"Na levé ucho neslyší."
Translation:He is deaf in his left ear.
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Should the English translation not be a bit closer to the Czech sentence? In Czech the word deaf is not used at all.
Well if you can come up with a sentence that is natural enough... Sometimes different languages use different ways to express stuff.
We are open to suggestions from native English speakers for forms that should be accepted even when the official translation will stay as it is.
I can't comment the naturalness, native speakers must do, but I can't find too many examples of usage of such phrasing.
Why would you assume that? No word for "deaf" was used in this sentence, but that doesn't mean the word doesn't exist.
There are, in fact, two words for "deaf" in Czech:
- neslyšící, lit. "non-hearing", the more polite (PC) word, but quite formal
- hluchý, the commonly used word
"Na levé ucho je hluchý" is among the accepted answers and it's also very natural.
"Na levé ucho je neslyšící" is also accepted, but it's not very natural, since it's easier to say "Na levé ucho neslyší", the more straight forward formulation.
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I wasn't assuming--I DIDN'T want to assume, that's why I asked.
The reason I asked is because the translation of "neslyší" in this exercise is "deaf," when to date in the lessons it has been translated as "does not/cannot hear." In English, these generally have two different connotations with "deaf" more commonly referring to a permanent condition, while "being unable to hear" can usually be a more temporary, fixable state. Since I'm not expecting a one-to-one translation between Czech and English (e.g., ruka means both hand and arm; noha means both leg and foot), the use of the non-literal translation when a literal translation exists is what caused me to question whether a word for deaf exists--because i wouldn't expect it to.
So thanks for the response, it helps to know that neslyší is the more effective way to communicate it.
I meant my "why would you assume that?" question lightly, there should have been a smiling emoji there ;)
You're right though, it's the same in both languages -- "deaf" and "hluchý" is normally a permanent condition, while "does not/cannot hear" and "neslyší" could just be a current situation. The boundary is blurred especially in such a context as "Neslyší na levé ucho" -- without context it still sounds like a permanent or semi-permanent condition and that's probably why the author of this exercise chose a somewhat indirect translation with "deaf".
If I wanted to say that my left ear cannot hear at this moment (but is not permamently impaired), I could say a number of things, for example "Mám zahluchlé levé ucho", where the literal meaning of "zahluchlé" is close to "deafened".
I have added translations using "...hear in..." and "hear out of..." Both would definitely be used in everyday speech, at least in the US. In written material, they are probably used less often than "deaf" ()which would also be used in speech).
In English, “He can’t hear out of his left ear” is a quite common way to describe deafness in one ear. “He can’t see out of one eye” is a common way to describe blindness in one eye.
Examples of locative:
- Často leží na levém uchu - He often lies on his left ear.
- Na levém uchu má puchýř. - He has a blister on his left ear.
- V levém uchu má náušnici. - He has an earring in his left ear.
Why is my answer wrong? "He can't hear in the left ear?" It seems literal to me.
I am native AmE. "He can't hear in THE left ear" seems a little less common to me, relative to "in HIS left ear," but I definitely wouldn't say it's wrong. Example: "He can't hear in the left ear, but his right ear is fine." Did you use the Report button, in case there was some minor, unnoticed error in your answer?
No, after reading the whole thread, I decided not to flag it. I just remembered the answer they wanted so I could get it right next time.
"He does not hear in his left ear" is an accepted answer. But not "...eat" :-)
Má cenu vám odpovídat? Před měsícem jsem vám odpověděl na stejnou otázku. Co si tu odpověď přečíst místo ptaní se znova?