Jan 23, 2009 17:05
15 yrs ago
Russian term
United States
Exemplary quality, truly bilingual
Native in: Russian 
, English
Works in: Russian to English, English to Russian, English
фигурный ключ с казенной биркой
Russian to English
Tech/Engineering
Materials (Plastics, Ceramics, etc.)
Во врезном замке торчал фигурный ключ с казенной биркой на стальном кольце.
Talking about a hospital employee, so a 'hospital tag' would probably do. But what's a 'фигурный ключ'? Are those the big thick keys carried by maintenance personnel? If so, what are they called? TIA.
Talking about a hospital employee, so a 'hospital tag' would probably do. But what's a 'фигурный ключ'? Are those the big thick keys carried by maintenance personnel? If so, what are they called? TIA.
Proposed translations
(English)
| 5 | skeleton key |
Emil Niculescu
|
| 4 | ornate carved/antique key with a cheap governmental tag |
Alexandra Taggart
|
| 2 | curved key |
The Misha
|
Proposed translations
7 days
Emil Niculescu
United States
United States
Native in English
United States
Passionate about language
Native in: Romanian (Variant: Romania) 
, English (Variant: US)
Works in: Romanian to English, Russian to English, English to Romanian
Related KudoZ points
:
4
Selected
skeleton key
Thank you for looking up my reference note.
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thank you everyone for your answers. This one was the best fit."
1 hr
curved key
That's the best fitting adjective from a long list of synonyms I could think of. It doesn't google very well though. As to казенная бирка, "government issue" would be the literal translation, but it doesn't fit. Inventory tag, maybe? This is a tough one all right. Let's see, maybe the natives can come up with something better.
4 hrs
Alexandra Taggart
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Native in Russian
&
English
Russian Federation
proficient translation
Native in: English , Russian
Works in: Russian to English, English to Russian, English
ornate carved/antique key with a cheap governmental tag
I can imagine a former Royal residence where Reds established their headquarters.
Reference comments
1 hr
Reference:
ИМХО, it just means that the keys have an interesting shape: 'резной ключ', 'ключ причудливой формы'.
1 hr
Igor Blinov
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Native in Russian
Russian Federation
Precision Powered by Knowledge
Native in: Russian
Works in: English to Russian, Russian to English
Reference:
My ideas
Sure, none of these keys is "фигурный"
3 hrs
Emil Niculescu
United States
United States
Native in English
United States
Passionate about language
Native in: Romanian (Variant: Romania) , English (Variant: US)
Works in: Romanian to English, Russian to English, English to Romanian
Related KudoZ points
:
4
Reference:
skeleton key
I was looking up on Wikipedia and found this type of key. Check it out. It is known as "skeleton" for its strange shape and maybe this is what "figurnyi" refers to (БТС--фигурный--имеющий сложное очертание, форму; сделанный в форме кого-, чего-л.)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_(lock)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_(lock)
Discussion