The English Language

A section to discuss matters not related to Chess in particular.
Michael Flatt
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Re: The English Language

Post by Michael Flatt » Tue Jun 14, 2016 2:02 pm

soheil_hooshdaran wrote:I don't know, but took me ages.
I hope that you got paid for it.

If the translation had been done on behalf of UCLA or another institution it would seem to be a good idea to have the accuracy of the work checked by an independent translator.

soheil_hooshdaran
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Re: The English Language

Post by soheil_hooshdaran » Tue Jun 14, 2016 2:22 pm

No, it was translated by he himself.
University lecturers sometimes tell the students to translate something for higher grade.
And yes, he is supposed to pay me a sum of money.

Roger de Coverly
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Re: The English Language

Post by Roger de Coverly » Tue Jun 14, 2016 2:34 pm

soheil_hooshdaran wrote: The performance-study groups at U.C.L.A. are an extracurricular activity.?

In the context of a university (assuming the U.C is an abbreviation for University College), the term "extracurricular activity" has a particular technical meaning, being that it isn't part of the formal material of the course.

I wasn't sure what a performance study group is, regardless of where, if at all, you place the hyphen. A Google for UCLA performance study did unearth the existence of courses at UCLA in "Theater and Performance Studies", so it's the name of an academic subject.

soheil_hooshdaran
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Re: The English Language

Post by soheil_hooshdaran » Tue Jun 14, 2016 2:38 pm

Thanks.
UCLA is university of California at Los Angeles

soheil_hooshdaran
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Re: The English Language

Post by soheil_hooshdaran » Sat Jun 18, 2016 2:52 am

What does it mean to say
I think chess may just be the best game in the world?

Michael Flatt
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Re: The English Language

Post by Michael Flatt » Sat Jun 18, 2016 8:53 am

soheil_hooshdaran wrote:What does it mean to say
I think chess may just be the best game in the world?
It would be simplest and quickest to use a dictionary!

I just can't believe that a professional translator doesn't own or make use of one.

Barry Sandercock
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Re: The English Language

Post by Barry Sandercock » Sat Jun 18, 2016 10:20 am

It means the same as it would without the word "just". "Just " lends a certain emphasis to the statement.

John McKenna

Re: The English Language

Post by John McKenna » Sat Jun 18, 2016 12:21 pm

Barry has hit the nail on the head. It is just that "certain emphasis" the dictionaries do not always make crystal clear.

Note that " I think chess may just be the best game..." can mean a marginal superiority of chess over all other games in the writer's view.

Whereas, "I think chess is by far the best game... " clearly states the superiority of chess in the writer's view.

(A subtler interpretation can be made of "may just be", one that depends on the intonation and emphasis of the word 'just'. That could be indicated by writing the word in italics.)

Michael Flatt
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Re: The English Language

Post by Michael Flatt » Sun Jun 19, 2016 10:54 am

John McKenna wrote:Barry has hit the nail on the head. It is just that "certain emphasis" the dictionaries do not always make crystal clear.
www.oxforddictionaries.com [1] wrote: Just (adverb)
...
4.1 Really; absolutely (used for emphasis): they’re just great
...
The benefit of referring to a dictionary is being able to discover the multifarious meaning and usages of individual words.
A good dictionary will give examples of how a particular word might be employed.

One might also invoke that well known proverb:
www.phrases.org.uk [2] wrote:Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; show him how to catch fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.
[1] Definition of Just: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/defin ... glish/just
[2] Teach a man to fish: http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/give ... -fish.html

NickFaulks
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Re: The English Language

Post by NickFaulks » Sun Jun 19, 2016 11:04 am

Michael Flatt wrote:give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; show him how to catch fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.
The Bermudian version is "give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; give him a boat, and he'll sit around in it all day drinking beer".
If you want a picture of the future, imagine a QR code stamped on a human face — forever.

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IM Jack Rudd
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Re: The English Language

Post by IM Jack Rudd » Sun Jun 19, 2016 12:58 pm

Another version I've heard is "give a man a fire, and he will be warm for a day; set a man on fire, and he will be warm for the rest of his life".

soheil_hooshdaran
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Re: The English Language

Post by soheil_hooshdaran » Sun Jun 19, 2016 7:32 pm

Michael Flatt wrote:
www.oxforddictionaries.com [1] wrote: Just (adverb)
...
4.1 Really; absolutely (used for emphasis): they’re just great
...
Interesting how 'just' meaning 'merely' cameto mean 'really'. Anyone knows?

soheil_hooshdaran
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Re: The English Language

Post by soheil_hooshdaran » Sun Jun 19, 2016 8:06 pm

Michael Flatt wrote:
soheil_hooshdaran wrote:What does it mean to say
I think chess may just be the best game in the world?
It would be simplest and quickest to use a dictionary!

I just can't believe that a professional translator doesn't own or make use of one.
I have dictionaries and do translation works, but I am not a professional translator.
My father narrated to me from a friend of him who live in Tehran, that an old magazine introduced my translation and said that I am an eloquent translator, but that just means I translated that book very well -considering the many months I spent translating and editing it and the help of the members of 2-3 forums and 2 or 3 masters plus the author and the managing director of Everyman chess, not that I am a very great translator.

Michael Flatt
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Re: The English Language

Post by Michael Flatt » Sun Jun 19, 2016 11:48 pm

soheil_hooshdaran wrote: Interesting how 'just' meaning 'merely' came to mean 'really'. Anyone knows?
A simple google search immediately confirms that this exact question has been answered on another forum.
English Language & Usage[1] wrote:How did the adjective “just” come to take on so many adverbial meanings?
[1] English Language & Usage: http://english.stackexchange.com/questi ... l-meanings

soheil_hooshdaran
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Re: The English Language

Post by soheil_hooshdaran » Fri Jun 24, 2016 5:53 pm

What's the difference between
As we can readily observe [in the above position], ...
and
As we can easily observe, ...?

What if we replace 'see' for 'observe'?

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