GatKong |
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Tetris Mason
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Chinese translation request :)
#284490 - 05/01/12 12:45 AM
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Howdy all who can read chinese...
How do you translate this phrase...
从 A 到 Z
What I intend it to say is basically...
From A to Z
If that's not the meaning the phrase conveys... what's a better way to convey the sentiment "from A to Z"?
Thanks a bunch!
(Trying to avoid the whole 'all your bases are belong to us' type error)
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Re: Chinese translation request :)
[Re: GatKong]
#284505 - 05/01/12 02:05 AM
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> How do you translate this phrase...
> 从 A 到 Z
It does mean "from A to Z" but I'm not sure it's quite right, it might need some conjunction in the middle. I'm not sure the characters for "from/to" are correct for abstract concepts, although they're used for places and times. (Can you see how shit I am at actually writing Chinese as opposed to just reading it?)
> If that's not the meaning the phrase conveys... what's a better way to convey the
> sentiment "from A to Z"?
Cultural bias interferes with this – the phrase doesn't generally refer to the alphabet literally in English, and it means something more like "from beginning to end", or "in full scope". However, since the alphabet is a foreign concept to a Chinese speaker, the phrase would be only be interpreted as being about the Latin alphabet literally. The closest equivalent colloquialism I can think of right now would be "从来" (cong lai), which means "at all times" or similar.
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Re: Chinese translation request :)
[Re: GatKong]
#284506 - 05/01/12 02:25 AM
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> Howdy all who can read chinese...
>
>
> How do you translate this phrase...
> 从 A 到 Z
>
>
> What I intend it to say is basically...
> From A to Z
>
>
> If that's not the meaning the phrase conveys... what's a better way to convey the
> sentiment "from A to Z"?
>
>
> Thanks a bunch!
>
>
> (Trying to avoid the whole 'all your bases are belong to us' type error)
从一个到˛ (From one to Z)
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Re: Chinese translation request :)
[Re: joey35car]
#284508 - 05/01/12 02:33 AM
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> > Howdy all who can read chinese...
> >
> >
> > How do you translate this phrase...
> > 从 A 到 Z
> >
> >
> > What I intend it to say is basically...
> > From A to Z
> >
> >
> > If that's not the meaning the phrase conveys... what's a better way to convey the
> > sentiment "from A to Z"?
> >
> >
> > Thanks a bunch!
> >
> >
> > (Trying to avoid the whole 'all your bases are belong to us' type error)
>
> 从一个到˛ (From one to Z)
That's definitely not what he's aiming for. Seriously, that's just out there.
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| GatKong |
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Tetris Mason
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Re: Chinese translation request :)
[Re: Vas Crabb]
#284516 - 05/01/12 04:12 AM
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Although both of these translate on google and babelfish to "From A to Z"
从A个到Z
从A到Z
So... there must some context difference with or without the 个... one must be more correct than the other.
Hmm...
The context I'm looking for is to say "Starting with A, and discussing everything from that all the way through to Z", or "From A to Z".
I'm using A and Z as variables here... it doesn't matter what A or Z is.
Any help?
Don't "somebody set up us the bomb!"
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Re: Chinese translation request :)
[Re: Vas Crabb]
#284518 - 05/01/12 05:05 AM
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> > > Howdy all who can read chinese...
> > >
> > >
> > > How do you translate this phrase...
> > > 从 A 到 Z
> > >
> > >
> > > What I intend it to say is basically...
> > > From A to Z
> > >
> > >
> > > If that's not the meaning the phrase conveys... what's a better way to convey the
> > > sentiment "from A to Z"?
> > >
> > >
> > > Thanks a bunch!
> > >
> > >
> > > (Trying to avoid the whole 'all your bases are belong to us' type error)
> >
> > 从一个到˛ (From one to Z)
>
> That's definitely not what he's aiming for. Seriously, that's just out there.
Well it is called the looney bin 
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| Sune |
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Connected
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Reged: 09/21/03
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Loony not Loon-ay
[Re: joey35car]
#284521 - 05/01/12 05:12 AM
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> Well it is called the looney bin
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Re: Chinese translation request :)
[Re: GatKong]
#284539 - 05/01/12 06:44 AM
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> Although both of these translate on google and babelfish to "From A to Z"
>
> 从A个到Z
> 从A到Z
>
>
> So... there must some context difference with or without the 个... one must be
> more correct than the other.
>
> Hmm...
>
> The context I'm looking for is to say "Starting with A, and discussing everything
> from that all the way through to Z", or "From A to Z".
> I'm using A and Z as variables here... it doesn't matter what A or Z is.
>
> Any help?
>
> Don't "somebody set up us the bomb!"
You're on the wrong track - as Vas Crabb says, the Latin alphabet is not a natural way of expressing things, so it will come across as, "You mean like reading through an English dictionary from cover to cover?"
Maybe something like "从开始到结束" would express what you want to convey?
Oh, and 个 is a counter token for articles - you need these grammatical tokens as suffixes on numbers (which one you use depends on context). It definitely doesn't belong in "从A个到Z".
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| GatKong |
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Tetris Mason
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Reged: 04/20/07
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Posts: 5908
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Loc: Sector 9
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Re: Chinese translation request :)
[Re: Matty_]
#284549 - 05/01/12 07:22 AM
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Thanks everyone, that was uber helpful!
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