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1900s

English translation: the nineteen hundreds

21:19 Aug 25, 2008
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
English term or phrase: 1900s
how would read this?

60s = the sixties
70s = the seventies

but
1900s

thanks in advance
Lakasa Stnorden
Local time: 13:42
Selected answer:the nineteen hundreds
Explanation:
That's it!



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Note added at 5 mins (2008-08-25 21:25:11 GMT)
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There are zillions of examples in google :-) (try in "")
Selected response from:

Paula Vaz-Carreiro
Grading comment
Selected automatically based on peer agreement.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
5 +7the nineteen hundreds
Paula Vaz-Carreiro
3 +4the first decade of the twentieth century
Mark Nathan
5 +1The Nineteen Hundreds
Ali Bayraktar
4 +1it's ambiguous
Jennifer Levey
5The twentieth century
Richard C. Baca, MIM
41900s
Victoria Porter-Burns
3the years from 1901 то 1999
vanq


Discussion entries: 1





  

Answers


2 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
1900s


Explanation:
I can't see any other way of saying it without it sounding like an obvious mistranslation.

Victoria Porter-Burns
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:42
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
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3 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +1
The Nineteen Hundreds


Explanation:
-

Ali Bayraktar
Türkiye
Native speaker of: Native in TurkishTurkish

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Rachel Fell: though capitals aren't needed
1 day 55 mins
  -> Thank you,
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2 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +7
the nineteen hundreds


Explanation:
That's it!



--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 5 mins (2008-08-25 21:25:11 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

There are zillions of examples in google :-) (try in "")

Paula Vaz-Carreiro
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in PortuguesePortuguese, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 23
Grading comment
Selected automatically based on peer agreement.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Mark Nathan: yes, but this refers to the whole century (not just 1900-1909).
4 mins
  -> Oh! I see what you mean... It wasn't very clear but now that you point it out... :-] //But I have to say that although there may be occasions in which the nineteen hundreds refers to the whole century, it can also mean refer to the first decade.
agree  Nesrin
5 mins
  -> Thanks.
agree  Jack Doughty: It doesn't refer to the whole century. The whole century is the 17th/18th/19th - whatever - century. The nineteen hundreds were followed by the nineteen tens (? rather rare, that one). the nineteen twenties, the nineteen thirties etc.
1 hr
  -> Thanks Jack. After all the opinions last night , I went to bed feeling confused but thinking exactly what you wrote - it isn't the whole century.
agree  Polangmar: http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nineteen_hundreds
3 hrs
  -> Thanks :-)
agree  Darius Saczuk
5 hrs
  -> thanks :-)
agree  Rachel Fell: Assuming it means 1900-1909, I bet they didn't say the noughties in those days ;-)
1 day 58 mins
  -> :-) Thanks Rachel
agree  Ali Bayraktar: I don't think that asker means the beginning of the century. And if his examples were 1700s, 1800s then there would not be such confusions. He means how it spells thats all. There is no need to go through the meaning :)
1 day 1 hr
  -> Thanks Ali :-)
agree  Carla_am
2 days 7 hrs
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5 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +4
the first decade of the twentieth century


Explanation:
A bit long...
I think we have had this already for 2000-2010.

Mark Nathan
France
Local time: 18:42
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 78

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Jennifer Levey: In which decade does 1912 fall?
3 mins
  -> the second decade (1910-1919)
agree  Paula Vaz-Carreiro: If Lakasa meant just the first decade, then this answer has no ambiguity.
7 mins
  -> Although mediamatrix is right - the question is ambiguous.
agree  Demi Ebrite: Very tricky ~ but taken 'as stated' by Lakasa, I think this is the answer.
55 mins
agree  Andrew Levine: too bad we don't have a concise, unambiguous name for such decades in English. I agree with Mark's choice of unambiguous over concise.
2 hrs
agree  Rachel Fell: maybe this too, dep. on context
1 day 58 mins
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6 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
it's ambiguous


Explanation:
It could be read as 'the first two decades of the 20th century' or as 'the (entire) 20th century'.

Note that expressions similar to 'the twenties' the thirties' etc. cannot be used for the first 20 years of a century - although I guess that logically they would be 'zeroties' and 'tenties'.

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Note added at 8 mins (2008-08-25 21:27:57 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I stand corrected - Jack's 'the naughties' is far better.

Jennifer Levey
Chile
Local time: 12:42
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 27

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Eike Seemann DipTrans: depends on context
3 hrs
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13 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
The twentieth century


Explanation:
It's about the whole century

Richard C. Baca, MIM
Mexico
Local time: 09:42
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in SpanishSpanish

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Mark Nathan: yes, usually if you say "the 1900s" you mean the whole century, but since the asker mentions the sixties, seventies etc. I think the question is about how to refer to the first/second ten years of a century.
9 mins
  -> I see your point, but I think they would have narrowed it down if they meant that.
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5 days   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
the years from 1901 то 1999


Explanation:
You know the 60s - sixties are the years from '51 to '59;
the 70s - the years from '61 to '69, 80s etc. But how will you call the years from '91 to '99, you cannot say two -thousands :). There is no term

Example sentence(s):
  • \
vanq
Bulgaria
Local time: 19:42
Native speaker of: Native in BulgarianBulgarian
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