English as a Foreign Language- Help for Writers
German. But it's more about the way medical staff talk. The specialist terms are not that much of a problem (I guess 😅).
Thanks for letting me know the language.
So just to be clear, I am assuming that you're translating a story from German into English and not vice-versa.
When you refer to 'the way medical staff talk', what do you mean, exactly? For example, acronyms like DOA (Dead on Arrival)? Or more general dialogue?
It may help to post an extract of the German text and an extract of the English translation as an example, so I can have a better idea of what you mean.
Maybe not exactly helpful but just write however you feel it comes to you. Personally, I just write my garbage and give it the bare minimum effort and a quick grammar check. It's only later on, that I realize how many grammatical errors are present but it's already too late and I can't be bothered to correct things by then.
Or better yet, kidnap someone with complete mastery in the language. 🙃
Quote from mmlf on March 28, 2024, 12:15 pmIt may help to post an extract of the German text and an extract of the English translation as an example, so I can have a better idea of what you mean.
Okay, so, the thing I can't find a translation for online is this:
Now a few of the IV bags had to run through and Hermione had to complete a shift on her ward before she could deal with him any further.
It's a typical thing to say in German, an infusion has to run through (literal translation), but I'm not sure if that's the right phrase in English as well. Is it 'run through'? Or 'pass through'? Or something else entirely?
The whole medical aspect of the story is pretty German as it is because I couldn't be arsed to look things up for GB but I'd like to get at least the translation right. 😂
If the infusion is running through an IV bag (I'm getting 'durchlaufen'), then you need to specify that it's the infusion itself doing the action. The translation you have there could be confusing for English speakers. I'd prefer 'go through/pass (through)', rather than 'run through'. Let me know if that helps.
I'm not sure what you mean by 'need to specify that it's the infusion itself doing the action'.
But 'go through' sounds so much better than the version I got so yay! 😆
You had:
IV bags had to run through
Which sounds like an actual bag has to run through. My understanding is that the IV has an infusion which runs through it to the patient? Correct me if wrong.
Would be clearer to say:
The infusions had to pass through/go through the IV bags
Ah, okay! Yes, I'm not completely done with getting the translation straight. I'm using an online translator to translate the text and then I correct the strange phrasings and wrong translations. This is not the final version. But thanks for making me aware! 😊
I decided to actually do some writing myself! Maybe I will post it, maybe not. First I would like to get far enough to know I will finish it, and I know I am out of free time the next couple of weeks.
Anyway, writing is surprisingly fun 🙂
Before I write much further and have to correct a lot of errors I thought I should ask about the possessive apostrophe. Severus end with s, and I have seen both Severus' and Severus's used.
Does it matter which one I use? Is one american and the other one British?
It may be too late to reply to this comment, but in case you were wondering:
Severus's is the correct way to write it. I mischievously use the Severus', but there are occasions where, for clarity's sake, I have to use the 's' at the end.
Also, it is generally best to get your writing done before wondering about punctuation errors.
How is your writing going?
And yes, writing is fun!
