Help your fluency in a nifty way

[Znex]

やでも、お店なら、お風呂がないので、bathroomって適当じゃないっしょ、イギリス英語だと
ya demo, omise nara, ofuro ga nai no de, bathroomtte tekitou ja nai ssho, igirisu eigo da to
But in a shop, there's no bath, so we wouldn't say bathroom right? ... in uk english anyway.

bathroomと言ったら、イギリス人はよく笑っちゃうよ。「なんでいきなりアメリカっぽく言ったの？アメリカ人じゃねえ」とよく言われることがある、そこで
bathroom to yuttara, igirisu jin wa yoku waratchau yo. 'nande ikinari amerika ppoku yutta no? amerika jin ja nee' to yoku yuwareru koto ga aru, soko de
if you say bathroom in the uk people laugh at you, like "you're not an american, why are you speaking like one?"

Dw i'n siwr 'swn i alw hi'n "bathroom" yn ffurfiol serch hynny.
I'm sure I'd call it a "bathroom" formally regardless.

a sink room

Nini?
What?

"Chumba changu cha bakuli kiko wapi?"
"Where is your sink room?"

Honno sy gyn 'n ffrind i. Dim ond honno galwes i achos diffyg enw gwell.
That's what my mate has. I only called it that for lack of a better name.

[Yng]

Dw i'n siwr 'swn i'n galw hi'n "bathroom" yn ffurfiol serch hynny.
I'm sure I'd call it a "bathroom" formally regardless.

Fi hefyd. Neu 'doiled' falle.
Me too. Or maybe 'toilet'.

baswn, byswn, 'swn etc are all forms of bod and require an yn.

a sink room

Nini?
What?

"Chumba changu cha bakuli kiko wapi?"
"Where is your sink room?"

Honno sy gyn 'n ffrind i. Hynny alwes i hi o ddiffyg enw gwell.
That's what my mate has. I only called it that for lack of a better name.

Normally 'for lack of' is o ddiffyg (if you want the formal equivalent). We normally use hynny to refer to abstract stuff. Using dim ond like this feels a bit funny, but I'm not sure how to rephrase it (it sounds like you're saying I called it only that because because of the fronting), whereas 'only' in the English sentence is modifying the verb. I think Hynny alwes i hi o ddiffyg enw gwell sounds better, or even - I dunno if we have a natural way of translating 'only' here (maybe yn unig would work).

Nice use of sy gyn though!

[Viktor77]

Récemment, j'ai changé de chemin futur. Si j'avais suivi mon chemin original, j'aurais suivi un doctorat, mais un coup de chance m'a libéré du monde académique lorsqu'un poste comme enseignant de français m'a été offert par une école privée à Memphis. J'ai accepté. J'ai parlé avec personne après personne pour que je sois en pleine connaissance dans ce que je me fourrais en acceptant le poste. Pour le moment, je ne sais pas dire si j'ai pris une bonne ou mauvaise décision, mais la chance de profiter d'un emploi bien remunéré et une vie moins tumulteuse m'attirait énormement, franchement. Un jour avoir le titre de docteur me manquera, j'imagine, mais je peux, enfin, commencer à vivre comme on doit. Je ne suis plus jeune, j'ai déjà 25 ans et il est grand temps que je fasse un effort afin de vivre une bonne vie, pour moi et mon mari. Par contre, le sud me déplaît un peu, au moins, ils ont de bon barbecue.

Recently, I changed future paths. If I had stuck to my original path, I would've done a doctorate, but a stroke of luck freed me up from the academic world when a job as a French teacher was offered to me by a private school in Memphis. I accepted. I spoke with person after person so that I was entirely in possession of the facts of what I was getting into by accepting this job. For now, I can't say if I made a good or bad decision, but the the opportunity to enjoy a well-paid job and a less chaotic life attracted me enormously, quite frankly. I will miss one day having the title of doctor, I imagine, but I can, finally, start to live as I should. I am no longer young, I am 25 years old and it's high time that I make an effort to live a good life, for me and my husband. On the other hand, I am not the biggest fan of the south, at least they have good barbecue.

[finlay]

やっっと喉頭炎は治ったみたいだ。でも、頭痛もあるし、背中も痛いし、2ヵ月前の怪我から右肩にリハビリもう要るし、やっぱり体はよくないわ
Finally i think i'm over laryngitis, but i've got a headache and a sore back, and i still need physio on my right shoulder from that injury two months ago... i'm not really better, fuck...

[Io]

Ninajifundisha kiswahili.
I'm learning Swahili.

Mambo vipi?

Apparently, Swahili speakers can go on for 10 minutes only exchanging greetings as I've just recently discovered in Zanzibar. Also, any clue why they add an -i at the end of (foreign) words? For example 'freshi' for 'fresh' and someone had the name of my host in his phone book as 'Hassani' instead of Hassan.

[jal]

Mambo vipi?

Du lebst noch! Ich hätte gedacht, du bist für ewig verschwunden! Toll dass du noch manchmal hierhin kommt :).
You're still alive? I would've thought you're gone forever! Nice to see you're checking in here sometimes :).


JAL

[Viktor77]

Je pensais ces derniers jours de quoi exactement on peut faire en Europe pour arrêter le terrorisme. Je ne suis pas politique, mais j'ai déjà développé un petit programme et vous pouvez me dire si vous êtes d'accord ou si c'est de la merde. Je crois qu'il faut faire deux choses, d'abord, il faut que les état membres de l'Union Européene établissent une nouvelle agence centrale d'intelligence qui relève des institutions européenes. Avec une telle agence, on pourra faire en sorte que tous les services d'intelligences en Europe soient coordonnées à l'instar d'Europol mais avec beaucoup plus de compétences et de pouvoirs. Secondement, il faut étendre la Politique de sécurité et de défense commune (même s'ils les états membres n'en seront pas contents) avec le but de créer une force militaire coordonnée qui, répartie parmi les états membre, protégeront les frontières extérieures les plus faibles (comme celles de Grèce). Bref, il faut que le peuple européen fournissent plus de compétences et de pouvoirs au niveau européen.

Voilà je disais n'importe quoi parce j'ai rien à faire ce soir et je voulais écrire en français, mais c'est ça mon programme (avec pas mal de défauts, j'imagine).

I've been thinking lately about what exactly we can do in Europe to stop terrorism. I am not a politician, but I have developed a small platform and you all can tell me if you're in agreement or it's a bunch of shit. I believe we need to do two things, first, we need the member states of the European Union to establish a new central intelligence agency that is under the jurisdiction of the European institutions. With such an agency, we will be able to insure that all intelligence services in Europe are coordinated like Europol but with a lot more competencies and powers. Secondly, we must expand the Common Security and Defense Policy (even if the member states will not be very happy about it) with the goal of creating a coordinated military force that, divided out among the member states, will protect the weakest external borders (such as in Greece). So in conclusion, the European people need to provide more competencies and power to the European level.

Ok, so I'm just babbling on because I have nothing to do this evening and I wanted to write in French, but that's my platform (with a number of faults, I imagine).

[Io]

Hi Jal, yeah, still lingering on, still not quite gone for ever

[hwhatting]

Du lebst noch! Ich hätte gedacht, du bist für ewig verschwunden! Toll, dass du noch manchmal hierher kommt .
You're still alive? I would've thought you're gone forever! Nice to see you're checking in here sometimes .

hin = away from the speaker, her = towards the speaker. Many speakers disregard that distinction, but normally, they collapse it in favour of her.

I've been thinking lately about what exactly we can do in Europe to stop terrorism.

Men kann de terrorism niet stoppen, men kann slechts verzoeken, zijn talrijkkeid en gevolgen te verminderen.
You can't stop terrorism, you can only try to decrease its frequency and impact.

[Thry]

Γεια σας αγόρια! Έχω μάθει ελληνικά τελευταία! Τι κάνετε;
Geia sas agória! Écho máthei elliniká teleutaía! Ti kánete?
Hello guys! I've been learning Greek recently! What's up?

So in conclusion, the European people need to provide more competencies and power to the European level.

Βίκτορ, βλέπω ένα πρόβλημα με αυτό που είπες. Φαίνεται ότι η Ευρώπη θα γίνει πιο χωρισμένη, κι όχι πιο ενωμένη. Λοιπόν είναι δύσκολο να έχουμε μια κεντρική εξουσία.
Víktor, vlépo éna próvlima me autó pou eípes. Faínetai óti i Európi tha gínei pio chorisméni, ki óchi pio enoméni. Loipón eínai dýskolo na échoume mia kentrikí exousía.
Victor, I see a problem with what you said. It seems Europe will become more separated, and not more united. So it is difficult to have a centralized power.

[ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪]

Eh bien, quand le délégué de la Pologne a été le seul qui a voté contre la réélection de Donald Tusk pour la function du président du Conseil européen, mais la majorité de les Polonais l'a opposé je ne suis pas positif à propos de l'avenir de l'Union Européenne. Selon moi, nous allons la détruire.
Well, when the representative of Poland was the only one who voted against the reelection of Donald Tusk for the function of the President of the European Council, but majority of Poles opposed it I'm not positive about the future of the European Union. According to me, we're going to destroy it.
EDIT: Forgot about the translation to English!

[Viktor77]

Eh bien, quand le délégué de la Pologne a été le seul qui a voté contre la réélection de Donald Tusk pour la function du président du Conseil européen, mais la majorité des polonais l'ont* opposée** je ne suis pas positif sur l'avenir de l'Union Européenne. Selon moi, nous allons la détruire.
Well, when the representative of Poland was the only one who voted against the reelection of Donald Tusk for the function of the President of the European Council, but majority of Poles opposed it I'm not positive about the future of the European Union. According to me, we're going to destroy it.
EDIT: Forgot about the translation to English!

*You can use either singular or plural but I felt plural better fits your argument as your focus is on the Polish.
**Your object is "la fonction" so you need agreement with the pronoun.

Polen hat eine eigenartige Beziehung zu Tusk. Tusk unterstütze eine Energieunion der Europäische Union, mit der Polen nicht einverstanden ist. Polen wünsche keine Energie von Russland zu kaufen, weil für Polen, Russiche Gas ein Sicherheitsproblem stellt dar. Daher, hat Polen seine Energieproduktion überwiegend in seinen eigenen Fabriken verfügen. Außerdem, ist Tusk vielleicht zu pro-EU für Polen und besonders die Recht und Gerechtigkeit Partei.

Poland has a strange relationship with Tusk. Tusk supports an Energy Union of the European Union, with which Poland is not in agreement. Poland does not wish to buy gas from Russia because for Poland, Russian gas presents a security concern. Thus, Poland has arranged for energy production in its own factories. Also, Tusk is probably too pro-EU for Poland and especially the Law and Justice party.

So in conclusion, the European people need to provide more competencies and power to the European level.

Βίκτορ, βλέπω ένα πρόβλημα με αυτό που είπες. Φαίνεται ότι η Ευρώπη θα γίνει πιο χωρισμένη, κι όχι πιο ενωμένη. Λοιπόν είναι δύσκολο να έχουμε μια κεντρική εξουσία.
Víktor, vlépo éna próvlima me autó pou eípes. Faínetai óti i Európi tha gínei pio chorisméni, ki óchi pio enoméni. Loipón eínai dýskolo na échoume mia kentrikí exousía.
Victor, I see a problem with what you said. It seems Europe will become more separated, and not more united. So it is difficult to have a centralized power.

Ik begrijp niet waarom. Hoe meer gecentraliseerd de Europese Unie wordt, hoe meer verenigd de EU wordt, tenminste in theorie. Het is juist dat de EU geen perfect geïntegeerd wezen is en dat er moelijkheiden zijn, uitzonderlijk met betrekking tot samenwerking, maar ik blijf ervan optimisch.

I don't understand why. The more centralized the European Union becomes, the more united it becomes, at least in theory. It's true that the EU is not a perfectly integrated entity and that there are difficulties, especially as regards cooperation, but I remain optimistic.

[ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪]

**Your object is "la fonction" so you need agreement with the pronoun.

I meant they opposed "le vote contre la réélection", isn't it correct then?

[Io]

Γεια σας αγόρια! Έχω μάθει ελληνικά τελευταία! Τι κάνετε;
Hello guys! I've been learning Greek recently! What's up?

«αγόρια» is a literal translation of «guys», Greeks normally use παιδιά.
«έχω μάθει» actually means «I've learnt», I'm not sure what would be the best way to phrase "I've been learning Greek recently" but something in the lines of «τελευταία μαθαίνω ελληνικά» or «άρχισα να μαθαίνω ελληνικά τελευταία» would be better.

[hwhatting]

Polen hat eine eigenartige Beziehung zu Tusk. Tusk unterstützt eine Energieunion der Europäische Union, mit der Polen nicht einverstanden ist. Polen wünscht*1) keine Energie von Russland zu kaufen, weil für Polen, russiches Gas ein Sicherheitsproblem darstellt dar. Daher, hat Polen seine Energieproduktion überwiegend in seinen*2) eigenen Anlagen*3) organisiert. Außerdem, ist Tusk vielleicht zu pro-EU für Polen und besonders für die Partei "Recht und Gerechtigkeit"*4) Partei.

Poland has a strange relationship with Tusk. Tusk supports an Energy Union of the European Union, with which Poland is not in agreement. Poland does not wish to buy gas from Russia because for Poland, Russian gas presents a security concern. Thus, Poland has arranged for energy production in its own factories. Also, Tusk is probably too pro-EU for Poland and especially the Law and Justice party.

*1) I'd use möchte or even will here.
*2) The second sein is not idiomatic to me.
*3) I'm surprised that one can us factory to designate a place where power is generated; it's not possible to use Fabrik that way.
*4) This word order is more usual for parties whose name consists of a slogan or non-compunded concept nouns; Partei comes last if the name consists of adjectives or compunded nouns. The quotation marks are optional.

I don't understand why. The more centralized the European Union becomes, the more united it becomes, at least in theory.

Więcej centralizacji także może znaczyć więcej oporu, albo żeby więcej krajów wychodziły z UE. Jeżeliby UE jeszcze była tylko unią celną, być może Brytania pozostałaby członkiem.
Plus de centralisation aussi peut signigfier plus de résistance, ou que plus de pays quitteraient l'UE. Si l'UE était encore seulement une union douanière, peut-être la Grande-Bretagne aurait resté membre.
Meer centralisatie kan ook meer weerstand betekenen, of dat meer landen de EU verlaten. Als de EU nog slechts een douane-unie zou zijn, Britannie kunde gebleven zijn.
More centralisation may also mean more resistance or more countries leaving the EU. If the EU were still just a Customs Union, Britain may have had remained.

[Viktor77]

Plus de centralisation peut aussi signigfier plus de résistance, ou que plus de pays quitteraient l'UE. Si l'UE était encore seulement une union douanière, la Grande-Bretagne en serait peut-être restée membre.

Danke, Hwhatting.

Jetzt weiss ich nicht, als mann "factory" für Kraftwerksanlage benutzen kann. Was denken die andere englischsprachiger Personen hieran?

Now I don't know if you can use "factory" for powerplant. What do the other English speakers here think about this?

[hwhatting]

Jetzt weiss ich nicht, ob mann "factory" für "Kraftwerksanlage"*1) benutzen kann. Was denken die anderen englischsprachigen Personen darüber?

Now I don't know if you can use "factory" for powerplant. What do the other English speakers here think about this?

*1) Wprost "Kraftwerk" także jest w porządku.
*1) Simplement "Kraftwerk" marche aussi.
*1) Gewoon "Kraftwerk" is ook oké.
*1) Just "Kraftwerk" is okay, too

[Travis B.]

For me a powerplant is not a factory. After all, a factory makes things.

[Thry]

Σ'ευχαριστώ για τις διορθώσεις, Ίο.
Thank you for the corrections, Io.

Ik begrijp niet waarom. Hoe meer gecentraliseerd de Europese Unie wordt, hoe meer verenigd de EU wordt, tenminste in theorie. Het is juist dat de EU geen perfect geïntegeerd wezen is en dat er moelijkheiden zijn, uitzonderlijk met betrekking tot samenwerking, maar ik blijf ervan optimisch.
I don't understand why. The more centralized the European Union becomes, the more united it becomes, at least in theory. It's true that the EU is not a perfectly integrated entity and that there are difficulties, especially as regards cooperation, but I remain optimistic.

Δεν ξέρω ότι θα ήταν ο κόσμος έχοντας έναν ευρωπαϊκό στρατό... σκέψου την Ουκρανία.
I don't know how the world would be with an European army... think of Ukraine.

[Viktor77]

For me a powerplant is not a factory. After all, a factory makes things.

Was me betreft, het was meer "maken kracht van materialen." Dus is er nog een stukje productie in deze context. Een soort van fabriek die kracht maakt.

For me it was more "make power from materials." So there is still a production element in this context. A sort of factory that makes power.

[Pole, the]

Poland has a strange relationship with Tusk. Tusk supports an Energy Union of the European Union, with which Poland is not in agreement. Poland does not wish to buy gas from Russia because for Poland, Russian gas presents a security concern. Thus, Poland has arranged for energy production in its own factories. Also, Tusk is probably too pro-EU for Poland and especially the Law and Justice party.

Tusk on vain poliitikko Puolasta. Kuin on Kaczyński.
Tusk is just a Polish politician. Just like Kaczynski.

Kaczyński näyttelee laitaoikeistolaista, jotta hän voi pitää hänen äänestäjänsä. Hän yritti luoda ykden keskustalaisen, kristillisdemokraattisen polueen, mutta hän epäonnistui.
Kaczynski poses as a far-right one in order to keep his populist electorate. He tried to create a centrist, Christian democratic party before, but he failed.

Puolalainen hiiliteollisuus on kestämätön. Se menee epäkuntoon ennemmin tai myöhemmin. EU:lla ei ole mitään tekemistä sen kanssa.
Polish coal industry is unsustainable. It's going to fail sooner or later. EU has nothing to do with it.

* * *

For me a powerplant is not a factory. After all, a factory makes things.

I remember a Polish TV series (it was a localized and modernized version of the Honeymooners), where “factory” was used in a cipher as an antonym of “power plant” (or vice versa).

*1) Po prostu / samo "Kraftwerk" też jest w porządku. (wrong register; also wprost is an adverb and means rather “[to say something] directly, openly”)
*1) Just "Kraftwerk" is okay, too

Więcej centralizacji może też znaczyć więcej oporu, albo więcej krajów chcących opuścić UE. Gdyby UE nadal była tylko unią celną, być może Wielka Brytania pozostałaby członkiem.

[Imralu]

Ninajifundisha kiswahili.
I'm learning Swahili.

Mambo vipi?

Poa, asante! Na wewe je? Umeshindaje?
Cool, thanks! And you? How have you won? (Kind of literally translated.)

Apparently, Swahili speakers can go on for 10 minutes only exchanging greetings as I've just recently discovered in Zanzibar. Also, any clue why they add an -i at the end of (foreign) words? For example 'freshi' for 'fresh' and someone had the name of my host in his phone book as 'Hassani' instead of Hassan.

Ni fonolojia yao tu, ninafikiri. Baada ya konsonanti za wadomo wanatumia "u" badala yake. Kwa mfano: kitabu
It's just their phonology, I think. After labial consonants they use "u" instead. For example: kitabu (from kitab).

And it would take me forever to figure out how to say this in Swahili, but basically all native Swahili syllables are either (C(w/y))V or N. /i/ is just the vowel that, after most consonants, appears as an epenthetic vowel in Swahili. I used to have a lot of students who were native speakers of Japanese, Korean, Brazilian Portuguese and Italian, so epenthetic vowels are just normal to me and I'd often see them spelt out in students writing (or left out ... I had a Brazilian student who confused me by writing "rap" instead of "happy").

Actually in this case, Hebrew is uncharacteristically euphemistic—you say that you are going to the “services,” which I guess is like saying “facilities” in English.

Esperanto: la necesejo ... the necessary place.
Maori: te whare iti ... the small house

In my dialect, ‘toilet’ refers only to the device itself, so saying that you’re going to the toilet sort of underscores what you intend to do there.

Watu wanaweza kukisia ... Hata ikiwa kuna choo tu chumbani humo.
People can guess ... especially if there's only a toilet in that room.

with an European army

Sauti ya kwanza ya "European" ni /j/ iliyo konsonanti, kwa hivyo hakuna "n".
The first sound of "European" is /j/, which is a consonant, so there's no "n"

[Viktor77]

Tusk is just a Polish politician. Just like Kaczynski.
...
Polish coal industry is unsustainable. It's going to fail sooner or later. EU has nothing to do with it.

Tusk est plus qu'un simple politicien. Il est président du Conseil européen et il maintient une énorme influence au sein des institutions européenes. En plus, il se trouve souvent opposé à Kaczynski en son soutien de Bruxelles et son programme européen.

Et bien sûr l'Union européene joue un rôle dans l'industrie de charbon en Pologne. L'UE maintient une politique environmentale que la Pologne n'applique quasiment pas au niveau national car, vu les questions de sécurité en Pologne à l'égard de l'achat de gaz russe, la Pologne ne peut privilèger la politique environmentale européene. Ceci soutien également les actifs en Pologne qui travaillent dans l'industrie de charbon. J'imagine (tu peux bien me le dire) que cette population est un bloc de vote que le parti de Kaczynski a besoin d'attirer.

Mais en gros, tu as raison. La Pologne continue à polluer et à exploiter une ressource non viable et ceci n'est pas viable à long terme.

Tusk is more than a simply politician. He is president of the European Council and he holds enormous influence within EU institutions. In addition, he often finds himself opposed to Kaczynski in his support of Brussels and its EU platform.

And of course the EU plays a role in the coal industry in Poland. The EU has an environmental policy that Poland almost does not apply at all at the domestic level because, given security issues in Poland with regards to buying Russian gas, Poland can't privilege EU environmental policy. This also supports workers in Poland in the coal industry. I imagine (and you can tell me so) that this population is a voting bloc that Kaczynski's party needs to attract.

But overall, you're right. Poland continues to pollute and exploit unsustainable resources and this is not sustainable in the long term.

[ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪]

Et bien sûr l'Union européene joue un rôle dans l'industrie de charbon en Pologne. L'UE maintient une politique environmentale que la Pologne n'applique quasiment pas au niveau national car, vu les questions de sécurité en Pologne à l'égard de l'achat de gaz russe, la Pologne ne peut privilèger la politique environmentale européene. Ceci soutien également les actifs en Pologne qui travaillent dans l'industrie de charbon. J'imagine (tu peux bien me le dire) que cette population est un bloc de vote que le parti de Kaczynski a besoin d'attirer.

And of course the EU plays a role in the coal industry in Poland. The EU has an environmental policy that Poland almost does not apply at all at the domestic level because, given security issues in Poland with regards to buying Russian gas, Poland can't privilege EU environmental policy. This also supports workers in Poland in the coal industry. I imagine (and you can tell me so) that this population is a voting bloc that Kaczynski's party needs to attract.

Oui, les charbon mineurs doivent être satisfaits par le gouvernement, s'ils ne sont pas, ils font grève. Je ne sais pas combien c'est vrai, mais j'entends les gens qui se plaignent que la Tchéquie peut contrôler les mineurs et avoir l'industrie de charbon soutenable et notre pays ne peut pas.
Le problème est aussi que le Droit et justice parti a un fort, permanent group des électeurs et le reste des Polonais qui peuvent voir autre chose que leurs avantages n'ont pas le parti ils peuvent se rassembler autour et voter pour.
Yes, coal miners require being satisfied by government in Poland, if they aren't, they strike. I don't know how much true is it, but I hear people complaining that the Czech Republic can control miners and have sustainable coal industry and our country can't.
The problem is also that the (OMG, I don't like this name in English) Law and Justice party has a strong, permanent voting block and the rest of Poles who can see something other than private benefits don't have a party to gather around and vote for.

[linguoboy]

The problem is also that the (OMG, I don't like this name in English) Law and Justice party

Er ist besser auf Polnisch?
An fearr as Polainnis í?
It's better in Polish?