How should I understand, “Der Professor gibt vielen Studenten keine Noten“?

Question

I would expect,

The professor gives many students no grades.

but my language learning app suggests,

The Professor does not give many students grades.

Thanks.

score 3 · Accepted Answer · answered Aug 12 '23 at 16:23

3

Your app is wrong. "The Professor does not give many students grades" would be "Der Professor gibt nicht vielen Studenten Noten"

answered Aug 12 '23 at 16:23

Alazon

2

The problem is that the "no grades" version is not very idiomatic English. I'm sure the app was giving approximate meaning while still using typical English phrasing. The things to remember are 1) don't trust apps and 2) understanding is one thing, translation is another. – RDBury Aug 12 '23 at 20:29
@RDBury would "no grades to many students" be better? – Carsten S Aug 13 '23 at 12:02
@Carsten S - It sounds better to me. German and English differ on where to put words for emphasis. In your version it sounds like students were expecting them and not getting them was a surprise. I don't know if that's the impression the German version gives. – RDBury Aug 13 '23 at 23:27

1 Answers1