Specific English. Грамматические трудности перевода

dinner had been collected. 14. An attempt to summarise the results will be made, 15. Nothing of particular interest was said.

XII. Переведите следующие предложения, обращая внимание на перевод выделенных слов.

А. 1. Не was on the plump side, and he had a pot belly. 2. Ten years before her frocks had been somewhat on the showy side. 3. She must have been a handsome woman when young, for her features, though on the large side, were good. 4. Close up she became Irma Fliegler again; still pretty, a bit on the stout side, but stout in a way that did not make her unattractive. 5. Harris was wearing a regulation shirt, though it was on the small side, and every now and then Harris’s hand would go up to ease the collar. 6. Her tongue slurred here: up to now she had spoken quite plainly, though on the soft side. 7. Too bad she wasn’t more photogenic. On the homely side, I thought. 8. Myself, I should never have been a Judge, as such I was too often on the wrong side.

Б. 1. It was a smallish room, with big deep leather chairs of a delicate brown colour. 2. We have lodges in all the biggish places. 3. Near the front of the audience, a youngish man sprang to his feet. 4. «What about that hotel in the market place, Jimmy?» «Might be a bit dearish.» 5. Well, if you do, I shall feel I ought to go too, and though I’m tiredish too, I hate to think I’m missing anything. 6. He was beginning to feel wonderlandish again, what with Mr Mensworth and the champagne. 7. The Hairless Mexican was a tall man, and though thinnish gave you the impression of being very powerful. 8. It was a longish ride. 9. I had a sweetish taste in my mouth. 10. I’m a baldish, stoutish gentleman of fifty-two. 11. She had known of many separated wives, living equivocally on smallish incomes, and knew how quickly their friends found them tiresome. 12. He was tallish, very spare.

XIII. Переведите следующие предложения. Обратите внимание на различие в употреблении степеней сравнения в русском и английском языках.

A. I. That was the room that Nancy liked best in all the house. 2. The holiday proved to be one of the happier times that Keith and Natalie had ever known. 3. He changed into the Chinese trousers and silk tunic in which he felt most at ease. 4. The findings of the mission include: the desirability of the countries concerned to meet and discuss early how best to initiate further action. 5. In general they went to dine at one of the better restaurants in Montparnasse. 6. But that which 1 liked best is that section of which the artery is the Boulevard du Montparnasse. 7. She congratulated me, somewhat ironically perhaps, on my acquaintance with the more disreputable parts of Paris. 8. Peter crossed to the telephone beside the nearer bed. 9. Among the more important decisions was the resolution on solidarity with that country. 10. My friend Wyman Holt is a professor of English literature in one of the smaller universities of the Middle West. 11. Fortunately, just when things were blackest, the war broke out. 12. «That’s it,«he said, «you young people, you all stick together; you all think you know best!»

Б. 1. Вот вам все (имеющиеся у нас) купальные костюмы. Выбирайте тот, который вам нравится больше всех. 2. Расскажите нам о наиболее значительных (significant) событиях последних дней. 3. Они все хорошо плавают (хорошие пловцы). Но Гаррис плавает лучше всех. 4. Были упомянуты лишь наиболее важные подробности. 5. Ее жаргон напоминал ему о беднейших кварталах Парижа. 6. Лора и ее мать, миссис Клейтон (Clayton), вдова, жили в одной из лучших гостиниц. 7. Это была выставка работ (show) одного из наиболее прогрессивных (advanced) художников. 8. Они заставляли своих жен и детей регулярно посещать самые модные церкви города.

XIV. Переведите следующие предложения на русский язык. Обратите внимание на субстантивированные прилагательные.

1. Nothing you can possibly do could improve the situation in the slightest. 2. «Is he really a bad musician?» «He is. I haven’t heard a worse.» 3. There always lurked in the back of her mind the disquieting memory that he had seen her at her worst. 4. I don’t like him in the least. 5. Afterwards, when the worst of the emergency was over, he could return to work for the remainder of his shift. 6. He always referred to the soldiers as «our brave boys» or «our heroes in gray» and did it in such a way as to convey the utmost in insult. 7. Each was trying his hardest to read the other’s thoughts. 8. In normal circumstances he would have had only one thought, which would have been to show himself to Mrs Merle at his most light-hearted, his most urbane. 9. «And I,«cried Dorothy, «and I?» She was at her most dangerous. 10. I really did my damnedest.

XV. В следующих предложениях укажите наречия степени, которые представляются избыточными или не совместимыми по смыслу с определяемым словом с точки зрения русского языка.

1. She’s quite the best dancer I know. 2. Christine realised suddenly how very tired she was. 3. Think of something not quite so expensive. 4. «Are you staying here?» he asked. «Only for a very few days.» 5. Hans and Peter are quite the noisiest boys that I know. 6. But they had come on a very different errand. 7. Al lived then at Gorney’s Hotel, which was not quite the worst hotel in Gibbsville. 8. I’ve talked with her quite a few times. 9. You’ve spoken a little too much tonight. 10. Isn’t it rich to hear her? How very original she is! 11. I want you to give his reports your very best attention. 12. It’s a bit too much. 13. Isn’t the telephone working? How very trying. 14. She is a darling, he thought, and so very dense. 15. We’re Matthew’s very oldest friends. 16. She was interested to see how very disagreeable and ill-dressed many of the women visitors seemed. 17. But he had been a little too quick at this point. 18. «How very kind,«she murmured. 19. In the end she found herself obliged to give quite a little lecture.

«Опредмечивание» степени, признака и действия

Мы уже видели выше, что прилагательное в английском языке может субстантивироваться, т. е. как бы «опредмечиваться». Это явление широко распространено в английском языке. Так, степень в нем также оформляется как материальная частица, в единицах количества: much, as much as, something of, the whole of, none of, a bit of и т. д.

It would be as much of a holiday for her as it would be for him. Для нее это будет таким же праздником, как и для него.

Then he perceived something of the other’s hard intention. И тут он как-то почувствовал жестокую решимость этого человека.

Не was not worried about any of that. Его это совершенно не беспокоило.

She had run after him and he would have none of her. Она бегала за ним, а он от нее отказался.

The rest of the students are in the yard. Остальные студенты во дворе.

Не as much as told me not to. Он почти прямо велел мне не делать этого.

Местоимения и местоименные сочетания a few, a little, a good many, a great many могут также служить примером «опредмечивания» степени. Показателем того, что эти слова и словосочетания «опредметились», является стоящий перед ними артикль. Именно неопределенный артикль и обусловил значение этих местоимений: a few, a little немного, некоторое количество (неопределенное) в отличие от few, little – мало (более определенно); a good many, a great many много, большое количество в значении ’несколько’ (хотя и много), т. е. опять-таки не совсем определенно, отсюда и неопределенный артикль перед этими местоимениями. Возможно также, что эти последние образовались по аналогии с сочетаниями a good deal, a great deal, a lot of, в которых основным элементом являются существительные deal (количество) и lot (группа, масса), т. е. опять-таки материальные частицы, обозначающие степень, количество (подобно much, something и т. п.).