Interference Exercises

Interference Exercises
With German as your native language, you are almost predestined to make certain
mistakes in English. This usually happens when the two languages have similar
sounding words or constructions which differ in meaning or usage. A typical example
is the German word "sympatisch" and the English "sympathetic" – which do not
mean the same thing. The following short exercises aim to make you aware of these
"false friends" and common errors that can occur when your native German
"interferes" with your English. Doing the exercises will also give you practice in
translating – avoiding word for word translations in the style of "English for
Runaways" ("Fortgeschrittene").
1. "Was heißt das?"
Probably the most common mistake of English learners is the question "What means . . . . ?" This question doesn't exist in
English. Here are your choices:
 If you want to know what an English word means, you can ask:
"What means . . ?"
"What does . . . (that) mean?"
or
"What is . . . (that) in German?"
 If you want to ask for an English word, you can ask:
"How do you say . . . (X) . . . in English?"
or
"What is . . . (X) . . . in English?"
2. "Meaning" and "Meinung"
These very common words are often confused, -- they don't mean the same thing.
opinion = Meinung
meaning = Bedeutung, Sinn
to think = meinen, glauben, denken
to mean = bedeuten, meinen (im Sinn haben, beabsichtigen)
mean (adj.) – böse, gemein, ungut
Translate:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
Was meinst du (dazu)?
Was meinst du (damit)?
Das glaube ich auch!
Das glaube ich nicht!
Ich verstehe nicht was der Autor meint.
Ich glaube ich habe etwas gehört.
Ich habe Sie nicht gemeint.
Interference Exercises
h) Ich meine das nicht böse, aber . . .
i) Ich würde gerne deine Meinung hören.
j) Ich weiß die Bedeutung dieses Wortes
nicht.
k) Der Sinn des Textes war mir nicht klar.
l) "I glaub' i spinn'"
m) "Das glaubst du selber net."
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3. "Sympathetic" and "sympathisch"
The English word "sympathetic" means "mitfühlend, verständnisvoll, anteilnehmend." If you want to express the German
word "sympathisch", you have several choices:
freundlich (in Worten und
Benehmen), höflich
freundlich, hilfsbereit,
gütig, nett
sympathisch
unsympathisch
friendly (adj.), in a friendly way (adv.)
genial, congenial
nice
pleasant
agreeable
unfriendly, in an unfriendly way
not genial
not nice
unpleasant
disagreeable
kind
kind-hearted, warm-hearted
benevolent
unkind
*(The common German phrases "er ist mir sympathisch / unsympathisch" are translated best with the English "I like him / I
don't like him.")
4. "Genial" and "genial"
As you read above, the English word "genial" means the same as friendly, nice, or
agreeable. If you want to express the German word "genial", you can use:
brilliant - genial, glänzend, hervorragend
ingenious - genial, geschickt, erfinderisch
of genius - genial im eigentlichen Sinn
genius - Genie
Fill in the right words:
a) Albert Einstein was a man _______________ . His theories were _______________ .
b) Civil servants ("Beamte") in the U.S. tend to be more _______________ than in Austria.
They treat people __________________ .
c) When Joe lost his third job in three months, no one was very _______________ .
d) If you are _______________ to animals, they will turn out _______________ .
e) Wherever she goes, she always makes a _________________ impression.
f) Mutter Teresa was a _________________ woman.
Translate:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Interference Exercises
Er ist ein sympathischer junger Mann.
Seine Entdeckung war genial.
Sie begrüßte mich mit freundlichem Lächeln.
Er begrüßte mich freundlich.
Tom ist genial im Erfinden von Ausreden.
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f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
k)
l)
m)
Das ist sehr freundlich von Ihnen.
Sie war überrascht wie freundlich die Amerikaner sind.
Die Wohnung war nett, aber die Nachbarn waren alle unsympathisch.
Von Gogh war ein genialer Künstler.
Nach seinem schweren Unfall waren alle voller Anteilnahme.
Politiker wirken oft unsympathisch und eingebildet.
Dieses Picknick war ein genialer Einfall von dir.
Sie unterhielten sich sehr freundlich obwohl sie einander eigentlich nicht
ausstehen können.
n) Sie war mir gleich sympathisch.
5. "Happy" and "Lucky" (glücklich)
The German word "glücklich" can be translated in two different ways, depending on the meaning:
◄ happy - (feeling good), glücklich als Gefühl, Stimmung
lucky - (having luck), glücklich, Glück haben ►
*(Notice that in English, "luck" can be good or bad! Also, be careful about the phrase "to get lucky" – it often means to find
someone who will sleep with you.)
Translate:
a) Sie sind ein glückliches Paar.
b) Das war ein glücklicher Sieg.
c) Wir waren alle sehr glücklich über den
Sieg.
d) Ich habe Pech gehabt.
e) Glück im Spiel und Pech in der Liebe.
f) Meine Schwester hat immer Glück im
Casino.
Fill in the words that are missing from these famous quotes:
a) Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may
be _______________. H. L. Mencken (1880 - 1956)
b) Guys are ________________ because they get to grow
mustaches. I wish I could. It's like having a little pet for your
face. Anita Wise
c) Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is
_______________ in its own way. Leo Tolstoy (1828 - 1910), Anna
Karenina
d) By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you'll be
_________________. If you get a bad one, you'll become a
philosopher.
Scrates (469 BC - 399 BC)
e) A man can be _______________ with any woman as long as he does not love her.
Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900)
f) What _______________ for the rulers that men do not think. Adolf Hitler
Interference Exercises
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6. People Words
It is often the case that the most commonly used words are exceptions when it comes to forms and grammar. (This is
probably because they have held onto their older forms, whereas most other words and forms have gone through a process
of simplification over hundreds of years.) This leads to errors in some very basic vocabulary. Look at the examples below:
singular (one):
plural (more than one):
person
man
woman
child
people*
men
women wĭm´ ĭn
children
German speakers also often confuse the following words:
man - Mann
husband - Ehemann
woman - Frau
wife - Ehefrau
*(The word "persons" exists, but is only used in very formal or legal English. The word "peoples" also exists and is used to
express "mehrere einzelne Völker".)
How many of these song titles can you complete?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
"______________ are Strange" by the Doors
"It's Raining ___________" by Geri Halliwell
"Where Do the __________ Play?" by Cat Stevens
"Honky Tonk ___________" by the Rolling Stones
"God Bless the __________" by Billie Holiday
"Shiny Happy __________" by R.E.M.
g)
h)
i)
j)
k)
l)
"Teach Your __________" by Crosby, Stills and Nash
"No ___________, No Cry" by Bob Marley
"___________ are ___________" by Depeche Mode
"____________ are Like Shoes" by Shania Twain
"Complex ___________" by the Pretenders
"Macho ________" by the Village __________
7. People, the people, everyone, everybody ("alle")
people - die Leute, die Menschen (im allgemeinen)
the people (of . . . / in . . . / that . . . ) - die Leute, die Menschen (begrenzte Gruppe)
everybody
everyone
all (of) the people
- alle, alle Leute
Note: "Everybody / Everyone is . . ."
"All of the people are . . . "
Translate:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
Ich kümmere mich nicht darum, was die Leute sagen.
Die Leute in unserer Strasse sind sehr nett.
Alle Leute glauben, dass er das Rennen gewinnen wird.
Im Mittelalter glaubten die Menschen an Hexen.
Es ist keiner hier. Wo sind die Leute hingegangen?
Alle Leute erinnern sich an 11. September.
Interference Exercises
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