Ko o čemu, baba o uštipcima.

English translation: "off on his/her hobby-horse again"

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
Serbian term or phrase:Ko o čemu, baba o uštipcima.
English translation:"off on his/her hobby-horse again"
Entered by: David Stephenson

22:04 Dec 18, 2008
Serbian to English translations [PRO]
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters / Idiomatic expression
Serbian term or phrase: Ko o čemu, baba o uštipcima.
I encountered this in an interview It was part of the interview subject's response to a speculative question, and he went on to dismiss said speculation. Since it was a rush job, I had to take a guess, so I went with "That's idle prattle."

Can anyone confirm that this is more or less what this expression conveys? Obviously, a literal rendering involving grandmothers and doughnuts would make no sense!

Hvala unapred!
David Stephenson
United States
Local time: 05:49
"off on his/her hobby-horse again"
Explanation:
This is just one stab at it in English. Not a bad guess on your part, but the meaning is more like someone is talking about a subject they are always talking about, hence it is highly predictable - so what's Granny talking about? Doughnuts again!

"Hobby-horse" was a phrase that came to mind, but there must be a better one!
Selected response from:

Mark Daniels
Local time: 10:49
Grading comment
A "hobby-horse" construction seems to work best here IMO, it being equally colorful and figurative -- though "harping" does introduce a certain (desirable) negative element (reminds me of my own grandmother! ) Other less precise possibilities: "beating a dead horse," "same old, same old." Najlepša hvala svima!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
3 +10"off on his/her hobby-horse again"
Mark Daniels
4There he goes, banging on again
rainbowns
3all the same story through and through
Sladjana Spaic
4 -6a hypocrit
TranslatorBS (X)
Summary of reference entries provided
to keep reverting to the same subject of conversation
Miomira Brankovic

  

Answers


13 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +10
"off on his/her hobby-horse again"


Explanation:
This is just one stab at it in English. Not a bad guess on your part, but the meaning is more like someone is talking about a subject they are always talking about, hence it is highly predictable - so what's Granny talking about? Doughnuts again!

"Hobby-horse" was a phrase that came to mind, but there must be a better one!

Mark Daniels
Local time: 10:49
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 12
Grading comment
A "hobby-horse" construction seems to work best here IMO, it being equally colorful and figurative -- though "harping" does introduce a certain (desirable) negative element (reminds me of my own grandmother! <g>) Other less precise possibilities: "beating a dead horse," "same old, same old." Najlepša hvala svima!

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  BUZOV: yes, indeed... the meaning would be: "Everybody likes to speak about the things (s)he is familiar with " (So, Grandmother knows how to make doughnuts and therefore she speaks only about it) ... very common thing ... people like to speak of what they know
24 mins
  -> Would you agree that grandmother is "promoting her values", as someone else suggested? Not sure about that - I just thought it was someone talking about their favourite subject (again).

neutral  TranslatorBS (X): not quite. You didn't hit the crucial point in your explanation. "baba" actually "promotes" values that she is not having herself ! That's the key meaning here. Not the repetition.e.g. if you have a criminal who keeps promoting justice and peace.
2 hrs
  -> OK, not sure about that in the Serbian, but there is a little of that meaning in "hobby-horse". Actually, in English I would just say "Oh, he's off again" or "Oh no, he's going on about X again/about his pet subject again"

agree  Mira Stepanovic
9 hrs
  -> thanks

agree  zoe1
9 hrs
  -> thanks

agree  Natasa Djurovic
11 hrs
  -> thanks

agree  Kristina Kolic: You got it, Mark! This person is so deadly boring, talking always about the same thing, over and over ;-)
11 hrs
  -> Sounds like some translations I've done! That's what CAT tools are for ;)

agree  Sherefedin MUSTAFA
12 hrs
  -> thanks

agree  Marija Jankovic
13 hrs

agree  Veronica Prpic Uhing: neki slučaj "profesionalne deformacije"
19 hrs

agree  Aleksander Vasiljevic: There is an interesting sentence in the "hobby horse" article on Wikipedia: From "hobby horse" came the expression "to ride one's hobby-horse", meaning "to follow a favourite pastime", and in turn, the modern sense of the term Hobby.
1 day 2 hrs

agree  Larisa Djuvelek-Ruggiero (X)
1 day 20 hrs
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38 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
all the same story through and through


Explanation:
This might be another option.
Altough not a (standard) phrase it hits the point, I guess.

Sladjana Spaic
Montenegro
Local time: 10:49
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in SerbianSerbian, Native in GermanGerman
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3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): -6
a hypocrit


Explanation:

If somebody comments on someone's behavior with " ko o čemu baba o uštipcima", they are basically saying they are hypocrites.

e.g. " blaming others for things that they are doing themselves "

at least this is the reference in Bosnia.

TranslatorBS (X)
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in BosnianBosnian

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
disagree  Miomira Brankovic: There is another similar saying for the meaning you suggest: "Ko o čemu kurva o poštenju", but the granny is talking about doughnuts because that's her favourite subject, not because she does not know how to make them and pretends she does
1 hr
  -> Yes, I understand that. However, people in Bosnia often twist it when they want to sound more polite atually refering to " ko o čemu kurva..", which a is very subtle cultural reference in Bosnia.

disagree  Sladjana Spaic: Yeap, I agree with you abt the definition of idioms, but "hypocrit" is far too strong and tends to be offensive for this context, IMO anyway. Well, never mind and no hard feelings - I wish you a great weekend! :))
6 hrs
  -> In modern/contemporary Bosnian slang, it is. Sorry. And yes, you are right, the translation is requested from Serbian, that's why I pointed out it is a Bosnian reference.

disagree  Mira Stepanovic: Sorry, the meaning has nothing to do with hypocrisy
11 hrs
  -> I respect your inputs. It surely does, in a specific context.

disagree  Veronica Prpic Uhing: Vidjeti: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/hypocrite
16 hrs
  -> I know what a hypocrit is, thank you very much.

disagree  Natasa Djurovic: The meaning is the same in Bosnian and Serbian as well.
17 hrs
  -> Are you Bosnian born and bread?I guess not. It is highly likely the phrase has been used through the disapproving and sarcastic connotation I described above.

disagree  Aleksander Vasiljevic: Na bosanskim sajtovima nema tog značenja koje pominjete: http://www.google.com/search?q="ko+o+cemu+baba"+site%3Aba
23 hrs
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1 day 19 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
There he goes, banging on again


Explanation:
Perhaps this would be a bit more modern slang to the 'He's off on his hobby horse again'

rainbowns
Local time: 10:49
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in Serbo-CroatSerbo-Croat
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thanks for responding. "Banging on" doesn't really mean anything in US English -- maybe it does in the UK. Whereas "hobby-horse" is understood readily on both sides of the Atlantic.

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Reference comments


4 hrs peer agreement (net): +8
Reference: to keep reverting to the same subject of conversation

Reference information:
to harp forever on the same string
to have a pet subject
to ride on one's hobbyhorse
Boško Milosavljević, Margot Williams Milosavljević - Srpsko-engleski rečnik idioma, SKZ 1992.

Miomira Brankovic
Serbia
Native speaker of: Serbian
Note to reference poster
Asker: Many thanks for this, Miomira! (and sorry for the delay in responding) This Milosavljević reference sounds very useful -- is it still in print?


Peer comments on this reference comment (and responses from the reference poster)
agree  zoe1: I moj izvor je kao i vaš. Sorry for sending the response in Serbian. Didn't notice. My ref. is the same dictionary.
4 hrs
agree  Sladjana Spaic: Great suggestions, especcially the one "to have a pet subject"! You should give one of them as an answer in the answer box! :))
5 hrs
agree  Mira Stepanovic
5 hrs
agree  Natasa Djurovic
6 hrs
agree  Kristina Kolic
8 hrs
agree  Sherefedin MUSTAFA
8 hrs
agree  mita
13 hrs
agree  Aleksander Vasiljevic: Unfortunately this dictionary is out of print, but it can sometimes be found in antiquarian bookshops.
1 day 21 hrs
  -> Too bad to hear that. The authors have both passed away and my copy was a gift from them.
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