VOCABULARY B Work in pairs.
Match the infinitive form of the
verbs in bold in the summary in Ex 2A with their
summarising verbs definitions 1-12.
1 express an opinion or attitude .........
.
1 Work in pairs and discussthe questions.
2 agree with a statement ....
1 In what situations might people need a translator or 3 give something as an example
an interpreter?
4 repeat another point or opinion ..
2 What do you think is meant by the phrase 'lost in
translation'? Give some examples. 5 ask or wonder ...
6 ask for action ..
2A Read the summary of a TV programme about translation. 7 admit the existence of
What challenges to effective translation are mentioned? 8 express a firm belief
9 start to talk about a topic
A fascinating programme yesterday evening raised 10 clarify with an example ..
the issues involved in translating, whether it be 11 think carefully .....
simultaneous interpretation for speakers or of the 12 give a reaction to something ..
written word. One contributor to the progrc1mme
voiced a concern that the intonation of an original C Choose the correct summarising verbs to complete
utterance cannot be translated, which can open the the report.
door to misunderstanding. Ron Davis, a poet, echoed
this point and was also insistent that certain types of Dubbing or subtitles: Which is best?
writing, such as poetry, simply cannot be translated.
In the discussion a student 1raised / commented
According to Davis, whenever you 'translate' a poem
the issue of dubbing in films and mentioned
from one language to another, you end up with two
how disjointed this can make a film feel.
poems, because a poem is created through words,
sound, rhythm and visuals. He illustrated his point Another student 2 echoed / illustrated this
by referring to poems that use line length to help concern, saying that her preference is always for
impart meaning. Another guest, Anna Parton, a subtitling. A third student 3voiced / accepted
linguist, called for all translators to have a real that this reflected the views of most students
awareness of the importance of cultural differences but 4 called for/ questioned the accuracy of
when translating. She acknowledged the difficulties subtitling and 5 maintained / cited that it often
that translators face and accepted that these may took viewers' attention away from the main
never be completely overcome. She maintained action on the screen. Some students 6wondered
that it is often nearly impossible to find equivalent / pondered the degree of concentration
translations for words that express shades of required to follow subtitles, and one 7 explained
meaning or concepts that differ from one culture to / illustrated the point by mentioning falling
another. She cited the fact that the Irish language asleep while watching a subtitled film the
has thirty-two different words for the English word previous week.
'field', and pondered the difficulty of expressing all
the feelings contained in the one Portuguese word
D Work in pairs. Discuss the title of the report in
'saudade' - longing, nostalgia, hope, melancholy Ex 2C. Then summarise your ideas using the
and emptiness. She went on to question whether alternative verbs not used in Ex 2C.
training courses for translators and interpreters
focus enough on this aspect of this specialised work. E Learn and practise. Go to the Vocabulary Bank.
Viewers' posts following the programme commented
page 137 VOCABULARY BANK multi-word
on the valuable insights the programme offered. verbs for reporting
23
GRAMMAR BANK GB
2A advanced ways of comparing
REFERENCE Clpage 22 PRACTICE
like 1 Complete the sentences with as or like.
We use like, sometimes modified by a bit, a little, 1 The new series is nowhere near good as the first was.
somewhat, rather, a lot, nothing, etc. to compare 2 Visiting my childhood home was a lot going back
two nouns. into the past the owners hadn’t changed a thing.
aiting for an interview is a bit like going to the 3 The autobiography of the author was equally as interesting
dentist pretty scary the plot of his novel.
ur new museum is nothing like the ones I ve 4 My passport picture looks nothing I do now – it’s
seen in other cities nearly eight years old.
he play we went to see last night was a lot like 5 The road was so heavily covered in snow to be
watching paint dry It was so boring almost impassable.
6 It wasn’t so much an invitation to attend the meeting
as an order.
We use (not) as … as with an adverb or adjective to
make equal or unequal comparisons.
2 Match the sentence beginnings (1–6) with the endings (a–f).
1 You couldn’t find a location any
The painting was not as old as he d maintained.
2 This holiday cottage isn’t
or emphasis we can modify a comparative with 3 To tell the truth, I’m more
words such as easily, nothing like, nowhere like, 4 The cottage and its location are at complete
nowhere near, equally, etc.
5 Take whichever room you like. They differ
The laptop was nowhere near as e pensive as
6 The journey here took nothing
we d been led to believe
he e am was nothing like as di cult as I’d been a a patch on the one we had last year.
e pecting b more peaceful than this one.
he man was easily as eccentric as I had imagined c like as long as I’d thought it would.
is talk about the history of the town was d relieved that we got here safely than disappointed with
equally as interesting as his previous talk on its the place.
architecture e variance with how it was described online.
We use so … as to to replace a result clause. f in si e a little, but the views are the same.
His handwriting was so bad as to be almost
indecipherable.
3 Rewrite the second sentence using the word given so that it
has the same meaning as the first sentence. Use between four
We use not so much … as to stress the second and six words.
element. 1 This painting is the most lifelike I have seen.
It wasn’t so much an interview as an interrogation. GET
You couldn’t than this one.
Other structures and phrases
2 My original job description was very different to what I’m
We use can’t/couldn’t verb any (more) adverb/ having to do now.
adjective (than) to add emphasis. VARIANCE
he story line couldn’t have got any more What I’m having to do at work now is my original job
complicated description.
I can’t work any faster than I am, so please wait 3 His manner irritated me more than his words.
he flat is great for getting to work ou couldn’t SO
live any more centrally It wasn’t his manner that irritated me.
We use more adjective than adjective to 4 He made some claims that were ridiculous and we almost
emphasise one thing. laughed at them.
o be honest, I m more nervous than worried AS
about the test His be almost laughable.
5 We’d been warned that climbing to the top of the tower
Some phrases and verbs reflect similarity and would be exhausting and it was very true.
contrast.
EASILY
he meal cooked by the new chef wasn’t a patch
Climbing to the top of the tower we’d been warned.
on the delicacies the previous chef produced
6 You could compare the dry steak we ate last night to
The twins differ considera l in appearance and
cardboard.
personality
BIT
hat he s saying now about planning is at complete
variance with what he was saying si months ago That steak last night was so dry eating cardboard.
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