Fruit is weighed WHERE?!
La fruta se pesa en caja. Gracias.
Can you spot the differences in the sentences?
It’s not a good translation to English.
- 1. Article ‘the’ not necessary.
- 2. Wrong preposition: should be ‘at’.
- 3. Although una caja might be ‘a box’, in the context of a supermarket this should be ‘checkout‘.
- 4. (Manners!) – ‘Thank you’ equivalent to ‘gracias’ not included, and conspicuous by its absence – blank space!
Someone in the supermarket’s administration office knows about la voz pasiva – “…is weighed…” (instead of the active voice, “weighs”), but didn’t check how to say ‘caja’ in the context of a shop or store. Remember, avoid literal translations – and check with a native speaker.
In the box?
In a box
No, I’d like to put my fruit in a bag – please, and then have it weighed at the checkout.
Google Translate from Spanish to English:
La fruta se pesa en caja. Gracias.
…. and the correct English as spoken by a native, translated to (Google Translate’s version of) Spanish:
Fruit is weighed at the cash desk / checkout. Thank you.
See also: Terrible translations
Supermarket checkouts