What is the most poetic word in your language and why?
What is the most poetic word in your language and why?
I'll start. Inn Norwegian the word for uterus is Livmor. It literally translates to life mother. I think it is such an expressive and beautiful word. Do you have words like that in your language?
It’s probably not the most poetic, but I like it:
Luftschloss
It literally means „air castle“. It’s a castle made entirely out of air. It looks stunning and grand in your imagination or when you talk about it, but it’s not real.
It’s like having a dream or a vision that sounds great but is completely unrealistic or impossible to achieve.
In English, you might say „pipe dream“ or „castle in the air“, but „Luftschloss“ sounds way more poetic and fragile, evoking something beautiful yet intangible.
There’s another one which is similar, but not the same:
Hirngespinst
The literal transition would be a delicate web spun by your mind. In Englisch you’d probably also say „pipe dream“, but there’s a subtle difference between „Luftschloss“ and „Hirngespinst“.
„Hirngespinst“ is more like an absurd or even silly idea you came up with. By contrast, a „Luftschloss“ tends to describe a beautiful but unrealistic vision with a broader, often more hopeful scope.
We have the equivalent luftslott in Norwegian as well. Often used about the things politicians are trying to sell us during their campaigns. I feel like we have a word similar to the second one as well, but I cannot remember what it would be.
We have a lot of the same words as you in general though.
Damn, this guy luftschlosses.
In danish we have luftkastel with the same meaning.
In french: "Dépaysement".
It's the feeling a person gets when discovering a foreign country, a new culture. It's usually used in a very positive manner.
I'm a francophone and tried to explain that France is not "dépaysant" enough for a vacation and the closest word I came up with is "exotic", but it's not exactly what I want to convey.
Tabarnak
Considered a very strong profanity. It takes the place of "Oh shit!" but with the sting of saying something like the C word in public. Poetic because it's not a bad word at all. It references the tabernacle of a church where communion is kept. It's only hardcore because Quebec is very Catholic, more than half, and it's considered blasphemous. Especially by older folks.
I’ve long wondered about how that became a strong profanity
Yeah, I learned this word working with some French Canadians and they also taught me some other church related curse words that I've since forgotten.
in german, the uterus literally translates to birthmither
an actually poetic word in german is Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz
not because it is very romantic or sounds nice, but bcs you can basically fill 2 poems with it
uterus
Isn't that just a Russian girl called Ute?
It may not be the most poetic, but I'm partial to the word holdfast, which is a biological structure that anchors organisms to surfaces. "Hold fast" was an order given to sailors of yore, telling them to grab tightly onto the ship to avoid being washed overboard in storms. The word suggests images of kelp, mussels, or sponges doing the same, determinedly holding fast against the waves, figurative and literal.
Good one. People do still say "hold fast"!
Not poetic I reckon, but I like that effective has two Fs and defective only has one. That missing F makes something not work. So, in essence, sometimes, to give an F can help make something work.
Not my language, but I like the Dutch word "peperduur" for "very expensive." I like that the meaning has both historical and emotional aspects: pepper was once very expensive, and a high price can be considered spicy.
In English, "crestfallen" is a good one. When I read it I immediately imagine someone hanging their head in dismay.
And placenta is mother cake
Qapla': said to wish fortune on someone, as in "good luck", particularly fortune in some form of honourable battle.
Flâner
To wander aimlessly, without haste and without a specific goal.
Basically taking a stroll
I guess the Germans stole that one. In German this is "flanieren".
I love that there was whole culture of people that they got whole wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flâneur
Wandering is one of my favorite activities to do.
I like this one. It's similar to what I'd pick from English which is amble.
It means to walk at a slow, relaxed pace, often in a leisurely way.
English - paraprosdokian - it means a sentence that has a surprise twist. eg. Some people are like slinkies: not really good for much, but they bring a smile to your face when you see one tumble down a set of stairs. From the Greek, basically meaning beyond expectations.
Being from Vienna, my word is naturally an insult.
"Meine Allerwerterste/Mein Allerwerterster" (female and male version)
On the one hand, it's a formal and very polite address to someone (meaning something like "my dearest"), but at the same time the word means "my ass".
So with that word you can sound extremely polite and nice while at the same time calling them an ass.
Same language, also poetic, but far from beautiful: Rævsnerk. I'll leave the translation and interpretation as an exercise to the reader.
Hint: Hot and humid day.
Similar but not exactly the same is the German Klabusterbeere.
There is "dzban" or "rzygacz" but my favorite one is "włóczykij" means "one that wanders with the staff"