Glossary entry (derived from question below)
German term or phrase:
wie die Jungfrau zum Kind
English translation:
it just fell into someone's lap
May 10, 2007 22:18
17 yrs ago
6 viewers *
German term
wie die Jungfrau zum Kind
German to English
Art/Literary
Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
Redensarten
Man sagt man wäre zu einer Sache "wie die Jungfrau zum Kind" gekommen, um anzudeuten, dass diese Sache, die einem jetzt zueigen ist, einem vorher völlig fremd war.
Hat jemand einen treffende englischsprachige Übersetzung dazu?
Es spielt ja auf Marias Jungfrauengeburt an.
Weiss jemand woher diese Redensart kommt?
Hat jemand einen treffende englischsprachige Übersetzung dazu?
Es spielt ja auf Marias Jungfrauengeburt an.
Weiss jemand woher diese Redensart kommt?
Proposed translations
(English)
Change log
May 11, 2007 02:41: Johanna Timm, PhD changed "Field" from "Other" to "Art/Literary" , "Field (specific)" from "Other" to "Idioms / Maxims / Sayings"
Proposed translations
+5
7 mins
Selected
it just fell into someone's lap
or:
someone got something by sheer luck
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Note added at 32 mins (2007-05-10 22:50:31 GMT)
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In a negative sense, maybe:
It just happened to someone
or
It was sheer bad luck
someone got something by sheer luck
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Note added at 32 mins (2007-05-10 22:50:31 GMT)
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In a negative sense, maybe:
It just happened to someone
or
It was sheer bad luck
Note from asker:
| Kann man auch bei negativer Überraschung so sagen? |
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Das wird wohl die allgemeine Entsprechung sein, obwohl ich "to happen out of the blue" verwenden werde."
+1
54 mins
Bernhard Sulzer
United States
United States
Native in German
Works in field
United States
High quality at a reasonable price
Native in: German
Works in: English to German, German to English, German, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
36
did not intend for it (to happen, to have...)
couple of more suggetsions for positive and negative:
without any effort on my (one's) part
something just (simply) happened
something just presented itself to somebody
something came out of the blue/out of the sky
http://www.balsiamanori.de/englisch_penelokan.htm
We did not really intend to have balinese ... but that is how nearly every breeder starts.
We try to show this breed on shows to increase its popularity but unfortunately we always have the impressions of being alien.
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Note added at 1 hr (2007-05-10 23:35:48 GMT)
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typo corr.: sugge*st*ions
without any effort on my (one's) part
something just (simply) happened
something just presented itself to somebody
something came out of the blue/out of the sky
http://www.balsiamanori.de/englisch_penelokan.htm
We did not really intend to have balinese ... but that is how nearly every breeder starts.
We try to show this breed on shows to increase its popularity but unfortunately we always have the impressions of being alien.
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Note added at 1 hr (2007-05-10 23:35:48 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
typo corr.: sugge*st*ions
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Nadine Kahn
: Ja, oder "it happened unintentionally". Also "innocently" By pure chance...
10 hrs
|
|
thank you, Enkay!
|
8 hrs
to happen out of the blue
another common expression
9 hrs
...and I am left with the 'baby'
Die Zeile fällt mir spontan zum Thema "unangenehme Überraschung" ein - passt aber sicher nur in wenigen Fällen.
Something went wrong...