Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Finnish term or phrase:
rotisko
English translation:
hunk of junk
Added to glossary by
Owen Witesman
Sep 18, 2011 01:01
12 yrs ago
Finnish term
Real English // Oikea englanti
Native in: English
Works in: Finnish to English, Estonian to English, English, and 1 more.
rotisko
Finnish to English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
"Olipahan vain yksi rotisko eteisen nurkassa johon kaikki vastasivat."
Describing an old rotary dial phone. I know the dictionary definition of rotisko, but everything I can think of to use in the translation is an adjectival phrase, and I'd really like to have a cleaner solution--a single noun if possible. Any thoughts?
Describing an old rotary dial phone. I know the dictionary definition of rotisko, but everything I can think of to use in the translation is an adjectival phrase, and I'd really like to have a cleaner solution--a single noun if possible. Any thoughts?
Proposed translations
(English)
| 3 +1 | We only had this rotary junk in the corridor... |
Hannele Marttila
|
| 3 | jalopy |
Vladyslav Golovaty
|
| 3 | contrivance, relic |
urbom
|
| 3 | Lemon |
aleski
|
| 2 | flivver |
Timo Lehtilä
|
Proposed translations
+1
8 hrs
Hannele Marttila
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in Finnish
&
English
United Kingdom
bilingual exp translator/writer
Native in: Finnish 
, English
Works in: Finnish to English, Danish to English, Swedish to English
Related KudoZ points
:
7
Selected
We only had this rotary junk in the corridor...
or maybe, we only had one of these ancient rotary phones ...
Or, maybe you don't need to say rotary... maybe just an ancient contraption?
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Note added at 8 hrs (2011-09-18 09:40:42 GMT)
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On reflection, I think "contraption" is the right word to use, conveying the feel of "rotisko".
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Note added at 1 day6 hrs (2011-09-19 07:35:00 GMT)
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Owen, I understand where you're coming from, and hunk of junk rhymes nicely. Here in the UK though HUNK really has the meaning of a large piece of bread or cheese or male with a good physique... I suppose your choice really depends on the overall use of expressions in the text you are translating.
Or, maybe you don't need to say rotary... maybe just an ancient contraption?
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 8 hrs (2011-09-18 09:40:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
On reflection, I think "contraption" is the right word to use, conveying the feel of "rotisko".
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Note added at 1 day6 hrs (2011-09-19 07:35:00 GMT)
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Owen, I understand where you're coming from, and hunk of junk rhymes nicely. Here in the UK though HUNK really has the meaning of a large piece of bread or cheese or male with a good physique... I suppose your choice really depends on the overall use of expressions in the text you are translating.
Note from asker:
| Contraption is a good possibility (it was one of the first things I though of myself). I've been trying to use it less lately in my work though--it's started to lose any flavor it once had for me. It's a little amazing (odd?) how many words Finnish has that basically mean contraption. I guess that goes for a lot of concepts. In my own English dialect we do use contraption, but it has some very specific connotations for me, and at least at first didn't feel like a very good fit here. Thinking about your suggestions just now did give me another idea that may be a perfect fit: hunk of junk. |
3 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thanks again, Hannele. Although I didn't use your exact suggestion, yours was ultimately the most helpful."
9 mins
Vladyslav Golovaty
Ukraine
Ukraine
Native in English
Ukraine
a top-rank. native English-Ukrainian-Rus
Native in: English (Variant: US) 
, Ukrainian (Variant: Standard-Ukraine) , Russian
Works in: English to Ukrainian, Ukrainian to English, Russian to English, and 3 more.
jalopy
if no, than clunker or rattletrap, why not?
Note from asker:
| Those terms are more appropriate for cars. Thanks, though. |
9 hrs
contrivance, relic
"rotary-dial relic" has a nice rhythm and alliteration to it...
Dunno who the speaker is, so "contrivance" may be the wrong register.
Dunno who the speaker is, so "contrivance" may be the wrong register.
Note from asker:
| Yeah, I should have said: the speaker is a teenager. Certainly doesn't mean she can't use unusual words. I'm liking relic--I'll try it out in the text and see how it feels. |
14 hrs
Timo Lehtilä
Finland
Finland
Native in Finnish
Finland
Knowing the subject and skills to say it
Native in: Finnish
Works in: Russian to Finnish, English to Finnish
Related KudoZ points
:
8
flivver
This has the same basic meaning as 'rotisko', but I don't know how much it is acceptable for an English native to use it for any other things than cars and aeroplanes.
Note from asker:
| That seems a bit dated--I didn't say so, but the narrative seems to be set in the late 80's, and the narrator was a teenager at the time. |
31 days
Lemon
...although probably not as descriptive, and appropriate in that, as the aforementioned clunker and rattletrap.
lemon: "a person or thing that proves to be defective, imperfect, or unsatisfactory" (Dictionary.com)
lemon: "a person or thing that proves to be defective, imperfect, or unsatisfactory" (Dictionary.com)
Example sentence:
...while cheekily nodding at worries that the Beetle itself was a lemon.
Reference:
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