play Devil's advocate" in German?
In English, I use the phrase "to play Devil's advocate" quite often, it allows me to ask difficult questions without challenging the other person's position or status too directly.
The nicest ...
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"To the rescue" in German
We have a common phrase in English : "to the rescue", to describe the act of swooping in and saving the situation. I want to say "German to the rescue" to describe the process whereby the German ...
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How do you say 'This took a dark turn.' in German?
How do you say "This took a dark turn / This turned dark real quick/fast"?
Dictionaries offer "dunkel, finster, düster, freudlos", but I don't think these reflect the emotion behind the sentence.
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Phrase request for "work in" in the context of gyms
In gyms, it's common that someone wants to use the equipment that you are using and you're okay with them using the equipment while you are resting. In English, you could ask "Would you like to work ...
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How would you translate "insured for your peace of mind"?
I am currently translating a flyer for my dad's renovation and property maintenance business from English to German (he recently moved to Germany). I am pretty confident with most of what I've done so ...
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Prägnante und kurze deutsche Entsprechung zu "virtue signalling"?
Mir ist jetzt schon ein paar mal aufgefallen, daß wir im Deutschen keine Entsprechung des englischen Begriffs "virtue signalling" (bedeutet etwa: die Zurschaustellung der eigenen Tugendhaftigkeit) zu ...
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What is the German equivalent of the proverb 水清ければ魚棲まず (if the water is clear, fish won't live there)?
The proverb's meaning is that just as fish prefer muddy waters and avoid clear streams, people generally do not associate with those who are too ideal in terms of ethics, manners, and habits. In other ...
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What is "I bet" in German? [closed]
In English I always find myself saying "I bet" in this kind of context: "I bet you're well chuffed with it." What would this be in German and could it be used without sounding weird?
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German phrase for 'suited and booted'
What is a German phrase for the English phrase 'suited and booted' meaning that someone or a group of people are prepared, have the necessary equipment, etc.
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Getting away with something in German
I know that "mit etwas davonkommen" is "to get away with" something in the sense of a crime, but can this be used figuratively as well? For example,
Singers can "get away with" less talent today ...
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What is the German equivalent of 干物女 (dried fish woman)?
Literally meaning dried fish woman, the popular slang 干物女 is used to call a woman in her twenties or older who, as nicely summarized in Wikipedia, has many of the following traits:
メールの返事が極端に遅い、短い (...
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What were the main German words for a prostitute before 1800?
Prostitution is referred to as the oldest profession, but the German word "Prostituierte" is a borrowing that started being used in the German language around 1800. I would like to know what the ...
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Options for quick email reply to the effect of "I've just done it" or "I've taken care of it"
If I get an email request to do something, what would be some standard polite replies to the effect of "I've just done it" (what you asked for)?
Would
Lieber X,
habe ich gemacht.
Viele Grüße,
Y
...
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German idiomatic equivalents of 能骗就骗 (if you can cheat, then cheat)
A Chinese expression goes:
能骗就骗
(Néng piàn jiù piàn.)
(If you can trick/cheat, then trick/cheat.)
The idea is that there is no reason to be honest just for the sake of being honest. That is, ...
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Are there terms in German for different skull shapes?
In English, the term "squarehead" used to refer to Germans and Scandiavians (1), due to their supposedly unusual cranial features (2, 3)
Does the German language have words for the ...
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