Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Russian term or phrase:
Ни в сказке сказать, ни пером описать
English translation:
like/that you are never, ever going to believe
Added to glossary by
Natasha Liberman
Mar 7, 2017 00:01
7 yrs ago
2 viewers *
Russian term
United States
Deadlines and confidentiality guaranteed
Native in: English 
, Russian
Works in: Russian to English, English to Russian, Ukrainian to English, and 1 more.
Ни в сказке сказать, ни пером описать
Russian to English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
Контекст вполне сказочный для довольно маленьких детей. Сказка про кота. Полное предложение:
"Вот только однажды случилось с ним такое, что ни в сказке сказать, ни пером описать."
Буду бесконечно признательна за любые подсказки.
"Вот только однажды случилось с ним такое, что ни в сказке сказать, ни пером описать."
Буду бесконечно признательна за любые подсказки.
Proposed translations
(English)
Proposed translations
+3
2 hrs
Selected
like/that you are never, ever going to believe
And one day something happened to him that you are just never going to believe.
I am in complete agreement with JW Narins on this, but surely we can do better for little kids than the wording that may well have come from a speech by the dear comrade L.I. Brezhnev:) Just think about how you would be telling this story to your kids or grandkids, on a summer night around a bonfire somewhere.
If they left their cellphone chargers behind, that is:)
I am in complete agreement with JW Narins on this, but surely we can do better for little kids than the wording that may well have come from a speech by the dear comrade L.I. Brezhnev:) Just think about how you would be telling this story to your kids or grandkids, on a summer night around a bonfire somewhere.
If they left their cellphone chargers behind, that is:)
Note from asker:
| Thank you so much! |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
danya
: never-ever adds the fairytale ring to it. onceupon a time, my little hobbitses....
4 hrs
|
| agree |
Victoria Markova
7 hrs
|
| agree |
Maxim Olshin
9 hrs
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Огромнейшее спасибо!!!!!"
+1
27 mins
Words cannot describe [it]
There's no exact equivalent folk idiom. You need a phrase that sounds natural in folk context. Translating it literally won't make any stylistic sense and won't sound right. I'll keep looking for a folkloric turn of phrase that's close, but unless something else turns up, I'd recommend something along these lines.
Note from asker:
| Thank you! |
+5
11 mins
Frank Szmulowicz, Ph. D.
United States
United States
Native in English
United States
On time, on target, on budget.
Native in: English , Polish
Works in: Polish to English, English to Polish, Russian to Polish, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
101
as no fairy tale can tell nor pen describe
Proposition.
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Note added at 15 mins (2017-03-07 00:16:12 GMT)
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is said: “The girls are so beautiful as no tale can tell nor pen describe.
https://books.google.com/books?id=w9KEk9wQPjkC&pg=PA873&lpg=...
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and moss, only tree stumps, there is now a palace such as no tongue can tell of nor pen describe, and such a garden that nothing in the kingdom can match it, .
https://books.google.com/books?id=urrLKD5eFYYC&pg=PA360&lpg=...
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and finery, but the youngest only troubled herself about household affairs, although she was of a loveliness which no pen can describe and no tale can tell.
https://books.google.com/books?id=HIIuAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA188&lpg=...
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youth as no one can imagine, no pen can describe, nor story tell.
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/A_Russian_Garland_of_Fairy_Ta...
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that his beauty could neither be described with a pen nor written in a tale.
http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/russian/russianwondertale...
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Note added at 32 mins (2017-03-07 00:33:15 GMT)
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Option 2:
as no fairy tale can tell nor quill pen describe
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Note added at 15 mins (2017-03-07 00:16:12 GMT)
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is said: “The girls are so beautiful as no tale can tell nor pen describe.
https://books.google.com/books?id=w9KEk9wQPjkC&pg=PA873&lpg=...
ccccccc
and moss, only tree stumps, there is now a palace such as no tongue can tell of nor pen describe, and such a garden that nothing in the kingdom can match it, .
https://books.google.com/books?id=urrLKD5eFYYC&pg=PA360&lpg=...
cccccc
and finery, but the youngest only troubled herself about household affairs, although she was of a loveliness which no pen can describe and no tale can tell.
https://books.google.com/books?id=HIIuAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA188&lpg=...
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youth as no one can imagine, no pen can describe, nor story tell.
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/A_Russian_Garland_of_Fairy_Ta...
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that his beauty could neither be described with a pen nor written in a tale.
http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/russian/russianwondertale...
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Note added at 32 mins (2017-03-07 00:33:15 GMT)
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Option 2:
as no fairy tale can tell nor quill pen describe
Note from asker:
| Спасибо! Особенно за ссылки! |
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Jack Doughty
7 hrs
|
|
Thank you, Jack.
|
|
| agree |
Oleg Lozinskiy
8 hrs
|
|
Thank you, Oleg.
|
|
| agree |
DTSM
9 hrs
|
|
Thank you, DT SM.
|
|
| agree |
eduard_
: nagyon jó
18 hrs
|
|
Köszönöm szépen eduard_. Szép napot.
|
|
| agree |
Dmitry Goykhman
1 day 13 hrs
|
|
Thank you, Dmitry.
|
34 mins
Frank Szmulowicz, Ph. D.
United States
United States
Native in English
United States
On time, on target, on budget.
Native in: English , Polish
Works in: Polish to English, English to Polish, Russian to Polish, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
101
that are beyond the power of mere words to describe
English equivalent.
Note from asker:
| Thank you!!! |
+1
2 hrs
Steven McGrath
United States
United States
Native in English
Specializes in field
United States
ATA-Certified Russian to English
Native in: English (Variant: US)
Works in: Russian to English
...that can neither be told in a tale nor put down with a pen...
There is no exact idiom to match this in English. I think this variant both holds on the the literal meaning and the lyrical style.
Note from asker:
| Thank you! |
Discussion
Я хочу поблагодарить вас всех. Независимо от того, какой ответ был самым удачным в данном конкретном случае, вы мне все очень и очень помогли. И дискуссией и ссылками и отношением к делу.
Спасибо!
Спасибо!