Wednesday, October 31, 2007

saoul - drunk

Des chauves-souris vampires, ces vilains oiseaux nocturnes, beaucoup plus horribles et grands que ceux de par d'ici, viennent trouver les personnes couchées et dormantes en leur lit, et leur arrachent une pièce de la chair, puis en sucent le sang en grande quantité, sans que le blessé puisse se réveiller: Car ils ont cette autre propriété de tenir l'homme endormi, pendant qu'ils sucent son sang: et étant saouls le quittent, le sang au reste ne laissant de toujours distiller, ce qui rend la personne débile, et par plusieurs jours a de la peine à marcher.

Vampire bats, those nasty nocturnal birds, much nastier and bigger than those that we have here, come to seek out those who are prone, asleep in their beds, and tear off a piece of their flesh, then suck out the blood in great quantities, without waking the wounded person.  For they have this other power, of keeping the man asleep while they suck his blood; and becoming drunk on it they leave.  The blood, moreover, does not always purify itself, which renders the person weak and for several days has difficulty walking. 

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

眼睛 - an eye, eyeball

你 有 蓝色 的 眼睛。

nǐ yǒu lán sè de yǎnjīng

You have blue eyes.

Monday, October 29, 2007

teilen - to share; to split, separate

Ich habe den Kuchen in vier Portionen geteilt.

I divided the cake into four portions.


Möchten Sie die Rechnung teilen?

Do you want to split the bill?

Sunday, October 28, 2007

der Lehrer - the teacher

Ich mag meinen Beruf als Lehrer.

I enjoy my job as a teacher.


Die Lehrerin teilte die Klasse in zwei Gruppen.

The teacher split the class into two groups.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

lohnend - worthwile, rewarding

Ja, mein Beruf ist stressig, aber lohnend.

Yes, my profession is stressful, but rewarding.


Tourismus ist ein lohnendes Geschäft.

Tourism is a profitable business.

Friday, October 26, 2007

der Beruf - occupation, career

Das Internet hat viele neue Berufe geschaffen.  

The internet has created many new professions.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

die Geschwister - siblings

Hast du Geschwister, die dich abholen können?

Do you have any siblings who can come get you?

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

une trombe - a water cyclone, waterspout

Les trombes naissent sous des nuages orageux et s'accompagnent d'orages, de grêle, de vents violents et causent d'importants dégâts.

Waterspouts are formed out of stormclouds and are followed by storms, hail, and strong winds, and cause severe damage.

--

[I didn't know this was called a waterspout!]

[Attention: faux ami -- important here means severe, not important.]

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

un escroc - a swindler, crook

Parfois, vous recevrez une deuxième offre du même escroc qui vous proposera de vous aider à récupérer l'argent que vous avez perdu.

Sometimes you will get a second offer from the same swindler, offering to help you recoup the money that you already lost.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Slang does NOT come from "shortened language," read an article for once

Yesterday I talked about snark and how it isn't a portmanteau of "snide remark."

Well, one of the dumbest things I've come across about false derivations is that slang derives from "shortened language."  No, of course it doesn't.  Not only is this not how sounds get elided and corrupted, slang itself isn't even necessarily shorter than other phrases.  It would surely only take a few seconds of thought to realize how silly this idea is.

In almost all cases, words derive from older words.

Slang may come from an Old Danish word meaning to throw, as in to throw around some words, tossing out your special language.  Or, it may come from a related word in Middle English meaning a delineated piece of land, as in the turf used by thieves and scoundrels who talk in their special argot, or slang.  Etymology Online as always has a good summary of this evolution of the word.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Snarky about false derivations

I was reading this book!  And in it a character said that the word snarky is derived from snark, which itself was formed as a portmanteau of snide remark.  sn + ark = snark.  What a cool story!  Unfortunately, totally untrue.

"Snark" actually comes from "snarky,"  Low German snarken meaning to snort or sneer.  It's derived ultimately from the PIE root nas for nose, and is related etymologically to the word "narc."  The modern meaning of contemptuous or mocking critique only dates back to about the 1990s.

It has nothing to do with the "Hunting of the Snark," one of my favorite poems.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

neblig - foggy

Ich bin spät dran, weil es neblig ist.

I am late because it's foggy.

Friday, October 19, 2007

schlucken - to swallow

Kaugummi sollte ausgespuckt und nicht geschluckt werden.

Gum should be spit out and not swallowed.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

melden - to report, declare

Nur der Inhaber der Kreditkarte kann sie als gestohlen melden

Only the holder of the credit card can report it as stolen.

Monday, October 15, 2007

der Beamter - the civil servant, official, clerk

Ich meldete meinen Fall dem Beamten am Schalter.

I reported my case to the clerk at the counter.

Sunday, October 14, 2007

der Schalter - the counter

Wir haben unsere Fahrkarten am Schalter gekauft.

We bought our tickets at the counter. 

Saturday, October 13, 2007

die Bordkarte - the boarding pass

Bitte halten Sie Ihre Bordkarte am Schalter bereit.

Please have your boarding pass ready at the counter.

Friday, October 12, 2007

convenable - suitable, appropriate

Un short n'est pas une tenue convenable pour un entretien d'embauche.

Shorts are not appropriate attire for a job interview.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

la tenue - outfit, attire

Mon oncle a acheté de nouvelles chaussures pour aller avec sa tenue

My uncle bought new shoes to go with his outfit.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

der Polizist - the policeman, police officer

Er war früher Polizist, aber er ist jetzt außer Dienst.

He used to be a policeman, but he is retired now.

Monday, October 8, 2007

Freut mich - Pleased (to meet you)

Freut mich, Sie kennenzulernen, ich bin Ihr neuer Chef.

Pleased to meet you, I'm your new boss.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

die Eule - the owl

Die Eule ist ein kleiner brauner Vogel, der Mäuse frisst.

The owl is a small brown bird that eats mice.

Saturday, October 6, 2007

malen - to draw, paint

Kinder lieben es, mit Wasserfarben zu malen.

Children love to paint with watercolors.

Friday, October 5, 2007

taré - corrupted, without honor; dangerous

L'humanité n'est bonne, n'est bienveillante, n'est indulgente que pour les bâtards, les tarés.

Humanity is not good or benevolent; it's only tolerant of the bastards and the corrupt.

Thursday, October 4, 2007

grogner - to growl, grunt, grumble

L'enfant a grogné quand sa mère l'a envoyé se coucher.

The child grumbled when his mother sent him to bed.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

que dalle - nothing at all

En principe il s’en fout de l’argent, il vit avec que dalle.

In principle he cared nothing for money; he lived with nothing at all.

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

la burne - testicle

Il faut absolument que leur mâle assure un minimum de revenu, sinon, vous pensez bien que ça ne vaut pas la peine de s’encombrer d’un mec qui a perdu une burne sur deux. 

It is an absolute necessity that their male is assured a minimum income; otherwise, you know it's not worth it to saddle yourself with a guy who has lost one of his balls.

Monday, October 1, 2007

sacquer - to sack, fire; to be able to take, stand

Je ne peux pas sacquer les vieilles femmes, murmure-t-il pour lui-même.

"I can't stand old women," he murmured to himself.

 

Je vais me dire que j'ai été injustement traité et que mon patron m'a saqué pour des raisons personnelles.

I want to say that I have been treated unfairly and that my superior sacked me for personal reasons. 

--

[Also spelled saquer]

пытаться - to try, attempt [imp]

Если вы умны, вы не будете пытаться это сделать. If you are smart, you won't attempt this.   Я пытался играть на гитаре , но не могу. I ...