Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Swedish term or phrase:
om stjärnorna står rätt
English translation:
with a bit of luck
Added to glossary by
Helen Johnson
May 17, 2011 12:35
13 yrs ago
5 viewers *
Swedish term
United Kingdom
Taught MA translation at Uni of Surrey
Native in: English 
Works in: Swedish to English, Danish to English, Norwegian to English
om stjärnorna står rätt
Swedish to English
Other
Idioms / Maxims / Sayings
course description
Delat ledarskap en ledningsform med potential - om stjärnorna står rätt
"If the stars are right" sounds really strange - can anyone equate the Swedish with a recognised English saying or is the direct English really a phrase that's used in mythology, etc.?
TIA
"If the stars are right" sounds really strange - can anyone equate the Swedish with a recognised English saying or is the direct English really a phrase that's used in mythology, etc.?
TIA
Proposed translations
(English)
Proposed translations
+1
19 hrs
Selected
with a bit of luck
The 'if the stars align' expressions are for me American English
and Helen has kindly invited me to add my suggestion so here it is in all its glory
and Helen has kindly invited me to add my suggestion so here it is in all its glory
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Although it doesn't fit the original context (see discussion), I think this is a good general option for UK English. Thanks for the suggestion, which I used before the client changed the sentence."
+1
7 mins
if the stars align right
I've seen this idiom used by native speakers
9 mins
Soren Petersen
United States
United States
Native in English
United States
Quick and accurate translations
Native in: Danish 
, English
Works in: English to Danish, Danish to English, Norwegian to Danish, and 7 more.
when all the ducks are lined up in a row
'When the stars are right' is normally connected with H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu stories and I must admit I haven't heard in mentioned in everyday speech. If it's a translation for an American audience. perhaps something like "when all the ducks are lined up in a row"?
10 hrs
Sven Petersson
Sweden
Sweden
Native in Swedish
&
English
Sweden
Medical Translator
Native in: Swedish , English
Works in: English to Swedish, Danish to Swedish, German to Swedish, and 13 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
1
when the stars are in the right position
:o)
Reference:
http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/merovingians/merovingian_dynasty/merovingian_dynasty01.htm
http://www.bridgehands.com/Services/eMagazine_Archive/eMag_NN_11.htm
22 hrs
Bianca Marsden-Day
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
United Kingdom
Expert translator (>EN) and proofreader
Native in: English
Works in: Swedish to English, German to English, Italian to English, and 1 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
4
"all being well" or "with a bit of luck"
Depending on how informal you want to be, I would suggest either "all being well" - slightly less informal - or I would agree the suggestion "with a bit of luck" if you you are happy to be pretty informal.
1 day 1 hr
Åsa Schoening
United States
United States
Native in Swedish
United States
Specializing in Intellectual Property
Native in: Swedish
Works in: Swedish to English, English to Swedish
Related KudoZ points
:
2
if the stars align
You don't translate "rätt." The expression is simply "If the stars align." You will see this also used to explain good luck in the past, as in "the stars must have aligned, since..."
There are tons of references to this, including: http://www.englishbaby.com/lessons/5003/slang/the_stars_alig...
Zach Galifianakis doesn’t necessarily believe in astrology. But he does use an expression that is related to astrology. He says that all the stars aligned and he got lucky in his career. This summer, he appeared in the hit comedy The Hangover, and he has several more movies coming out soon. Everything is going great in his career. It seems like the stars are aligning to make him a star.
When the stars align, everything comes together in a positive way. When talking about your own life you might say “My stars aligned,” or if you’re talking about someone else you can say “Her stars aligned.” If something great happens to you, you might also say it was written in the stars. And you might want to thank your lucky stars for your good fortune.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/13/sports/baseball/13score.ht...
Keeping Score
If the Stars Align, the Mets Could Surprise. Really.By DAN ROSENHECK
Published: February 12, 2011
There is also a song called Stars Align:
http://www.lyricsmania.com/stars_align_lyrics_virginia_coali...
There are tons of references to this, including: http://www.englishbaby.com/lessons/5003/slang/the_stars_alig...
Zach Galifianakis doesn’t necessarily believe in astrology. But he does use an expression that is related to astrology. He says that all the stars aligned and he got lucky in his career. This summer, he appeared in the hit comedy The Hangover, and he has several more movies coming out soon. Everything is going great in his career. It seems like the stars are aligning to make him a star.
When the stars align, everything comes together in a positive way. When talking about your own life you might say “My stars aligned,” or if you’re talking about someone else you can say “Her stars aligned.” If something great happens to you, you might also say it was written in the stars. And you might want to thank your lucky stars for your good fortune.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/13/sports/baseball/13score.ht...
Keeping Score
If the Stars Align, the Mets Could Surprise. Really.By DAN ROSENHECK
Published: February 12, 2011
There is also a song called Stars Align:
http://www.lyricsmania.com/stars_align_lyrics_virginia_coali...
Discussion
If you are tranlsating into Eng GB, the only thing I can thing of is 'with a bit of luck' Bye everyone