Comments on: Kombinowanie continued http://www.transparent.com/polish/kombinowanie-continued/ Language and Culture of the Polish-Speaking World Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:42:47 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: dks http://www.transparent.com/polish/kombinowanie-continued/comment-page-1/#comment-1379 dks Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:03:28 +0000 http://www.transparent.com/polish/?p=634#comment-1379 @Marta: That's true! I guess I start thinking of the word kombinowac as a negative one mostly when foreigners ask me about it. It happens so because I know that they might have heard about its negative connotation. However, as the idiomatic expression mentioned above shows, the word doesn't have to be completely negative. There, it is used in the context of figuring out a good (not necessarily shady) solution to a problem. @Marta: That’s true! I guess I start thinking of the word kombinowac as a negative one mostly when foreigners ask me about it. It happens so because I know that they might have heard about its negative connotation. However, as the idiomatic expression mentioned above shows, the word doesn’t have to be completely negative. There, it is used in the context of figuring out a good (not necessarily shady) solution to a problem.

]]> By: Marta http://www.transparent.com/polish/kombinowanie-continued/comment-page-1/#comment-1378 Marta Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:25:13 +0000 http://www.transparent.com/polish/?p=634#comment-1378 You know, foreigners have always told me that "kombinować" has shady connotations, yet I've usually used it (or heard it used) in a positive way - as a description of figuring out an inventive solution to an unusual problem. Sort of like Macgyvering a solution: "I had to do something difficult/unusual and it was tough, but I _pokombinowałem_ and I did/finished/accomplished it." Think of it this way: Polacy kombinują on their own, Americans have to resort to websites like lifehacker ;) You know, foreigners have always told me that “kombinować” has shady connotations, yet I’ve usually used it (or heard it used) in a positive way – as a description of figuring out an inventive solution to an unusual problem. Sort of like Macgyvering a solution: “I had to do something difficult/unusual and it was tough, but I _pokombinowałem_ and I did/finished/accomplished it.”

Think of it this way: Polacy kombinują on their own, Americans have to resort to websites like lifehacker ;)

]]> By: dks http://www.transparent.com/polish/kombinowanie-continued/comment-page-1/#comment-1377 dks Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:25:45 +0000 http://www.transparent.com/polish/?p=634#comment-1377 Anna, thank you for explaining the difference between the noun and the verb. I just got an idea: maybe we can also mention an idiom that includes the word "kombinować" such as "kombinować jak koń pod górkę" ? :) You use it often times while talking about the past, when you or someone were unnecessarily testing out different ways of achieving a goal but there was one simple method of doing it and the solution turned out to be easier than you thought. Does it sound about right? As in: Kombinowałam jak koń pod górkę making multiple phone calls and trying to figure out who could come over and help me put on a sari, but I completely forgot that my next door neighbor is Indian and she is always willing to help. Anna, thank you for explaining the difference between the noun and the verb.
I just got an idea: maybe we can also mention an idiom that includes the word “kombinować” such as “kombinować jak koń pod górkę” ? :) You use it often times while talking about the past, when you or someone were unnecessarily testing out different ways of achieving a goal but there was one simple method of doing it and the solution turned out to be easier than you thought. Does it sound about right?
As in: Kombinowałam jak koń pod górkę making multiple phone calls and trying to figure out who could come over and help me put on a sari, but I completely forgot that my next door neighbor is Indian and she is always willing to help.

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