Mark Liberman, a linguist at the University of Pennsylvania, noted recently on the Language Log blog that English does not allow you to pair any old adjective with any old noun in a fixed expression. You may wish someone “good morning”, “good afternoon” or “good night”, but not “good weekend”. You can say that phrase if you like, but your neighbour would look at you quizzically if you lob it over the fence on a Friday evening. In other languages it is perfectly conventional.
https://www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2021/02/13/if-only-english-had-a-word-for
Francia
Local time: 02:42
Miembro 2014
inglés a francés
+ ...
Where do you need help? I don't see "at a loss for words" in the text from the article.
Portugal
Local time: 01:42
Miembro 2007
inglés a portugués
+ ...
I don't need help! The article was published (Feb 13th 2021 edition) in "The Economist" under the headline "At a loss for words"...
Portugal
Local time: 01:42
Miembro 2007
inglés a portugués
+ ...
Please check the last line:
This article appeared in the Books & arts section of the print edition under the headline "At a loss for words"
https://www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2021/02/13/if-only-english-had-a-word-for
Francia
Local time: 02:42
Miembro 2014
inglés a francés
+ ...
How embarrassing! I didn't see it was in the "Translation news" section. Very interesting indeed, to bad I can't read the whole article without subscription.
Portugal
Local time: 01:42
Miembro 2007
inglés a portugués
+ ...
They have a free subscription that gives you access to a limited number of articles per month...
Reino Unido
Local time: 01:42
Miembro 2008
italiano a inglés
Example of a stupid sentence from a stupid article:
"The Italians wish each other “buon lavoro”—basically “have a good workday”—though their culture is not known to be especially work-focused".
Idiotic racist remarks like this do not encourage belief in the reader.
Países Bajos
Local time: 02:42
Miembro 2006
inglés a afrikaans
+ ...
Really? Is it truly faux pas in English to say "congrats" to the birthday girl? If so, which types of anniversaries get "congratulations" and which d... See more
Really? Is it truly faux pas in English to say "congrats" to the birthday girl? If so, which types of anniversaries get "congratulations" and which don't? ▲ Collapse
Reino Unido
sueco a inglés
+ ...
Special occasions are another way in which pleasantries differ. English-speakers wish each other a happy birthday, but speakers of many other languages say “congratulations”, as if (to the English ear) the birthday girl had done something impressive merely by surviving another year.
Really? Is it truly faux pas in English to say "congrats" to the birthday girl? If so, which types of anniversaries get "congratulations" and which don't?
Used for babies mainly
And winning stuff, promotions
Países Bajos
Local time: 02:42
Miembro 2006
inglés a afrikaans
+ ...
"The Italians wish each other “buon lavoro”—basically “have a good workday”—though their culture is not known to be especially work-focused".
Idiotic racist remarks like this do not encourage belief in the reader.
One has to take into account the culture of the author. In the author's culture, "family-focused" and "unpunctual" is considered the opposite of "work-focused". The article is as much about oddities in other cultures as it is about the author's assumptions.
Reino Unido
Local time: 01:42
Miembro 2008
italiano a inglés
"The Italians wish each other “buon lavoro”—basically “have a good workday”—though their culture is not known to be especially work-focused".
Idiotic racist remarks like this do not encourage belief in the reader.
One has to take into account the culture of the author. In the author's culture, "family-focused" and "unpunctual" is considered the opposite of "work-focused". The article is as much about oddities in other cultures as it is about the author's assumptions.
In this case, the author's "culture" is white anglosaxon Protestant work ethic.
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