Help your fluency in a nifty way

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪ »

Была ли это эта гроза, которой результаты лежали сегодня на трамвайных рельсах и задержали меня в школу?
Was it that storm results of which were laying today on the tram rails and stopped me on my way to school?
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by Imralu »

Pole, the wrote:Gestern bin ich aus dem Supermarkt zurückgekommen und ich bin von dem Wind und Regen gefangen worden. Das Gehen war schwierig und nachher waren meine Kleider klatschnass.
Yesterday I was going back home from the supermarket and I was caught by the wind and rain. It was difficult to walk and my clothes were soaked afterwards.
Upepo ilipokuwa mkali zaidi hapa, halikuwa na mvua. Huenda hivyo sikutambua kwa muda mrefu kwamba hali ilikuwa kubwa hivyo, hata nikiwa nje. Sikuwa nimezolea dhoruba zenye kuharibu zisizo na ngurumo na radi wala mvua kali.
When the wind was at its fiercest here, there was no rain. Maybe that's why I didn't realise for quite a while that it was such a serious situation, even though I was outside. I'm not familiar with damaging gales ("storms"?) without thunder and lighting or heavy rain.
ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪ wrote:Была ли это эта гроза, которой результаты лежали сегодня на трамвайных рельсах и задержали меня в школу?
Was it that storm results of which were laying today on the tram rails and stopped me on my way to school?
Ndiyo, inaelekea! Kwa uhakika. It was called Xavier.
Yes, probably! Certainly. Iliitwa Xavier.
Glossing Abbreviations: COMP = comparative, C = complementiser, ACS / ICS = accessible / inaccessible, GDV = gerundive, SPEC / NSPC = specific / non-specific
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by Io »

jal wrote:Yes, I wrote them again, and then I got a message they were fully booked. But when I wrote the first time, they weren't yet :(
You should (have) call(ed) them, that's what I do when I want an answer, SMS, email and stuff like that is too easy to ignore/forget and even if they don't speak English, since they reply back in German, they might understand it well enough. Same thing happened to me last when I was booking a place in Germany, I had to cancel the 3-person room and book for 2 but I saw they were fully booked, so I called them and explained in my broken German I want to cancel the previous reservation but make sure I'll have another room. Very often people don't feel confident enough to speak/write in English even if it's not as bad as they imagine it.

Later when I was there both in Berlin and Zingst, I had the same situations in person to person when I'd ask something in English and they say "do you understand German?" so I'd let them reply in German, it worked most of the time, except when I complained about the doors slamming too loudly pretty much the only thing I understood from the waterfall of words was "Brandschutz".

Anyway, you can still call them and ask them if they can put you on a wait list or something, so if someone cancels a reservation in the coming weeks they can put you instead, donno if this could actually work but you can give it a try.
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by Imralu »

Io wrote:
jal wrote:Yes, I wrote them again, and then I got a message they were fully booked. But when I wrote the first time, they weren't yet :(
You should (have) call(ed) them, that's what I do when I want an answer
Huenda hiyo haiwezekani kwa sababu Jal hasikii vizuri. Sijui akiweza asipoweza kupiga simu.
That might not be possible because Jal doesn't hear very well. I don't know if he can phone or not.
Io wrote:when I complained about the doors slamming too loudly pretty much the only thing I understood from the waterfall of words was "Brandschutz".
Ni kweli! Milango inapobanishwa moto unaogopa na haiwezi kusonga mbele.
That is true! When doors are slammed, it frightens fire and makes it unable to advance.

Kigiriki chako kikoje? Kwa nini huandika kwake hapa?
How is your Greek? Why don't you write in it here?
Glossing Abbreviations: COMP = comparative, C = complementiser, ACS / ICS = accessible / inaccessible, GDV = gerundive, SPEC / NSPC = specific / non-specific
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by Ziz »

השבוע ביקרתי אצל חבר בצפון אילינוי, והיכרתי את החבר החדש שלו. חשבתי שאולי יהיה קצת מביך, שלושתינו ביחד, בגלל שאני והוא פעם היינו ביחד, אבל בסוף יצא לנו דווקא יפה מאוד. לא ידעתי שיש שם עיירות חמודות. ממש אהבתי את לייק פורסט. דיי בורגנית אבל זה כפר לא מפריע לי.
Ha·shavua‘ biḳarti etsel ḥaver bi-tsfon Ilinoy, ṿe-hikarti et ha·ḥaver ha·ḥadash shelo. Ḥashavti she-ulay yihyë ḳtsat mevikh, shloshteynu be·yaḥad, biglal she-ani ṿe-hu’ pa‘am hayinu be·yaḥad, aval ba·sof yatsa’ lanu yafë me’od. Lo’ yada‘ti she-yesh sham ‘ayarot ḥamudot. Mamash ahavti et Leyḳ Foresṭ. Dey burganit aval zë kvar lo mafria‘ li.

This week I visited my friend in northern Illinois, and I met his new boyfriend. I thought it might be a little awkward, the three of us together, because he and I had once been an item for a while, but it turned out really nice. I didn't know there were nice little towns there. I really liked Lake Forest. Pretty bougie, but who cares.

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by jal »

Imralu wrote:That might not be possible because Jal doesn't hear very well. I don't know if he can phone or not.
Genau, das ist das erste Problem. Das zweite ist, das ich Telefonangst habe. Der Gedanke, dass ich jemand anrufen würde, den ich nicht gut kenne, reicht um mir das kalte Schweiß aus zu brechen lassen.
Indeed, that's the first problem. The second is I have fear of phoning. The thought I have to call someone I don't know very well, is enough to give me cold sweat.

EDIT:
hwhatting wrote:Hier in Bonn was het ook alleen [maar] erg winderig. Noord-Duitsland heeft niet zo veel geluk gehad.

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by Imralu »

jal wrote:
Imralu wrote:That might not be possible because Jal doesn't hear very well. I don't know if he can phone or not.
Genau, das ist das erste Problem. Das zweite ist, das ich Telefonangst habe. Der Gedanke, dass ich jemand anrufen würde, den ich nicht gut kenne, reicht um mir das kalte Schweiß aus zu brechen lassen.
Indeed, that's the first problem. The second is I have fear of phoning. The thought I have to call someone I don't know very well, is enough to give me cold sweat.
Mimi ni sawa nawe. Kazini lazima niwapigie watu simu mara kwa mara kwa bosi yangu, na mimi hata hutetemeka. Kadiri ninavyopatwa na wasiwasi, ndivyo unapungua uwezo wangu wa kusikia mwingine anachokisema, na ndivyo inavyozidi wasiwasi.
I'm the same. At work, I sometimes have to make phone calls to people for my boss, and I even shake. The more nervous I am about it, the less I can hear of what the other person is saying, and the more nervous I get.
Glossing Abbreviations: COMP = comparative, C = complementiser, ACS / ICS = accessible / inaccessible, GDV = gerundive, SPEC / NSPC = specific / non-specific
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by hwhatting »

Pole, the wrote:Gestern kam ich aus dem Supermarkt zurückgekommen und ich bin in Wind und Regen geraten. Das Gehen war schwierig und nachher waren meine Sachen*1) klatschnass.
Yesterday I was going back home from the supermarket and I was caught by the wind and rain. It was difficult to walk and my clothes were soaked afterwards.
*1) Kleider as "clothes" is very literary / old-fashioned. Nowadays it normally means "dresses". The normal colloquial word is (Anzieh-)Sachen, or more formally Kleidung (which as a collective requires the singular).
ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪ wrote:Была ли это эта*2) гроза, которой*3) результаты которой*3) лежали сегодня на трамвайных рельсах и задержали меня на дороге в школу?
Was it that storm results of which were laying today on the tram rails and stopped me on my way to school?
*2) The antecedent that is taken up in a relative clause is normally marked with тот, not with этот.
*3) The genitive of the relative pronoun always follows the "possessed" noun and therefore normally is in second position in the relative clause, as opposed to most other instances of the relative pronoun,
jal wrote:Genau, das ist das erste Problem. Das zweite ist, dass ich Telefonangst habe. Der Gedanke, dass ich jemand anrufen muss*4), den ich nicht gut kenne, reicht, um mich in kalten Schweiß ausbrechen zu lassen.
Indeed, that's the first problem. The second is I have fear of phoning. The thought I have to call someone I don't know very well, is enough to give me cold sweat.
*4) Or: soll; in this case, they would both be correct.

Ça doit être difficile au travail
To musi być trudne na pracy.
Dat moet lastig zijn op de arbeid.

That must be difficult at work.

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by jal »

hwhatting wrote:Dat moet lastig zijn op het werk.
Ich werke in der IT, und fast alles kann ich mit E-mail klären. Und meine schlechte Gehör ist eine gute Entschuldigung, die Telefon nicht so viel zu benützen.
I'm working in IT, and almost everything can be done via e-mail. And my bad hearing is a good excuse for not using the phone too much.


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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

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jal wrote:Ich arbeite in der IT, und kann fast alles kann ich per E-mail klären. Und meine schlechtes Gehör ist eine gute Entschuldigung, das Telefon nicht so viel zu benutzen.
I'm working in IT, and almost everything can be done via e-mail. And my bad hearing is a good excuse for not using the phone too much.
Dat is goed!
That's good!

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

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hwhatting wrote:That's good!
Besser als mein Deutsch :)
Better than my German :).


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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪ »

Сегодня, когда мой и параллельный класс возвращался в школу из занятий физкультуры, мы пели российские песни (например «Катюша», но это только я умею петь) и один парень с другого класса стал смеяться, что моё произношение очень плохое, но когда я его спросил, чтобы сказал что-нибудь правильно, он замолчал.
Today, when my and parallel class were going back to school from PE lesson, we were singing Russian songs (for example "Katyusha", but only I can sing it) and one guy from the other class started laughing that my pronunciation is terrible, but when I asked him to say something correctly, he shut up.
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by hwhatting »

ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪ wrote:Сегодня, когда мой и параллельный классы возвращались в школу с занятий физкультуры, мы пели русские*1) песни (например «Катюша», но это только я умею петь) и один парень с другого класса стал смеяться над тем, что моё произношение очень плохое, но когда я его попросил, чтобы сказал что-нибудь правильно, он замолчал.
Today, when my and parallel class were going back to school from PE lesson, we were singing Russian songs (for example "Katyusha", but only I can sing it) and one guy from the other class started laughing that my pronunciation is terrible, but when I asked him to say something correctly, he shut up.
*1) российский is only used for things pertaining to the Russian state, not to ethnicity or language.

Łatwiej krytykować, niż robić coś sam.
Critiquer est plus facile que faire quelque chose soi-même.
Het is makkelijker te bekritiseren dan iets zelf te doen.
It's easier to criticize than to do something yourself

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by jal »

hwhatting wrote:Het is makkelijker te bekritiseren dan iets zelf te doen.
Myself, I'd say something like "Het is makkelijker om kritiek te hebben dan om het zelf te doen". I'm not entirely sure whether "bekritiseren" really needs an object ("om iemand te bekritiseren"), without it it sounds a bit odd. Also, I'd add "om".
Genau. Zum Beispiel, ich kann gar kein Fußbal spielen, aber es ist nicht schwer, die Holländische Mannschaft zu kritisieren, wegen das Verpassen des Weltmeisterschafts.
Indeed. For example, I can't play football at all, but it's not hard to critisize the Dutch team for missing the world championship.


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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by ˈd̪ʲɛ.gɔ kɾuˑl̪ »

hwhatting wrote:Łatwiej jest* krytykować, niż robić coś samemu.
It's easier to criticize than to do something yourself
*It just sounds better with jest.
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by hwhatting »

jal wrote:Genau. Zum Beispiel, ich kann überhaupt nicht Fußbal spielen, aber es ist nicht schwer, die holländische Mannschaft zu kritisieren, wegen des Verpassens*1) der Weltmeisterschafts.Indeed. For example, I can't play football at all, but it's not hard to critisize the Dutch team for missing the world championship.
*1) A dependent clause weil sie die Weltmeisterschaft verpasst hat would be much more idiomatic here - while German does constructions with verbal nouns like this, they're normally limited to shorter noun phrases outside of Bureaucratese.

Dick Advocaat popsuł wszystko.
Dick Advocaat a porté la poisse à tout.
Dick Advocaat heeft alles bedorven.

Dick Advocaat jinxed everything.

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

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Ziz wrote:This week I visited my friend in northern Illinois, and I met his new boyfriend. I thought it might be a little awkward, the three of us together, because he and I had once been an item for a while, but it turned out really nice. I didn't know there were nice little towns there. I really liked Lake Forest. Pretty bougie, but who cares.
Du bist fast vor meiner Haustür gewesen!
Is beag ná go rabhais ar leic an dorais agam!
You were practically in my backyard!

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by Imralu »

hwhatting wrote:
jal wrote:benutzen.
Nadhani watu wanasema benützen katika sehemu kusini.
I think people say "benützen" in the southern areas.
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by jal »

hwhatting wrote:Dick Advocaat heeft alles bedorven*.
*I'd say "verpest".

Ich denke, es ist nicht seine Schuld, er hat eine Scheissesache georben von Blind (und Hiddink), kombiniert mit der Tatsache, dass es einfach keine neuen guten Niederländischen Fußbalspieler gibt.
I think he's not to blame, he has inherited a shitty mess from Blind (and Hiddink), combined with the fact that there are just no good new Dutch football players.


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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

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jal wrote:Ich denke, es ist nicht seine Schuld, er hat ein Scheißchaos geerbt von Blind (und Hiddink), kombiniert mit der Tatsache, dass es einfach keine neuen guten niederländischen Fußballspieler gibt.
I think he's not to blame, he has inherited a shitty mess from Blind (and Hiddink), combined with the fact that there are just no good new Dutch football players.
Miałem na myśli to, ale sądzę, że masz rację.
J'ai parlé de ça, mais je pense que tu as raison.
Ik had daraan gedacht, maar ik denk dat je gelijk heeft.

I meant this, but I think you're right.
Imralu wrote:
hwhatting wrote:
jal wrote:benutzen.
I think people say "benützen" in the southern areas.
Nie tylko na południu, ale to jest bardzo potocznie
Pas seulement au sud, mais c'est très familier.
Niet slechts in het Zuiden, maar het is zeer van de omgangstaal.

Not only in the South, but it's very colloquial.

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

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hwhatting wrote:Ik had hieraan* gedacht, maar ik denk dat je gelijk hebt.
I meant this, but I think you're right.
*Dutch has a very strict hier/daar distinction, in this case "hier" is correct (and "daar" is with double "a"). "Ik had eraan/daaraan gedacht" just means "I thought about it" or "I remembered (to do) it", with a reference to a known thing. In this case you present new information you actually "point" to, so you need "hier".
Imralu wrote:Niet alleen in het Zuiden, maar het is zeer informeel*.
*You could also say something like "maar het wordt alleen gebruikt in de omgangstaal" or the like, but I don't see a way to have both "zeer" and "omgangstaal" in one clause like that.

Ich denke, dass ich "benützen" geschrieben habe, da es in Niederländischen das Wort "benutten" gibt, und ich deshalb die "u" mit einem Voderzungenvokal assoziiere.
I think I wrote "benützen" because in Dutch there's the word "benutten", and I therefore associate the "u" with a front vowel.


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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

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Wer wusste, dass es ein Oktoberfest in Barcelona gibt? Und schon seit sechs Jahren!
Cé aige go raibh a fhios go bhfuil Oktoberfest i Barcelona? Agus le seacht mbliana cheana!
Who knew there was an Oktoberfest in Barcelona? And for six years already!

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

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jal wrote:Ich denke, dass ich "benützen" geschrieben habe, da es im Niederländischen das Wort "benutten" gibt, und ich deshalb das "u" mit einem Vorderzungenvokal assoziiere.
I think I wrote "benützen" because in Dutch there's the word "benutten", and I therefore associate the "u" with a front vowel.
linguoboy wrote:Wer wusste, dass es ein Oktoberfest in Barcelona gibt? Und das schon seit sechs Jahren!
Who knew there was an Oktoberfest in Barcelona? And for six years already!
Nie wiedzałem. Na zdrowie!
Pas moi. À la vôtre!
Ik niet. Proost!

I didn't. Cheers!

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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

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linguoboy wrote:Wer wusste, dass es ein Oktoberfest in Barcelona gibt? Und schon seit sechs Jahren!
Cé aige go raibh a fhios go bhfuil Oktoberfest i Barcelona? Agus le seacht mbliana cheana!
Who knew there was an Oktoberfest in Barcelona? And for six years already!
Inaelekea watu waliohudhuria wamejua kwamba ipo.
Presumably the people who have attended it have known that it exists.
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Re: Help your fluency in a nifty way

Post by hwhatting »

Imralu wrote:
linguoboy wrote:Who knew there was an Oktoberfest in Barcelona? And for six years already!
Presumably the people who have attended it have known that it exists.
Czy zostałeś filozofem?
Est-ce que tu es devenu philosophe?
Has sido un filósofo?
Sei diventato filosofo?
Ben je filosoof geworden?
Have you become a philospher?

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