Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Czech term or phrase:
jsme se vyvinuli
English translation:
went over the top
Added to glossary by
Timoshka
Feb 5, 2018 00:08
6 yrs ago
Czech term
jsme se vyvinuli
Czech to English
Social Sciences
Military / Defense
From a World War I soldier's journal: "Přišli jsme do německých zákopů a tu naše kanonáda bez přestání asi půl hodiny prudce střílela do ruských zákopů. Potom jsme se vyvinuli a všichni horlivě jsme šli maje tasené bajonety kupředu."
I've translated it as: "We came to the German trenches and here our artillery fired fiercely into the Russian trenches for about half an hour without stopping. Then we (jsme se vyvinuli) and all of us eagerly moved forward with drawn bayonets." Every source I've checked translates "vyvinout se" as "to evolve" or "to develop." It must mean something else in this context, but what?
I've translated it as: "We came to the German trenches and here our artillery fired fiercely into the Russian trenches for about half an hour without stopping. Then we (jsme se vyvinuli) and all of us eagerly moved forward with drawn bayonets." Every source I've checked translates "vyvinout se" as "to evolve" or "to develop." It must mean something else in this context, but what?
Proposed translations
(English)
| 3 +2 | went over the top |
Stuart Hoskins
|
| 4 | we deployed |
Emil Kucera
|
Proposed translations
+2
5 hrs
Stuart Hoskins
Native in English
not too hot, not too cold...
Native in: English 
Works in: Czech to English, Slovak to English
Related KudoZ points
:
16
Selected
went over the top
it conveys some sort of formation as they went over the top
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Jiri Lonsky
: Perfect choice
5 hrs
|
| agree |
Lubosh Hanuska
: Going "over the top" is a common way to describe an attack from the trenches in WWI
16 hrs
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thank you! Just the right phrase for a WWI attack from the trenches."
9 mins
Emil Kucera
Canada
Canada
Native in Czech
&
English
Works in field
Canada
Serving the science community since 1969
Native in: Czech , English
Works in: Czech to English, Slovak to English, German to English, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
4
we deployed
This is fairly obvious from the context; however, if this is a literary work, a young private would be unlikely to use that expression. Might just say "we started out" or some such.
Discussion