Replacing Word Forms

The examples of replacements of grammatical word forms in the translation process happens very often. We change the number of nouns, tense of verbs, etc.:

They used to dry cherries and soak them and pickle them, and make jam of them…

Вишню висушували, замочували, закривали, варення варили…

We’re leaving tomorrow (Present Continuous).

Ми поїдемо завтра (майбутній час).

Replacing Parts of Speech

Pronominalization

This type of replacement is rather widespread. Its simplest type is the so called “pronominalization”, or replacement of noun by a pronoun:

Here the concretization of pronouns they and you is fulfilled on the basis of a broad context data:

I took the parcel… Inside was another wrapping, and on this, in a neat, well-educated writing… Please deliver personally to the Viscountess Kastellan … The first thing I found was a gold and platinum cigarette case … Besides the cigarette-case there was nothing but a bundle of letters.

17.2.2. Noun is transformed into Verb:

17.2.3. Adjective is transformed into Noun:

English adjectives in the comparative degree when translated into Ukrainian may be replaced by verbal nouns with the meaning of increasing (growing) or decreasing the volume, size or degree (the type of increasing, decreasing, rising, decline, reduction, etc.):

In translation adjectives can be also replaced by the group “ adjective + noun ”, if they are used in attributive function:

Adjective in predicative function (with link-verb be or another) is often replaced by the verb: to be glad — радіти, to be angry — сердитись, to be silent — мовчати:

Replacements of speech parts are often accompanied by the replacements of the sentence members, i.e. by restructuring the syntactical structure of a sentence.

17.3. Replacements of the Sentence Members
(Restructuring the Syntactical Structure of a Sentence)

1) In translation passive construction is transformed in active one:

2)

2) Subject of English sentence in translation into Ukrainian is replaced by Object:

This phrase with the verb see (which is deprived of specific lexical meaning and denotes here only the fact of existence of this or that event or phenomenon is rather typical for English press. Compare: 1973 saw... в 1973 році, the next week will see... наступного тижня, Tonight sees... — сьогодні ввечері, etc.

English verbal nouns like publication, beginning, renewal, performance, etc., usuallyused as objects of the verb see, in Ukrainian translation are transformed into verbal predicate: було опубліковано, почалось, відновилось, було виконано, etc.

Analogous transformation also takes place in other cases, when English subject (“ theme ”), which stands in the beginning of a sentence, expresses these or those meanings of adverbial modifier. Thus, it’s not rare that in Ukrainian translation English subject is replaced by the adverbial modifier of place:

In the last example the replacement of parts of speech also takes place — adjective hot is transformed into a noun спека.

Analogous syntactical transformation is observed in translating the following constructions, typical of English press into Ukrainian:

The communique says... в комюніке говориться;

The resolution declares — в резолюції сказано;

The note strongly protests — в ноті висловлено рішучий протест.

The memorandum accuses the present government with violations which include the rigging of elections.

У меморандумі нинішній уряд звинувачено в низці порушень законності, у тому числі й у фальсифікації результатів президентських перегонів.

The same types of phrases are often met in the texts of scientific style:

The given examples of replacing the English subject by Ukrainian adverbial modifier, is characteristic of translation of the newspaper-informational texts:

It’s not rare when the Ukrainian adverbial modifier has here the meaning of cause, e.g.:

The crash killed 106 people.

Внаслідок авіаційної катастрофи загинуло 106 осіб.

Surely this type of syntactical transformation is also “reversible”, i.e. in translating from Ukrainian into English the opposite process - replacing adverbial modifier by subject, followed by other replacements needed, takes place:

Grammatical norm of Ukrainian fully allow maintaining the structure of the source sentence: Після обіду вони довго й щиро розмовляли, though the first variant is much more acceptable from the stylistic point of view.

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