Are there unique words in your language?

The Swede   Sat Aug 06, 2005 2:27 pm GMT
In Swedish we have : "lagom" and "fika", they are unique because you can´t translate them to an other language. That was uniqe words for Swedish. What about your language?
Sigma   Sat Aug 06, 2005 9:35 pm GMT
In Mexican Spanish we have the words: "guajolote" which means turker (we use also pavo) and also we use "zopilote" instead of the standard "buitre" which means vulture. I think that other versions of Spanish doesn't have such words.
Brennus   Sat Aug 06, 2005 9:43 pm GMT
"Sugar daddy" and "blue collar worker" are two words in American English that don't seem to have precise equivalents in other languages. The first usually gets translated periphrastically as "an older man who keeps a young woman" and the second variously as "manual laborer", "industrial worker", "working-class person" or just plain "worker."

We also have new-fangeled words like 'chocoholic' (Someone who loves chocolate) and 'roadoholic' ( A person who follows rock groups around as they travel) based on the word "alcoholic." These would be difficult to find good equivalents for in other languages. "Workoholic' (A person who likes to work or works too hard all the time) might translate a little better. "Large frogs" (like the ones from Africa) are sometimes called "megafrogs" or "Goliath frogs". I don't think any other language can translate them this colorfully.
Sigma   Sat Aug 06, 2005 9:47 pm GMT
turker>

I mean turkey sorry
Sander   Sat Aug 06, 2005 9:49 pm GMT
Sugar daddy: Suikeroom

blue collar worker:fabrieksarbeider
Sigma   Sat Aug 06, 2005 9:50 pm GMT
"blue collar worker>

Actually not, I had a teacher of England in a class called:" English for business", and he used that word also with white collar worker, and the entire class was in British English. She didn't accept the standar rules of American English for things such as: grammar, pronunciation and stuff like that. I remember well how I suffered in that class, because I speak the English of the US not the English of the UK.
Brennus   Sun Aug 07, 2005 6:52 am GMT
Sigma,

Re: " ...I had a teacher of England in a class called:" English for business", and he used that word also with white collar worker"

All that says is that your teacher was using a couple of Americanisms.

There has always been some borrowing back and forth across the pond. One of the earliest British English words to be borrowed into American English was "chipper" around 1810 e.g. ("She was chipper and happy and just excited about getting out ... ) Later, in the 1880's, came "drag queen" for an extreme male homosexual and "cop" for a police officer.

Over the past 40 years, a quantum leap in mutual borrowings has occurred due to modern communications and ease of air travel. Thus, Americans now use the Cockney "bread" for 'money' too and the British English 'groady' for "yucky" and 'jerry-built' for "cheaply" as in 'Jerry-built apartments'.

Likewise, one now hears some American expressions in England too such as "The real McCoy", "He dances like Joe Cool," "Those kids where whooping and hollering like wild Indians" , "We dug the song so we decided to record it" etc.
The Swede   Sun Aug 07, 2005 7:57 am GMT
Sigma, do you know the word "naco"? And if, what does it means?
greg   Sun Aug 07, 2005 8:28 am GMT
Voici une liste de candidats potentiels au palmarès proposé par The Swede. A vérifier...

Un je-ne-sais-quoi.

Du vague à l'âme.

Une usine à gaz.

Les mirettes.

Pourriel.

Clavardage.

Un mouton à cinq pattes.

Jusqu'auboutiste.

Une Marie-couche-toi-là.

Un SDF (différent d'un sans-abri).

Un cégétiste.

Un enculeur de mouches.

Re (quand on salue quelqu'un une seconde fois dans la journée).

Joie de vivre.
Brennus   Sun Aug 07, 2005 8:29 am GMT
Re: Naco - The word is more Mexican than Spanish.

http://www.doubletongued.org/index.php/dictionary/naco

Other translations of 'naco' are "tacky", "cheesy" and "low class".
thomas   Sun Aug 07, 2005 12:42 pm GMT
what does the two swedish words mean?
THe Swede   Sun Aug 07, 2005 1:02 pm GMT
Thank you Tomas those words are uniqe for Swedish but I shall try to explain but tak a look at these sites from wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagom and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fika other
Other advices I have is to search for those words at google or altavista etc etc to find more stories about those words for example this one http://www.popco.org/press/articles/2001-2-atkisson.html
thomas   Sun Aug 07, 2005 1:12 pm GMT
i think you're right. never heard of these words in danish
Sander   Sun Aug 07, 2005 1:19 pm GMT
Lagom = voldoende

And Fika,would be something like 'Koffie'.
t   Sun Aug 07, 2005 1:22 pm GMT
i understood that fika means when you go for a cup of coffe while at work. in danish we call it a "kaffe-pause". hehe.