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I ukololis', kuda devat'sia

English translation: what else could we do?

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
Russian term or phrase:kuda devat'sia
English translation:what else could we do?
Entered by: IrinaGM

09:53 Mar 14, 2004
Russian to English translations [Non-PRO]
Social Sciences - Social Science, Sociology, Ethics, etc.
Russian term or phrase: I ukololis', kuda devat'sia
A drug user talks about how they share syringes.
They are asked: I ukololis', da?
They reply: I ukololis', kuda devat'sia.

I know the use of kuda devat'sia as a question, but am not sure how it is being used here.
Emily Justice
United Kingdom
Local time: 11:27
Yes we did drugs, what else could we do?
Explanation:
word by word, it would be a different translation but in this particular context, that's how I would translate it.
Selected response from:

IrinaGM
United States
Local time: 06:27
Grading comment
Thanks very much. I have used your suggestion and the comments to come up with 'nothing else for it'.
Regarding 'ykololis' - it means quite literally, 'we injected'. As far as I know it is fine like that - it does not have to be translated with slang. There are many many other words however which mean 'to inject' (such as zamorachivat'sia) that most definitely are slang (shoot up, jack up etc..)
2 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +8Yes we did drugs, what else could we do?
IrinaGM
4So we shot up, like
shlepakoff


  

Answers


3 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +8
Yes we did drugs, what else could we do?


Explanation:
word by word, it would be a different translation but in this particular context, that's how I would translate it.

IrinaGM
United States
Local time: 06:27
Native speaker of: Georgian
Grading comment
Thanks very much. I have used your suggestion and the comments to come up with 'nothing else for it'.
Regarding 'ykololis' - it means quite literally, 'we injected'. As far as I know it is fine like that - it does not have to be translated with slang. There are many many other words however which mean 'to inject' (such as zamorachivat'sia) that most definitely are slang (shoot up, jack up etc..)

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Kirill Semenov: a rhetorical question (as if they really had no other choice)
5 mins
  -> Thank you Kirill
agree  Alex Zelkind (X): No where else to turn
18 mins
  -> Thank you Alex
agree  nuclear: though I'd use something more fatalistic, e.g. "no escape" - I think it is implied
26 mins
  -> Thanks
agree  George Vardanyan
27 mins
  -> Thank you George
agree  Сергей Лузан
1 hr
  -> Thank you
agree  Oleg Sollogub
5 hrs
  -> Thank you Oleg
agree  Galina Blankenship
7 hrs
  -> Thank you Galina
agree  zmejka: or: "what choice did I have?"
9 hrs
  -> Thank you
neutral  Kajuco: I agree about kuda devat'sya, but, as Ilya says, ukolotsya involves needles.
1 day 10 hrs
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

20 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
So we shot up, like


Explanation:
Or: So we shot up or whatever. Not sure about the second/rhetorical part, "UKOLOTS'A" is not "TO DO DRUGS", but "TO SHOOT UP"

...He was the one who helped me shoot up the drugs.
When he went to jail I had to learn how to do it on my own...
www.literacynet.org/ll/issue8/emergingvoices.pdf

shlepakoff
Native speaker of: Native in RussianRussian
PRO pts in category: 4
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