Prevodilački biseri su prirodni dragulji. Prevodioci ih dugo odgajaju u svojim školjkama, i onda ih uz veliku muku objave. Odgajivači često školjkama podmeću zrnca, da bi se oko njih brže stvorio biser. Ovde su takva zrnca, ubačena u nadi da će se prevodioci od ovog izroditi još veće bisere. Predstavljam vam namerno loše prevode, uglavnom zasnovane na ignorisanju konteksta, ali može da bude i drugih trikova. Prevod nazad na engleski je ponekad mnogo duži, da se ne bi koristila ista reč kao u polaznoj frazi. Pošto često nema druge reči, moram opisno.
| Izraz | može da se prevede i ovako | može da se prevede nazad ovako |
|---|---|---|
| all in good time | svi u dobrom ritmu | everyone in good rhythm |
| sve u provodu | everything in entertainment | |
| blind date | ćorava urma | sight-impaired dactylifera |
| can't forget a single day | ne mogu da zaboravim jedan nevenčan dan | can't forget one unmarried day |
| ne mogu da zaboravim jedan jednokrevetni dan | can't forget one one-bed day | |
| carbon dating | zakazivanje randesa indigom | making a private appointment by carbon-copy paper |
| izlasci sa ugljenikom | going out with carbon (and not oxygen, phosphorus or any other element) | |
| civil suit | civilno odelo | opposite of uniform, the civvies |
| građansko udvaranje | bourgeois courtship | |
| grupa civila | a band of civilians | |
| cold in these parts | prehlada u ovim ulogama | flu in these roles |
| cotton sticks | pamuk se lepi | cotton gets glued |
| current issues | tekuća pitanja | liquid questions |
| strujna izdanja | electric editions | |
| everything you can't conceive | sve ne možeš da zatrudniš | all the time you can't get pregnant |
| fair: I think it's only fair | mislim da je to samo fer (za "nesebično" treba truda) | I thing it's no better than "fair" (needs effort for "selfless") |
| mislim da je samo plavokosa | I think blonde is her only color | |
| mislim da je to samo vašar | I think it's just a fair (not a regular retail outlet) | |
| fill in this form | napuni ovaj kalup | pour into this mold to the top |
| zatrpaj ovaj obrazac | shovel this model over | |
| natoči u ovaj oblik | pour into this shape | |
| here I go again on my own | ponovo ovuda idem po svom sopstvenom | I am taking this path once more over my proprietary |
| if that's the way it is going to be | ako je to put to ide da bude | if that is the road, it goes to happen |
| join the club | sastavi batinu | assemble the bludgeon |
| pridruži palicu za golf | associate the golf stick | |
| just for the record | pravedan za ploču | equitable for an LP |
| zaslužen za evidenciju | earned for evidence | |
| kitchen sinks | kuhinja tone | kitchen falls beneath |
| labor day | radni dan | workday |
| dan trudova | a day in labors | |
| lead scientist | olovni naučnik | apprentice made of lead |
| mess hall | hodnik u neredu | corridor in disarray |
| out of order | van narudžbine | outside of what was on the ordered quantity |
| preko reda | jumping the queue | |
| iz reda | from orderliness | |
| iz naređenja | from the command | |
| pardon my French | pomilujte mog Francuza | show some lenience towards my French one |
| pomilujte moje Francuze | caress my Frenchies | |
| d'izvinete na mom Francuzu | if you'd excuse me for my Frenchman | |
| power to the patients | snaga pacijentima | strenth to the patients |
| vlast pacijentima | authority to the patients | |
| struja pacijentima | electricity to the patients | |
| scenery | scenario | script of a play (not an artificial pearl - found it on Panoramio's translation into Serbian) |
| Sharp art on cover draws one to this book. | oštra umetnost na izvođenju tuđe pesme crta keca na ovu knjigu | severe artistry on the performance of other author's song outlines a digit of one on this book |
| speaker: an excelent pair of speakers ready for the stage | odličan par zvučnika spreman za stupanj | excellent stereo ready for the grade |
| there just isn't anywhere better to be | tamo pravedan nije ma gde bolje biti | over there righcheous is not better to be at any location |
| there's no such thing as a free lunch | tamo nema takve stvari kakav je slobodan ručak | out there no such object exists similar to a lunch in liberty |
| time after time | vreme posle vremena | the time after the end of time |
| ritam iza ritma | rhythm behind the rhythm | |
| vreme po vremenu | weather depending on time | |
| vreme po vremenu | time depending on weather | |
| treat: why you treat me this way | zašto me častiš ovim putem | why do you pay me drinks/food along this road |
| zašto me častiš ovim putem | what's the occasion to buy me this road | |
| won't you let me take you on a sea cruise | zar me nećeš pustiti da te držim za morsko krstarenje | will you not allow me to hold you by a maritime cruising |
| zar mi nećeš dozvoliti da te najmim na morskom krstarenju | will you not allow me to hire you on a seafaring cruise |