What is the difference between reden, sprechen & sagen?

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I took 6 years of German, and actually did quite well when I visited Germany and Austria and even in northern italy!

I should really do a refresher one of these days! Thank you for the great blog posts, and I will look more into your programs! Your email address will not be published. Currently you have JavaScript disabled. In order to post comments, please make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and reload the page. Click here for instructions on how to enable JavaScript in your browser. This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience.

The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this. When you speak German, what do you say when you talk to somebody? It is a difficult one, but if you force me to choose, I think "my feelings exactly" is probably the most apt.

Having said that, however, I would add that I think it is wrong to commit yourself to a single translation of this kind of thing; isn't it better to express it in the way that feels most appropriate to the particular situation?

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Comment Joe, Thanks, and yes indeed, it's of course better to have it fit the situation. That's why I included the link to the article--have a read, and imagine having uttered the German phrase in response--how would you have chosen to say this in English, in this situation? IMHO "wholeheartedly" is as close as you can get to "aus der Seele" and the dativus ethicus "mir" the dative case indicating whose emotion is expressed, cf.

Comment IMHO 'he took the words right out of my mouth' comes closest. I native german speaker would hear this english expression, I would instantly come up with exactly THAT german equivalent but maybe only because of the lack of a more suitable one But why not ADD a new english equivalent, if none of Peters list fits the german version precisely? Is there a difference between german and english souls?

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Translation That's exactly how I feel about it! Be aware that this is a corruption of the standard phrase "Du sprichst mir aus der Seele".

In German it sounds weird to have an inanimate object or statement "speak" or make statements. Maybe this coinage is part of a new tendency to let things act like persons: While "This means that Ich denke nicht, dass Deutsche eine besondere, persoenliche Betroffenheit ausdruecken wollen mit "Du sprichst mir aus der Seele". Es ist halt eine etwas blumige Ausdrucksweise dafuer, dass man vollstaendig zustimmt.

Das ist nicht dasselbe wie "Du sprichst mir aus der Seele", wo gemeint ist "Ich wollte zwar nicht dasselbe sagen, stelle aber fest, dass wir die gleiche Meinung haben". Das Bild von der Seele betont, dass einem das angesprochene Thema besonders am Herzen liegt und dass man froh ist, dass jemand anderer gleich denkt. Do you mean to tell me that you believe that "You speak my heart out" is good English? Can you cite any English poems, songs or indeed other writings by native English speakers in which this strange expression occurs?

Can you explain why it is that if you google for that precise expression you get just one hit, en entry in a chat room submitted by someone whose native language is manifestly not English? May I suggest that if your firm is indeed using this weird and unpleasant expression routinely, they would do better to drop it forthwith? Can you get any native English speakers to support your case within this forum?

das spricht mir aus der Seele

Hast du das Problem des hyperaktiven Rotstifts? I confess I haven't read the article yet, but I will do so, and let you know what I think.

Comment here are a couple more along these lines to sing from the same hymnsheet great minds think alike or just 'great minds' I think what I would actually have said is the single word "Quite! Does that mark me out as a very English Englishman?

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Translation "Quite so, quite so! Translation we are of one mind Comment Just to round out this discussion.

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donnsboatshop.com: Unser Kind spricht nicht: Ratgeber f|r Eltern schweigender Kinder ( German Edition) (): Ornella Garbani Ballnik: Books. Having said that, however, I would add that I think it is wrong to commit yourself to a single translation of this kind of thing; isn't it better to express it in the way.

Translation My thoughts, precisely! Comment "My thoughts, precisely!