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How could I translate a sentence like the Italian:

Non so cosa ho combinato!

?

I've translated it into

I don't know what I've done!

but it seems to me that something's lost in translation.

The sentence could have two meanings:

  1. Non so cosa ho combinato (ma sono riuscita a farlo) = I don't know how, but I managed to do it
  2. Non so cosa ho combinato (ma ho fatto un disastro) = I don't know how, but I did a mess.
CarLaTeX
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    This question should be asked on Italian.SE. – Mick Feb 06 '17 at 13:42
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    I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because ELU isn't a translation service – FumbleFingers Feb 06 '17 at 13:45
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    You can try to translate it literally, and it will be understood, but it won't sound "natural". You should describe the situation a person would say this—I know, because I'm Italian, but 95% of the users on EL&U aren't. So, describe the situation, and provide a sentence where this expression would fit. For example, I might say "(I don't know what came over me) But I really fucked up" Do you want slang, informal, or a more polite equivalent? – Mari-Lou A Feb 06 '17 at 15:20
  • Exact translation is hard. Word for word can be near impossible because sometimes in other languages 'you just don't say it that way'. – Mitch Feb 06 '17 at 15:28
  • @Mari-LouA Thank you! I'd like to have an informal translation but not vulgar. – CarLaTeX Feb 06 '17 at 15:36
  • @CarLaTeX Google gives your translation but there is no information about the connotations of 'combinato'. I recommend asking this at 1) a translation site or 2) italian.SE because they are more likely more knowledgable about the nuances of Italian words. – Mitch Feb 06 '17 at 15:42
  • @Mitch I've already repeated the question also on Italian Language.SE, thank you! – CarLaTeX Feb 06 '17 at 15:50
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    @Mitch ... and on IL.SE they said the correct place is here :):):) – CarLaTeX Feb 06 '17 at 18:57
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    @Mari-LouA wasn't just giving you general advice; if you edit your answer to reflect her suggestions then your question would be on-topic for this site, and we'll be able to better answer your question. Here are a couple of examples of phrase "translation" questions that are on-topic: http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/352170/english-equivalent-of-the-portuguese-phrase-this-persons-mood-changes-accordi http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/307938/english-equivalent-of-cest-gratuit See if you can edit your answer to more resemble those, and I think you'll get a better response. – 1006a Feb 06 '17 at 19:39
  • @1006a I tried to edit my post, I don't know if it is enough, thank you! – CarLaTeX Feb 06 '17 at 21:11
  • I made a big mess; I don't know what I was thinking. – aparente001 Feb 07 '17 at 06:15

1 Answers1

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Some things are untranslatable and this is one of them: there is no way in English to convene the exact same meaning as in Italian... The only thing that comes a little bit closer then yours is:

I don't even have a clue how I made it look like that myself!

or go completely the complete other way and use one word instead of trying to translate an Italian idiom and just say:

SNAFU!

(All depends on the context)

Fabby
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