[tlhIngan Hol] When you're stuck at a word

Alan Anderson qunchuy at alcaco.net
Mon Jun 27 13:47:23 PDT 2016


On Mon, Jun 27, 2016 at 11:58 AM, mayqel qunenoS <mihkoun at gmail.com> wrote:
> A while ago, I wanted to find a way to express in klingon : "you're
> the thorn at Light's side" ; of course, there is no klingon word for
> "thorn'.

Is this a Greek idiom? I don't recognize it, and I don't know what
it's supposed to mean. Light is capitalized, so I infer that it
represents the personification of something, but there isn't enough
context for me to identify that something. The phrase "at Light's
side" implies that the thorn and Light are cooperating, though I'd
usually expect a thorn to be a hindrance.

If you had said "the thorn *in* Light's side", that would be a
completely different thing, with the thorn injuring (or at least
causing discomfort to) Light.

> So, following steps 1 and 2, I found the solution :
> {wovlI'ghach joQmeyvaD wIl SoHtaH}. And it passes the test of the
> third point too..

"You are being a spike for the poetically-scattered ribs of the
brightness in progress."

Normally I'd be able to use the two languages to triangulate on the
intended meaning. Unfortunately, neither the English nor the Klingon
is clear enough for me to get a handle on what you're trying to say.
Is the use of the general plural {-mey} instead of the body-part
plural {-Du'} an error, or is it intentional? Is the {-vaD} supposed
to be marking the target of the spike (I'd expect {-Daq} if so), or
are the "ribs all over the place" somehow receiving the "you are"
action?

Your strategy is sound: express the meaning; don't just translate
individual words. My problem is that I'm not able to get a clear
meaning out of what you've written.

-- ghunchu'wI'



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