Translating a tongue twister about puppies?
Привет!
I am trying to translate a Russian tongue twister.
два щенка щека к щеке щиплют щетку в уголке.
In my first attempt to translate it word by word this is what I figured out
"two puppies coughing(?) to tweaks/nipple (?) a brush in corner"
Then I try to translate the whole phrase and I ended up with this:
"two puppy checks to cheek pinch a brush in the corner"
I know that tongue twisters are suppose to a little bit silly and more focused on creating proper pronunciations, but I have a feeling that I did not translate this correctly at all.
пожалуйста помогать
спасибо
Search from various English teachers...
Corrections · 10
2
Hello.
If translate it verbatim, then: "Two puppies pressed their cheeks and slightly biting the brush (floor brush, I suppose) in the corner." :)
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Спасибо, KP and Stanislas. KP, the further information that you gave me is interesting :) Thanks for taking the time to do this. Большое Спасибо!
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Два щенка щека к щеке щиплют щетку в уголке.
Two puppies are slightly biting the brush cheek to cheek in the corner.
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We can use щипать for cows eating grass. We can 'pinch off' (отщипнуть) with our fingers a tiny bit of bread. It can describe eating and in this case it has a shade of 'slightness', 'tinyness'. Still it sounds a bit silly here:)
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A meaning "to pluck" is uncommon for щипать (mostly in the context of birds and feathers). And in the скороговорка (tongue-twister) I take it as a mixture of "pincing", "plucking"... You know, I mostly think of "pinching" than of "plucking":) I'm not sure they remove any hair form the brush. So you "pinch" doesn't sound wrong to me.
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