Israel's organization of technical/marcom writers and copy editors
When Americans were planning independence from Britain, more than one local patriot floated the idea of speaking Hebrew instead of English. If Americans all spoke Hebrew today, they would be better able to discuss elections in which zu nevela v’zu treifa — meaning “it’s six of one, half a dozen of the other” or “Tweedle-Dum and Tweedle-Dee” but in a particularly bad way.
Read MoreJust today on the evening news, Amnon Abramovich announced that regarding the latest rumors of scandal in Bibi Netanyahu’s inner circle, recent testimony had contained no ytedot, nothing to hang on to. If we use the translation of yated at Seadict.com, the testimony had no “peg, wedge, tent-peg, picket, pin, spike, stake, strut, stud, brad, chock, cotter” — all words unsuitable to carry the metaphorical meaning in English, unfortunately. Maybe the translation in this case would be “no smoking gun.”
Read MoreAlcalay and other Hebrew-to-English dictionaries are perfectly willing to allow that זכות (zchut) can mean either “right” or “privilege.” Or “prerogative.” It’s up to the context and the translator
Read MoreTsamood means both “adjacent” and “linked.” So if the date of your wedding rehearsal is tsamood to the date of your wedding, does that mean that the two dates are close together, or merely that one depends on the other?
Read MoreAlthough its meaning and its deterioration mirror the Hebrew word m’chonen, the word “seminal” has another problem, because although the Latin word semen carries the meaning of “seed” in the botanical sense, not everyone sees “seminal” that way. Ms. Brigitte, a blogger, writes: “it implies that the origin of a work is male, regardless of who wrote it.”
Read MoreAs I sought out translations, I was continually reminded that only the position of a little dot distinguishes המציאוֹת from המציאוּת, the bargains from the realities. Generally in Hebrew, as in life, we don’t even have the little dot to help us.
Read MoreWhereas Sartre was trying to distinguish an individualistic littérature engagée from already unfashionable socialist realism, in Hebrew the parallel term sifrut m’guyesset retains the association of groupthink, of being enlisted or drafted or inducted for purposes of agitprop or other propaganda rather than thoughtfully asserting beliefs one has formulated as an individual.
Read MoreFor the most part, English-language dictionaries consider that delusional means “having false or unrealistic beliefs or opinions,” as Dictionary.com puts it. But below the fold, a set of “Examples from the Web” includes more than one sentence mentioning “delusional ideas” — ideas that are delusions, not ideas that have delusions. So if a psychiatrist has delusional patients, it’s a good guess that the patients are imagining things; but on the other hand, just maybe the psychiatrist is imagining patients.
Read MoreLike the word “illustration” in English, hamkhashah can refer to the sort of real-life manifestation that nobody can deny, such as waving a flashlight in a darkened room to demonstrate persistence of vision, or it can refer to a way of making something clearer to the senses without proving it at all — such as a diagram, a skit, or a picture in a story book.
Read MoreThe word that Ben-Gurion chose, with the Hebrew idea of a king (melekh) embedded in it, seems to imply that the person is giving the state’s interests priority not because he is an obedient peasant but because he is a participant in the power of sovereignty.
Read MoreI think it’s easier to translate the burdening of a person in connection with a specific task than to translate the general burdening of a person. We can easily say “You make my job harder” or “You make deciding things more difficult.” But if somebody makes, life, the universe, and everything more difficult for us, how do we say so in conversational English?
Read MoreSomeone driven by values would normally be called “value-driven” — with no “s” because in such a construction we normally don’t see the plural. A dog bitten by fleas is flea-bitten, a cake covered by blueberries is blueberry-covered. However, the adjective “value-driven” has been co-opted by the business world in connection with the kind of value that money buys.
Read MoreIf the translation of עמידה בלחצים is literal — resistant to pressure, indifferent to pressure, withstanding pressure, impervious to pressure — it sounds as if the worker simply keeps plodding along without taking the pressure into account, rather than coping with it as necessary.
Read MoreIt might indicate different mentalities, or it might be by chance, that in Hebrew if I harness myself — nirtam — to something, generally I’m making a noble gesture, whereas in English I’m more often assuming a regrettable burden.
Read MoreIf it were up to me, I’d translate הנייר סובל הכל as “Paper puts up with anything,” but tradition must be respected and according to The Facts on File Dictionary of Proverbs, the English version “Paper does not blush” has seniority harking at least back to 1577.
Read MoreI would be in favor of a One World movement. One world at a time. If I open a copy of Slimming World, I don’t want to see an article called “The world of natural zero-calorie sweeteners.” No worlds within worlds.
Read MoreLooking at Mitkham HaPil — including one big building on a traffic island and perhaps another big building or two across the road — I’d say it’s too small to be called a district. Maybe a center, if it’s only the one building or if the other buildings are well enough integrated despite the busy road that separates them off. Or Elephant Corner could be reasonable name.
Read MoreEhud Barak went on record calling Herzog shakool, m’nuseh, and akhra’i. The Jerusalem Post renders it “ balanced, experienced and responsible.” Ynet says “level-headed, experienced and responsible.” JPUpdates.com says “steady, experienced and responsible.” Haaretz, which of course really likes Herzog, says “sage, experienced and responsible.” Arutz Sheva...
Read MoreI saw a rather bold translation on the Internet the other day. Someone translated מצא לנכון (matsa l’nakhon) as “decided.” Generally the dictionary definitions of that phrase are less blunt. Babylon says “thought it right.” Alkalay says “see fit, choose.”
Read MoreIt seems that in order to be munach somewhere, you have to have come from somewhere else. It would be strange to say that the Shalom Meir Tower is munach in Tel Aviv, although you might say so for effect if you wanted to emphasize that it looks foreign to its neighborhood.
Read MoreSite for Israel's professional tech writing and marcom community. Originally based in what has become Israel's 2nd largest R&D center (Yokneam), Elephant brings together technical and marcom writers from all over Israel. Behind the scenes and between meetings, members stay in contact with job offers and leads, joint projects, and professional assistance.
Using the wrong technical writer is like using a wrench to open a door, it works, but a door knob is better and cheaper. Elephant was started to help match writers and copy editors with companies where their skills match company needs.
