Dictionary website exclusively for idioms and Co - multilingual
Thread poster: Reka Virag
Reka Virag
Reka Virag
Hungary
English to Hungarian
+ ...
Oct 1, 2020

Hi there,

I'm super keen on idioms, proverbs, sayings, fixed expressions and the like (hereafter: idioms) so I've been collecting them for a few years now in various languages. The collections has several hundred idiom pairs (the same idiom at least in two different languages, but I have many of them in up to 5 languages. Each entry/language has three sections: Form, Definition, Example (and some special features like false friends, synoyms and antonyms, etc). Lately, I've been cons
... See more
Hi there,

I'm super keen on idioms, proverbs, sayings, fixed expressions and the like (hereafter: idioms) so I've been collecting them for a few years now in various languages. The collections has several hundred idiom pairs (the same idiom at least in two different languages, but I have many of them in up to 5 languages. Each entry/language has three sections: Form, Definition, Example (and some special features like false friends, synoyms and antonyms, etc). Lately, I've been considering making it publicly available, and I wonder if there was a need for / interest in this. I was thinking in an online dictionary or also offering up particular language pairs in Excel files.

My questions, then, are,
1. How often do you come across idiomatic expressions in your translation work (like, regularly, often, every now-and then, hardly ever and in what fields),
2. Would you find such a dictionary helpful, and
3. Altogether, what do you think of the idea?

Thanks in advance for your input!
Reka
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Silvia Pellacani
expressisverbis
 
Luca Tutino
Luca Tutino  Identity Verified
Italy
Member (2002)
English to Italian
+ ...
Good Idea! Oct 3, 2020

Reka Virag wrote:


1. How often do you come across idiomatic expressions in your translation work (like, regularly, often, every now-and then, hardly ever and in what fields),
2. Would you find such a dictionary helpful, and
3. Altogether, what do you think of the idea?


1. Every now and then - mostly in marketing, but also in general and conversation, of course.
2. When I need it, I love finding these expressions explained and connected on the web!
3. The idea sounds super. Of course, it all depends on the execution, but your section list seems a promising starting point.

Apart from being useful, I think that this is a fascinating subject for any linguist. The German linguist Elisabeth Piirainen, for instance, published a study on these "widespread idioms" in 2012.


Sara Massons
expressisverbis
 
Thomas T. Frost
Thomas T. Frost  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 21:48
Danish to English
+ ...
Yes, good idea Oct 3, 2020

I occasionally come across idioms etc., particularly in marketing texts, and haven't yet found a good place for looking up translations, so yes, it would be helpful.

How about including it into Wiktionary, which already has the structure for links to translations and handling multiple l
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I occasionally come across idioms etc., particularly in marketing texts, and haven't yet found a good place for looking up translations, so yes, it would be helpful.

How about including it into Wiktionary, which already has the structure for links to translations and handling multiple languages?

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Wiktionary:Criteria_for_inclusion#Idiomatic_phrases
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Sara Massons
expressisverbis
 
Sara Massons
Sara Massons  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 22:48
Member (2016)
English to French
+ ...
Very good idea Oct 12, 2020

I also have idioms to translate from time to time and I'd love to have a single place to look them up. I have a small and old paper dictionnary of idioms which is not very convenient to use. It would also be much interesting for creative projects.
Maby you can get in touch with Beaumont on freelang.net, who already did some work on some basic
... See more
I also have idioms to translate from time to time and I'd love to have a single place to look them up. I have a small and old paper dictionnary of idioms which is not very convenient to use. It would also be much interesting for creative projects.
Maby you can get in touch with Beaumont on freelang.net, who already did some work on some basic expressions: https://www.freelang.net/expressions/index.php. I used to volunteer on his website, at the very begining in year 2000... he is quite a nice guy.
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expressisverbis
 
expressisverbis
expressisverbis
Portugal
Local time: 21:48
Member (2015)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
I also find a very good idea, and a very useful resource Oct 12, 2020

This is a subject that always drew my attention, and I come across idioms, proverbs, and sayings quite often.
A few days ago, I have posted a question about idiomatic expressions. This is one of the main and more difficult aspects for translators, but the most challenging!
Amongst other online resources, for English to Portuguese, for ex., I use Michaelis Idiomatic Expressions in Engli
... See more
This is a subject that always drew my attention, and I come across idioms, proverbs, and sayings quite often.
A few days ago, I have posted a question about idiomatic expressions. This is one of the main and more difficult aspects for translators, but the most challenging!
Amongst other online resources, for English to Portuguese, for ex., I use Michaelis Idiomatic Expressions in English / Portuguese Dictionary:
https://books.google.pt/books?id=boS6DQAAQBAJ&pg=PT2&hl=pt-PT&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false


[Edited at 2020-10-12 10:49 GMT]
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Dictionary website exclusively for idioms and Co - multilingual







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