Sorry if I offend anyone who over-uses this, but this is my new pet peeve. I've seen the term "uber" used at least seventeen times today, all on gaming message boards. Über ("ueber" if you don't have umlaut capability, I guess) is German for "over." Which is what we need to do with using it to mean "min-maxed." Yes, I know it's shorter, but come on. Fight the system. Be yourselves. Nothing says "I'm a D&D dork" like finding excuses to put "uber" in posts. It's like politicians saying "in harm's way" with respect to the troops in Iraq: has anyone else noticed that not one single politician--Democrat or Republican--can resist slipping that phrase in somewhere?
So that we don't sound like politicians, I propose we find a new word, and stop "uber"-using this one! Why not "dessus" for a while? And when we get sick of that, we can say it in another language; there are enough of them that we could have a new word every few months and pretty much never run out. Is anyone else with me on this?
Uber.
(There's a Buddhist lesson in there somewhere)
Go on, name names Kirth
Ain't gonna happen.
Uber. (There's a Buddhist lesson in there somewhere)
I know, I'm telling everyone to let go of the word, whereas I'm the one who should just let go of noticing it. I'm not ready for the bo tree quite yet, I suppose.
I agree. And while we're at it can we dispense with "at this point in time?" Seems easier to say "now."
This thread is frickin' Uber!
(sorry, I had to)
If we had to go for pedantry, my vote is on "Begging the Question."
Hey, man, chillax! ;-)
Hey, has anyone ever seen the movie Aliens subtitled in German? I would love to know if Hudson really says, "Spiel Uber, Mensch! Spiel Uber!"
For me, it was peeps.
Maybe I was overly shaken as a kid, but to me, white people saying peeps is like watching Greg Brady spouting an enthusiastic groovy to miles Davis.
Don't worry... extensive therapy will take care of this.
Well, things like that happen...a word is borrowed from another language, sometimes with slightly changed meaning. Nietzsche's Übermensch has left an imprint on English language, ergo we are using über as adjective and differently from word "over".
Similarly several languages have started to use French word "boutique", typically to describe small, fashionable and expensive stores, usually clothing...while the word itself simply means "shop".
And a while ago I saw some anglophone people taking offense of use of Swahili word "bwana", connecting it to slavery, white man's burden, racism and what else...while the word itself means simply "mister".
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I am german and I find it quite funny to see foreign people using german terms to describe something. I actually think Uber-Villain sound pretty fine!
I observed such stuff a lot, like Kindergarten, Vorsprung-durch-Technik, Alpenglühen and whatnot...
We also use english terms a lot in normal daily live, and no one seems to bother.
I am german and I find it quite funny to see foreign people using german terms to describe something. I actually think Uber-Villain sound pretty fine!
I observed such stuff a lot, like Kindergarten, Vorsprung-durch-Technik, Alpenglühen and whatnot...
We also use english terms a lot in normal daily live, and no one seems to bother.
Sometimes, using english terms needlessly when there are perfect german words as well bothers me. The strangest things happen if words gain a different meaning - in german, "manager" means something very different from the english use of the word - a manager is the CEO of a company, a similar high-level executive. And who knows outside germany what a "Handy" is? Its a mobile phone - the word handy is spoken english, but never used in english that way AFAIK.
It gets really creepy if foreign words are used in german grammar - "Ich habe das downgeloadet" (I have downloaded this) is popular, and these things are mostly used in tech slang.
But I´m happy if not only "Lederhosen", "Bratwurst" and Brezel (pretzel) are exported :-).
Stefan
I am german and I find it quite funny to see foreign people using german terms to describe something. I actually think Uber-Villain sound pretty fine!
You must love Gestalt characters, then!
"Ueber-villain" is an example of more or les correct usage, which I wouldn't be at all annoyed with. What I typically see, though, is something along the lines of "That character is so uber! It has this ability and that one is uber and it's just so uber," which is both senseless and annoying.
But I´m happy if not only "Lederhosen", "Bratwurst" and Brezel (pretzel) are exported :-).
English is full of German words: "Bier" and "Haus," for example. They're just spelled wrong in English :)
And who knows outside germany what a "Handy" is?
Firefighters. They carry "HT's" (handy talkie), which used to be WT's (walkie).
I actually shouldn’t say anything on this post since I am guilty of stealing from other languages a lot. I love the word Über! I would not use it in real life though. Ever. I also love to steal from French and Italian but since I can speak Italian well and French competently and can stumble through some German I feel a little better about using those little idioms. Again I really wouldn’t want to use those in any sort of typed or formal thing.
But I´m happy if not only "Lederhosen", "Bratwurst" and Brezel (pretzel) are exported :-).
Oh, there are also words like Sturm-und-Drang, Angst (which have slightly different meanings in German and English...) or Leitmotif...especially if you start looking at things like philosophy or literature theory those words start to show up thanks to German contributions in those fields.
Still having no problem in using uber as adjective in English :) That's how languages work.
English is the Borg of languages. Resistance is fruitfly.
Is anyone else with me on this?
Still having no problem in using uber as adjective in English :) That's how languages work.
Well, that answers my question! I shall stop harping on it now and let the gaming community "uber" themselves away. I appreciate the feedback, everyone; sometimes it takes a reality check to clue me in that something I find annoying is in actuality not uncool (nicht schwul, if you prefer). But I still think 2-3 of them in a sentence is excessive!
For every season…
I get your point Kirth Gersen. I just think anything in moderation is fine. Anything in excess is…well excessive. As an adult, I do not think there is anything inherently wrong with foul language. I do not necessarily want to expose my four year old daughter to it and when used in surplus it becomes tedious. In my experience, youth fails to recognize the wisdom of moderation. Not meant as a slam on anyone or to be a gross generalizing yardstick.
But I´m happy if not only "Lederhosen", "Bratwurst" and Brezel (pretzel) are exported :-).English is full of German words: "Bier" and "Haus," for example. They're just spelled wrong in English :)
I've always thought of German as mispronounced/mispelled English and Dutch as really bad mispronounced/mispelled German.
I've always thought of German as mispronounced/mispelled English and Dutch as really bad mispronounced/mispelled German.
At least German has consistent spelling, pronounciation, and grammatical rules. From a standpoint of sheer logic, it is "correct" in ways that English isn't. Also, it's great for cussing--you can do things in German that raise profanity to an entirely different level or artistry. In fact, that's about all I can do in German now: count and cuss. But I recall that you can't gossip worth a darn in German; it's too precise. French is great for gossiping; my wife gets frustrated trying to get across the nuances of her French conversations in English (my French isn't nearly good enought to follow her). Dutch I like to look at just because they have a lot of double-a's (e.g., St. Maarten), and that just looks cool to me!
But I recall that you can't gossip worth a darn in German; it's too precise. French is great for gossiping; my wife gets frustrated trying to get across the nuances of her French conversations in English (my French isn't nearly good enought to follow her).
Oh yes, some have commented that German is a great language to write manuals, for it is very precise language...while French is more vague. Finnish can also be very vague, there are lots possibilities for nuances to play with, when you want to vaguely hint to some direction...
I've always thought of German as mispronounced/mispelled English and Dutch as really bad mispronounced/mispelled German.But I´m happy if not only "Lederhosen", "Bratwurst" and Brezel (pretzel) are exported :-).English is full of German words: "Bier" and "Haus," for example. They're just spelled wrong in English :)
There are some German dialects (So-called Low German, - Plattdeutsch) that are quite close to Dutch, and some are not far away from English as well. The languages are quite close, surely closer than any other neighboring languages (although I cannot judge Danish properly). Still, there are enough differences that you cannot understand the languages without proper schooling.
Stefan
I've always thought of German as mispronounced/mispelled English and Dutch as really bad mispronounced/mispelled German.At least German has consistent spelling, pronounciation, and grammatical rules. From a standpoint of sheer logic, it is "correct" in ways that English isn't. Also, it's great for cussing--you can do things in German that raise profanity to an entirely different level or artistry. In fact, that's about all I can do in German now: count and cuss. But I recall that you can't gossip worth a darn in German; it's too precise. French is great for gossiping; my wife gets frustrated trying to get across the nuances of her French conversations in English (my French isn't nearly good enought to follow her). Dutch I like to look at just because they have a lot of double-a's (e.g., St. Maarten), and that just looks cool to me!
For your eyes then ;>
Aardappel
Sinaasappel
Aardappel
Sinaasappel
Which mean "Potatoe" and "Orange" (the fruit), IIRC.
Stefan
Which mean "Potatoe" and "Orange" (the fruit), IIRC.
Aardappel
Sinaasappel
Aha! "Erd Apfel." Pomme de Terre. Potato. I get it now!
Anyone who speaks German or is othrewise familiar with it should have a look at Mark Twain's "That Awful German Language." It's a funny piece from a non-native speaker's point of view.
Anyone who speaks German or is othrewise familiar with it should have a look at Mark Twain's "That Awful German Language." It's a funny piece from a non-native speaker's point of view.
The Innocents Abroad is a particular favorite of mine as well, for obvious reasons.