It competence be a wily denunciation to master, though one of a good things about German is that we don’t indeed need a quite vast vocabulary. That’s because, rather than inventing new words, Germans are large fans of formulating devalue difference out of existent ones.
A elementary instance of this is a German for devalue word Wortzusammensetzung (word-together-setting). Sometimes a meanings are obvious, during others they are a small harder to grasp…
1. Brustwarze – breast wart
The German denunciation doesn’t disaster around when it comes to physique parts. Brustwarze literally translates as “breast wart”, and yes, it means nipple.
It competence seem wanton to name such a sexy partial of a physique after a viral growth, but, hey, whatever creates clarity to Germans.
And it’s not a usually tenure for a physique partial that sounds a small grim. Zahnfleisch (tooth-meat) means gums.
2. Handschuhe – palm shoe
Moving on from a physique to what we dress it in, Germans also like to keep a denunciation absurdly simple. Why have a totally new word for things we put a hands in, when they are unequivocally usually boots for your hands? What do gloves and mittens even meant anyway?
Then there is a German word for a brassiere. Isn’t that usually something for propping adult your boobs? So it’s easier to call it a Büstenhalter, (bust-holder) right? Even if that does make it sound a hold perverted.
3. Klobrille – toilet glasses
Photo: Pexels / Wikimedia Commons
We’ve all been there. That initial residence assembly with a German flatmates when a subject of cleaning comes up. How many of we were left wracking your smarts during what on earth these dirty Klobrille (toilet glasses) could be?
While we competence during initial theory that this is some bizarre device Germans use to assistance check each in. of a toilet bowl, it indeed usually means loo seat. Don’t worry, Germans aren’t that strict about cleanliness!
4. Stinktier – Stink animal
This one is beautifully blunt and gives we a sense that, when it came to fixing animals in Germany, kids get to do it rather than scientists.
What’s that animal that smells bad? A skunk we say? But isn’t scent animal so most some-more accurate?
That thing that’s like a snail though hasn’t got a shell… yeah a one English people call a slug. Let’s call that a exposed snail (Nacktschnecke).
And a one that spends a whole day eating – a wolverine – let’s name that a eat-a-lot (Vielfraß).
5. Eselsbrücke – donkey’s bridge
Photo: DPA
The definition of a word “donkey’s bridge” positively isn’t obvious, though it’s a lot some-more receptive than a word for it – “a mnemonic device”. What a mouthful.
A mnemonic device is usually a pretence we invent to assistance we remember something. The German indeed comes from a Latin tenure “pons asinorum” (bridge of donkeys) that refers to a indicate that people find tough to remember.
6. Donnerbalken – rumble beam
The word Donnerbalken is certainly one that creates any of us too immature to have finished troops use charity a day it was abolished. Originally a tenure was for a community troops latrine, though it is now mostly used in jargon to impute to a toilet.
Literally rumble beam, it’s tighten to a English jargon tenure “thunderbox”. It doesn’t need most explaining – “beam” refers to a seat-like bar, and a “thunder” we can substantially figure out for yourselves.
7. Durchfall – by fall
Another scatological one, and one that leaves small to a imagination. It means diarrhoea, and translates as “through-fall”.
You competence boomerang in disgust, though afterwards what does “diarrhoea” mean? It comes from a Greek, and it also means to “through-flow”. So, we Anglophones aren’t most better, though we usually don’t know a possess denunciation really well.
8. Wildpinkler – furious pee-er
A Wildpinkler during Ulm Minster. Photo: DPA
Let’s flush down one some-more toilet-related word. In fact, this one describes someone who avoids a toilet. Literally a “wild-pee-er”, a Wildpinkler is someone who likes to soothe themselves outside.
It competence sound harmless, though usually final month, it was suggested that wild pee-ers were eroding a ancient walls of Ulm Minster church, a building that boasts a tallest spire in a world.
So, maybe we should find a Klobrille or during slightest a Donnerbalken next time inlet calls.
9. Dudelsack – vocalise sack
English has also left for a verbatim one here. But bagpipes is an extremely tactful outline for a bag that emits a clearly pointless method of twiddly sounds while a splay Scot goes red in a face.
Germans cut to a follow and named a instrument the Dudelsack, which means a bag that tootles or yodels.
10. Stumme Zeitungsverkäufer – wordless newsagent
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The “silent newsagent” is a rather pleasing approach of describing those racks with newspapers we find outward sight stations.
The English denunciation doesn’t have an homogeneous word, though it’s flattering identical to a English tenure “dumb waiter”. That is a small lift for food we infrequently see in restaurants if a kitchen is on a opposite building to a dining room.
In German a reticent waiter is famous as a Speiseaufzug (dish-lift), so maybe English should adopt a “dumb newsagent” and German a “Stumme Diener” (dumb waiter).
Article source: http://www.thelocal.de/20161123/ten-hilarious-literal-translations-of-german-words-language