Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Talking about weirdness, can't leave English out. Most languages do not have an equivalent for the word "do" as we use it in English to ask a question such as "do you have the time?" In other languages it's "have you the time?"
Yep. In the other hand, Spanish has the widely used word "que", both as pronoun and conjunction, wich doesn't have a mean equivalent in English. As a conjuction, you use "that" (but much less often), and as a pronoun you replace it with several different words (who, that, wich, whom).
That change is one of my main difficulties when writing in English.
What is known in English as a "tightrope" in Spanish is "cuerda floja" (slack rope).
Interesting. In English, a tight rope is a 'tightrope', and a slack rope is a 'slackline'. They are considered two different things.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoldenTiger
Many one-word expressions in some languages can only be translated in more than a word in others. The Eskimos are reputed to have dozens of words for snow,
I believe the Aleut (Eskimo) languages are agglutinive which means they make new words by compounding meaningful sub-elements to create words for new or complex concepts.
Thus what in English might be called "wet snow that sticks together like little pebbles mixed with sand" would, in an Aleut language, be something like wetsnowlittlepebbleswithsand
Also, in English we become hungry or thirsty. In other languages, hunger and thirst are acquired; En. "I am hungry" vs German, "ice habe hunger" I have hunger.
True, but in Spanish you could also say: "Estoy hambriento" (for "I'm hungry"), although this way is less colloquial.
Yah, the Romance languages seem to have mostly adopted/adapted the Spanish patata - which is itself likely a transcription of the word the Spanish heard for the potato in the New World.
Wikipedia says - The Spanish Royal Academy says the Spanish word is a hybrid of the TaÃno batata (sweet potato) and the Quechua papa (potato).[12][13] - See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potato#Etymology
Yep. In the other hand, Spanish has the widely used word "que", both as pronoun and conjunction, wich doesn't have a mean equivalent in English. As a conjuction, you use "that" (but much less often), and as a pronoun you replace it with several different words (who, that, wich, whom).
That change is one of my main difficulties when writing in English.
This is very true. I hear that word all the time around me and have always been bewildered by its frequency. In French, a similar ubiquitous word is "en". Just shows up everywhere.
Is it the same in French? Or do people "have" 182 cm?
It's Je mesure 1cm70 (I'm 5'7 and Yo mido 170 cm in Spanish).
There are two ways to ask how tall are you in french but if I'm not mistaken, one is more formal.
- Quelle est votre taille?
- Combien mesurez-vous?
English is so straight to the point in that sense vs if I were literally translating the Spanish and French way, it would be ''I measure 170 cms'', which wouldn't make sense at all.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
