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09:51 Jul 21, 2009 |
German to English translations [PRO] Social Sciences - Economics | |||||||
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| Selected response from: philgoddard United States | ||||||
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Discussion entries: 4 | |
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shifted to and fro like in a marshalling yard / switchyard (see full sentence below) Explanation: This is a figurative meaning, suggesting that something is done repeatedly back and forth to create the illusion of something actually happening.. More context would be needed for an accurate translation, but I would suggest something like: "Responsibilities are just shifted to and fro like in a marshalling yard to delude the people into believing [...]". Depending on context replace 'responsibilities' with a more appropriate word. Marshalling yard is AmE and switchyard is BrE. |
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(The government is) rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic Explanation: This might be what you're looking for. It means making minor cosmetic changes in the middle of a major crisis. -------------------------------------------------- Note added at 3 hrs (2009-07-21 13:26:56 GMT) -------------------------------------------------- The whole sentence could be "The government is trying to give the impression of active crisis management, but is simply rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic". |
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...playing musical chairs Explanation: ...changes without really changing anything.... ........just a guess.... |
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