Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Deutsch term or phrase:
den inneren Schweinehund überwinden
Englisch translation:
overcome one\'s baser instincts
Added to glossary by
Edith Kelly
Mar 1, 2012 06:27
12 yrs ago
13 viewers *
Deutsch term
den inneren Schweinehund überwinden
Deutsch > Englisch
Sonstige
Idiome/Maximen/Sprichwörter
Idiom
This is usually rendered as "to conquer/overcome one's weaker self". I am wondering whether anyone knows another expression that is both idiomatic and also reflecting the German a bit better.
Schweinehund as such would be bastard but this is not the issue here.
TIA
Schweinehund as such would be bastard but this is not the issue here.
TIA
Proposed translations
(Englisch)
References
...und so sieht er aus :-) | Johanna Timm, PhD |
Proposed translations
+1
2 Stunden
Selected
overcome one's baser instincts
Langenscheidt lists "innerer Schweinehund" as "baser instincts"
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Very difficult to come to a decision and overcome my inner "pigdog". Thanks to everyone for your suggestions, much appreciated. "
+1
44 Min.
overcome ones lack of willpower
I found several examples on Linguee.com This or alternatively "inner demon", or " go beyond ones comfort zone" might be an option to reflect the German expression a bit
Reference:
http://www.linguee.de/deutsch-englisch/uebersetzung/den+inneren+schweinehund+%FCberwinden.html
Note from asker:
not sure about anything one finds on Linguee e.g. the spelling, should be one's ..... |
Peer comment(s):
agree |
BrigitteHilgner
: I prefer your first suggestion (and would not opt for "comfort zone").
25 Min.
|
neutral |
Kim Metzger
: "one's" and maybe it's not willpower that's lacking but courage, for example.
33 Min.
|
neutral |
Lonnie Legg
: w. Kim re spelling. Willpower, drive...
4 Stunden
|
2 Stunden
to get (yourself) into gear (or such)
Or, maybe:
light a fire under your ass
get moving
get a move on
do something even if its wrong
get off your ass and do something
grit your teeth
take a deep breath and
man up
context...context...context
light a fire under your ass
get moving
get a move on
do something even if its wrong
get off your ass and do something
grit your teeth
take a deep breath and
man up
context...context...context
+2
3 Stunden
overcome/beat your inner daemons
this is what immediately springs to mind for me
Peer comment(s):
agree |
Trudy Peters
: I like this. 'demons' for the US.
4 Stunden
|
Thanks Trudy!
|
|
agree |
Melanie Meyer
4 Stunden
|
Thanks Melanie!
|
3 Stunden
come to grips with oneself
get (a) hold of oneself
Not so idiomatic but conveys the meaning
Not so idiomatic but conveys the meaning
+1
4 Stunden
break the beast within
or alternatives to break such as beat, overcome, subdue
+1
4 Stunden
light a fire under one's own butt/ass/rear/behind
just another one to spice the soup with
Peer comment(s):
agree |
opolt
: I like this one best among all of the proposals. Maybe we could add a little qualifier to that badonkadonk, e.g. "lazy, slothful".
3 Stunden
|
sluggish? loathing? Thanks, opolt, have a good evening!
|
+1
5 Stunden
to overcome (or fight/battle) one's inner couch potato
If the particular "innere Schweinehund" is lethargy/laziness....
Example sentence:
I battled my inner couch potato.
6 Stunden
"push beyond your comfort zone"
As others have noted, context is everything, as always. This one works best for physical challenges but perhaps less so for internal conflicts.
Reference comments
11 Stunden
Reference:
...und so sieht er aus :-)
http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:Cogito_Inner...
nice wiki article with a bit of background:
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innerer_Schweinehund
nice wiki article with a bit of background:
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innerer_Schweinehund
Note from asker:
Super und danke, Johanna |
Discussion
You should post it as an answer!
Kick in one's gears? Get off one's ass? Beat one's lazy beast?
Wake up and smell the coffee? Get a move on?
Another possibility that came to mind would be to use inner demon, but I don't think the meaning is quite the same.