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Herz-Bauch-Gefühl
Betriebssteuerung
Aug 7, 2008 10:56
15 yrs ago
2 viewers *
German term

auf den Leib schreiben

German to English Art/Literary Music
„Der Zustand, den wir beim Musikmachen anstreben, ist, die Musik nicht aktiv zu spielen, sondern von ihr „gespielt zu werden.“ Alles geht dann wie von selbst, und die Musik fließt förmlich durch einen durch. Um diesen Zustand zu erreichen, brauchen wir Stücke, die uns inspirieren und packen. Am besten funktioniert das, wenn wir sie uns sozusagen auf den Leib schreiben.
Proposed translations (English)
3 +2 tailor / is tailor-made
3 +2 to write on the body
3 when we allow them to really get under our skin

Discussion

hazmatgerman (X) Aug 8, 2008:
@Loos: Stimme ihrer Lesart des Quielltextes zu und hatte den Vorschlag mit "tailor" gemacht. Grüße.
Diana Loos Aug 7, 2008:
is surely much more important than a fitting idiom - which doesn't seem to exist, at least I can certainly think of none. I think you'd have to write something like "... when we write our own songs/music for our own tastes and talents".
Diana Loos Aug 7, 2008:
The problem with the suggestions so far, as I see it, is that the meaning is not being conveyed. "... wenn wir sie uns ... auf den Leib schreiben" means we write our songs specially for our own talents and potential, which we know best of all. The meaning

Proposed translations

+2
20 mins
Selected

tailor / is tailor-made

Oder "suits us to a T" sind m. W. übliche Formulierungen dazu in GB.
Peer comment(s):
agree Ingrid Moore : suits him to a T; "Hugh Grant is extremely well cast as the Casanova-de-service (this role suits him to a T;ihr auf den Leib geschrieben;tailor-made for her; http://dict.leo.org/forum/viewUnsolvedquery.php?idThread=468...
1 day 7 hrs
Didn't see that use, thanks for linking. Regards.
agree Harald Moelzer (medical-translator)
5 days
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Selected automatically based on peer agreement."
4 hrs

when we allow them to really get under our skin

Maybe I've led an over-sheltered existence, but to me "written on the body" conveys nothing beyond the most literal interpretation of actual writing.
Something went wrong...
+2
3 mins

to write on the body

This is used as an EN expression, too. See Jeanette Winterson's novel, for instance, 'Written on the Body'.

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Note added at 5 mins (2008-08-07 11:02:37 GMT)
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I think your sentence might also work best if you put it in the past tense: 'when it is written on the body.'

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Note added at 27 mins (2008-08-07 11:24:49 GMT)
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"Lessons written on the body are really well absorbed: and you may learn something about your soul as well."
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=18...

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Note added at 29 mins (2008-08-07 11:26:23 GMT)
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This expression is similar to something being etched on someone's face. Something so deeply felt or experienced or internalised that it is expressed by the body or visible in the body or its movements.

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Note added at 9 hrs (2008-08-07 20:20:37 GMT)
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@ Diana: I admit I did not know of the meaning to which you refer. The meaning I propose does fit well into the sentence, but may not, nevertheless be the correct one.
Peer comment(s):
agree DonM : Sounds good to me.
1 hr
Thanks, DonM
agree Sabine Akabayov, PhD
4 hrs
Thank you, sibsab
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