ProZ.com translation contests »
9th ProZ.com Translation Contest: "Business" » English to Hungarian

Competition in this pair is now closed.

Source text in English

I remember reading once that some fellows use language to conceal thought, but it's been my experience that a good many more use it instead of thought.

A businessman's conversation should be regulated by fewer and simpler rules than any other function of the human animal. They are:

Have something to say.

Say it.

Stop talking.

Beginning before you know what you want to say and keeping on after you have said it lands a merchant in a lawsuit or the poorhouse, and the first is a short cut to the second. I maintain a legal department here, and it costs a lot of money, but it's to keep me from going to law.

It's all right when you are calling on a girl or talking with friends after dinner to run a conversation like a Sunday-school excursion, with stops to pick flowers; but in the office your sentences should be the shortest distance possible between periods. Cut out the introduction and the peroration, and stop before you get to secondly. You've got to preach short sermons to catch sinners; and deacons won't believe they need long ones themselves. Give fools the first and women the last word. The meat's always in the middle of the sandwich. Of course, a light butter on either side of it doesn't do any harm if it's intended for a man who likes butter.

Remember, too, that it's easier to look wise than to talk wisdom. Say less than the other fellow and listen more than you talk; for when a man's listening he isn't telling on himself and he's flattering the fellow who is. Give most men a good listener and most women enough note-paper and they'll tell all they know. Money talks -- but not unless its owner has a loose tongue, and then its remarks are always offensive. Poverty talks, too, but nobody wants to hear what it has to say.

The winning entry has been announced in this pair.

There were 9 entries submitted in this pair during the submission phase, 4 of which were selected by peers to advance to the finals round. The winning entry was determined based on finals round voting by peers.

Competition in this pair is now closed.


Entries (9 total; 4 finalists) Expand all entries

Entry #9623
Winner
Voting points1st2nd3rd
6615 x42 x22 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.813.69 (13 ratings)3.92 (12 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 3 users entered 3 "like" tags
  • 6 users agreed with "likes" (8 total agrees)
  • 4 users disagreed with "likes" (4 total disagrees)
-1
Hallgass el!
Good term selection
Judit Babcsányi
-3
+4
Prédikálj röviden, hogy megragadhasd a bűnösöket – hosszú szónoklatokkal még a szentfazekak sem kívánnak töltekezni.
Other
SENKI más ​nem tudta ​lefordítan​i!!!! Grat​.
Peter Boskovitz
+4
A balgáknak engedd át az első szót, a nőknek pedig az utolsót.
Good term selection
Az összes ​közül a le​gjobban ad​ja vissza ​az eredeti​ régies sz​erkezetet.
Oyabun
Entry #10075
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
387 x44 x22 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.713.87 (15 ratings)3.54 (13 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 3 users entered 3 "like" tags
  • 7 users agreed with "likes" (9 total agrees)
  • 1 user disagreed with "likes" (1 total disagree)
+1
1
Tapasztalatom szerint azonban jóval többen vannak azok, akik ahelyett beszélnek, hogy gondolkodnának.
Flows well
Szerintem ​ez a fordí​tás a legm​agyarosabb​.
Dora Egri
-1
+3
1
amikor szóra nyitja a száját
Good term selection
Ez a fordu​lat tetszi​k.
Katalin Horváth McClure
+5
Ne felejtsd el, hogy a töltelék java mindig a kalács közepén van, de az sem baj, ha mézes-mázosan tálalod annak, aki úgy szereti.
Flows well
nagyon jó,​ hogy sike​rült elsza​kadni az e​redeti sze​ndvicses h​asonlattól
bohonce
Entry #10186
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
131 x42 x25 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.213.20 (10 ratings)3.22 (9 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
  • 1 user agreed with "likes" (1 total agree)
+1
fejezd be mielőtt a második ponthoz érsz!
Flows well
Dora Egri
Entry #10708
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
1205 x22 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.153.09 (11 ratings)3.20 (10 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 1 user entered 1 "like" tag
  • 7 users agreed with "likes" (7 total agrees)
  • 3 users disagreed with "likes" (3 total disagrees)
-3
+7
1
mint egy virágszedési szünetekkel tarkított vasárnapi kirándulást
Flows well
Zsuzsa Berenyi