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Glossary entry

Czech term or phrase:

Potrefená Husa

English translation:

If the cap fits, wear it / The Wounded Goose

Added to glossary by Pavel Prudký
Dec 11, 2008 09:17
15 yrs ago
Czech term

Potrefená Husa

Czech to English Art/Literary Tourism & Travel
Hallo,
I know it is a restaurant chain in Prague but I need to know what it means. I am translating from German to English and the German says "shot at goose".
Thanks
Gillian
Proposed translations (English)
3 +3 If the cap fits (wear it)
4 +2 The Gunned-Down Goose
4 +1 The Wounded Goose
4 "The struck goose squels" >
3 Hit goose
Change log

Dec 12, 2008 07:39: Pavel Prudký Created KOG entry

Discussion

Scott Evan Andrews Dec 23, 2008:
Anecdote regarding this entry Hi, so I was in a pub here in Zlin with a Czech friend - a translator too - and I brought up this "potrefena husa", asking what it meant to him. He thought for a long time, and told me what he thought...but just to be sure, he would ask a table full of ladies behind us (one of which was his friend), what they thought...and all of them had the same conclusion - as sexist as it may sound, their consensus was that it is something akin to a "dizzy broad" volne prelozeno "blba zenska priblbla" - a unflattering term where "husa" refers to woman, and jeste navic, je "potrefena"...again disclaimer - I'm not Czech, I don't "feel" it, and I'm not saying it's right or wrong, but it should be food for thought for you Czechs/Slovaks.
Pavel Blann Dec 11, 2008:
yes, martin but the saying comes from behaviour observed in a flock of geese: the goose that's been hit is the noisiest one. the verb mode doesn't matter. from the noise in this pub chain it can be implied everyone is "potrefen/trefen" in his/her way :)
Martin Janda Dec 11, 2008:
Oops, sorry, Pavel, not reading the list of answers properly....
Pavel Prudký Dec 11, 2008:
Martin, this is what I am trying to tell all the time here:
http://search1.seznam.cz/google?q=If the cap fits (wear it)
Martin Janda Dec 11, 2008:
...government officials, the one claims their moral integrity the most is usually the one most affected. And now go ahead and try to translate this :-)
Martin Janda Dec 11, 2008:
I beg to disagree. Most answers are NOT correct. What they translate is TREFENA husa, not POtrefena. This is a pun, a reference to an old Czech saying - Potrefená husa se vždycky ozve. (Meaning for instance, that if you talk about bribery to a group of ..
Gerry Vickers Dec 11, 2008:
I wanted to go an an agreeing spree as well - all answers are 'correct' in the their own way. It just occurred to me if all brands are translated, imagine the sales figures of Škoda cars if they had 'What a waste of money'/'Wie Schade' on the back :)
Scott Evan Andrews Dec 11, 2008:
Thanks Pavel, I indeed may be wrong. Like someone is "postreleny" or "zastreleny" - wounded or shot dead...Hunters finish the job if the bird ain't dead, that's for sure, but if a vet picked him up in time, who knows?:) ALSO NO AGREE/DISAGREE BUTTON
Martin Janda Dec 11, 2008:
Strange, my Agree/Disagree button is missing too. Any idea what's happening?
Pavel Prudký Dec 11, 2008:
To Scott: (apologizing for not using agree/disagree box - not enabled)
I think you are not right. If you gun down a goose, it will not honk anymore. The main point of “Potrefená” is that the goose is honking then!! I think Wounded Goose is better, but..
Scott Evan Andrews Dec 11, 2008:
Gerry's obviously right, but the meaning was requested.
Gerry Vickers Dec 11, 2008:
The company uses 'Potrefená husa' in all its literature - it would be a mistake to translate it any other way (much as you would not translate 'Staropramen' as 'Old Source', etc :) There's one in Brno, too, but I much preferred the old Bellevue...

Proposed translations

+3
3 mins
Selected

If the cap fits (wear it)

I think it shoud be this meaning...

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Note added at 4 mins (2008-12-11 09:21:36 GMT)
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something that you say to tell someone that if they are guilty of something bad, they should accept criticism

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Note added at 15 mins (2008-12-11 09:32:20 GMT)
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My translation is based on the main (if not the only) context possible (folk saying): Potrefená Husa nejvíc kejhá = The person concerned/guilty will disclose herself/himself by raising some comments, objections, confirmations, etc.

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Note added at 1 hr (2008-12-11 10:41:55 GMT)
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I translated what it means (as requested), which the translation might not be the best name for a restaurant chain :-))) But who knows, people want to differentiate :-))

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Note added at 3 hrs (2008-12-11 13:15:29 GMT)
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If you do not want to use the core meaning in terms of proverb, then I suggest the term The Wounded Goose. The main point of “Potrefená” is that the goose is honking then!! But it says nothing about the real meaning of the saying, which the term comes from..


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Note added at 3 hrs (2008-12-11 13:16:55 GMT)
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see the Wounded Goose hits - many times with Potrefená Husa, searching wordlwide web!!
http://search1.seznam.cz/google?q=Wounded Goose

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Note added at 6 hrs (2008-12-11 15:29:43 GMT)
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I also agree with Daniel as it was my suggestion if the exact meaning of the saying does not fit to the restaurant chain name...

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Note added at 22 hrs (2008-12-12 07:37:17 GMT) Post-grading
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thank you
Peer comment(s):
agree Gerry Vickers : I agree with this one as well
3 hrs
thnx
agree Jennifer Taylor : I agree with Wounded Goose. The description of the idiom brings to mind the somewhat less salubrious "He who smelt it, dealt it!"
6 hrs
right, thank you!
agree Igor Liba : I agree; Gillian wants to understand not to translate ;-) This is good explan.
8 hrs
děkuji
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Oh boy, this goose was really complicated! I now both understand what it means literally and figuratively. I actually went with "gunned down" (I wish I could divide the points) because it sounds good to attract people into a restaurant."
+1
4 hrs

The Wounded Goose

I would definitely agree with Pavel's suggestion - The Wounded Goose - as being the only standard translation. There are plenty of examples of english reviews of the restaurant with this name. I also lived in Zlin for a few years and used Wounded Goose to refer to the place, I think it has a very pleasing assonance!
Reference:

http://www.think.cz/eats/potrefenahusauk.html

http://www.cbw.cz/en/wounded-goose-goes-golden-/4083.html

Peer comment(s):
agree Pavel Prudký : yes, this is my suggestion one hour earlier, providing they do not want to have the core meaning of the folk saying in the restaurant name
1 hr
Something went wrong...
5 hrs

Hit goose

This sounds a bit strange, I know, but the idiom goes "Potrefena husa se vzdycky ozve" or suchlike, which literary means "The (shot at and) hit goose always shouts." I was wondering whether there was a similiar proverb in English, but the closest meaning really seems to be the suggested. "If the cap fits, wear it" (although it is not quite the same). I compared it with German where the idiom goes: "Getroffene Hunde bellen/jaulen" (The hit dogs bark/ howl). Meaning: If someone protests very loudly against criticism, then probably the criticism has hit the nail on the head.

Something went wrong...
7 hrs

"The struck goose squels" >

also in Slovak l. " Trafená hus zagága" > it means > a person with a guilty conscience who unwillingly (proti svojej vôli) speaks out > imagine your boss discovered someone used his computer to surf naughty web site. He walks in and says, "who used my computer yeasterday'? and you blurt out, " I don't even like computer porn".
http://travel.spectator.sk/articles/129/
the point here is your reaction is unwilling as instinct ...
Something went wrong...
+2
36 mins

The Gunned-Down Goose

Well, I know this place, we've got one in Zlin, pretty nice place actually and expensive...good beer.
I'd suggest this as at least something that's a relatively interesting title. But actually my first step would be to contact the company and see if they'be already got something they've used in English. :)

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Note added at 45 mins (2008-12-11 10:02:14 GMT)
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potrefeny would be an adjective from the verb trefit, to hit (a target) in this case as in ex. skeet, or in particularly bad circumstances of this goose...poor bugger's been shot.

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Note added at 3 hrs (2008-12-11 12:39:17 GMT)
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I like Pavel's reminding of the idiomatic phrase. Now it's really a question of conveying meaning I think, and a sign on a door can't do that. Maybe the owner/manager should pick up something we do in good establishments the USA. Introduce himself to every new table and welcome them, perhaps explaining to them the meaning behind the name. The intrigue of the name is an opportunity to build the business.

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Note added at 1 day20 mins (2008-12-12 09:37:46 GMT) Post-grading
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Hey, I think we developed a healthy debate in the proper Kudoz spirit. Thanks! I know I learned something from it.
Peer comment(s):
agree Blanka Salkova : good idea (to contact the company)
6 mins
agree Gerry Vickers : agree because that's what it literally means
2 hrs
Something went wrong...
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