Mar 5 17:34
7 mos ago
40 viewers *
Russian term
залипать в телефон
Russian to English
Other
Slang
A fun question to get me on the asker bandwagon: what idiomatic and creative ways does English use to describe the state of someone who loses touch with reality while slouching over a smartphone? I once tried to check it out by testing various collocations on Google search but found nothing except for this slouching thing. I'll prefer expressions that can be used to poke fun at such a person. Russian offers a great variety of them (you can say that the person залип / залипает / втыкает / тупит (тупорезит) / пырится / уткнулся / засел в телефон or завис / потерялся / сидит / лазит в телефоне; there are many more ways to express this, plus I can create nonexistent words, printable and unprintable, which everyone will understand to mean the same thing). If my question ends up yielding interesting answers, I'll be happy to award points for the one that gives me the biggest smile
Proposed translations
(English)
Proposed translations
22 hrs
Selected
(turn into) a phonewraith
An expression I coined myself to describe someone so engrossed in their phone that they haven't realised they are crossing a busy road, for example. A wraith means among other things, a ghoul or spectre, so a bit like a zombie (see also ringwraith in The Lord of the Rings). Alternatively, there is a colloquial expression for becoming engrossed in: "to pour oneself into". I don't think it has been used in this context before but if you were to say "he poured himself into his phone", I think most people would know what you are talking about.
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "I guess this phenomenon doesn't happen in English-speaking places, or people view it as normal. I'm selecting the answer that gives a glimpse into his you can think about it in English; my question was primarily about a state of mind, so while I accept the glue thing as potentially usable, I find it kind of technical (залипать has nothing to do with glue, my niece uses this word to troll someone who has suddenly stopped functioning). Thought about expressions with zen, astral, and zombie, but the question is how you can play with these words. Thanks everyone!"
1 hr
hunch over the phone/get a texting neck
Texting neck: How hunching over your smartphone stresses your spine
That phone you can’t live without can be a pain in the neck, literally. Bending your head to text or browse puts lots of extra stress on your cervical spine, but there are ways to be a smarter user of your smart device.Dr. Ken Hansraj, a spinal and orthopedic surgeon in Poughkeepsie, New York, set out to measure the impact that the typical texting posture —head tilted forward, shoulders droop
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2024-03-05 20:11:46 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
https://www.google.com/search?q="texting neck"&sca_esv=6b610...
That phone you can’t live without can be a pain in the neck, literally. Bending your head to text or browse puts lots of extra stress on your cervical spine, but there are ways to be a smarter user of your smart device.Dr. Ken Hansraj, a spinal and orthopedic surgeon in Poughkeepsie, New York, set out to measure the impact that the typical texting posture —head tilted forward, shoulders droop
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2024-03-05 20:11:46 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
https://www.google.com/search?q="texting neck"&sca_esv=6b610...
+4
12 mins
glued/attached/addicted/clung to one’s phone
——
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 hrs (2024-03-05 21:30:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&sca_esv=21cc0bb1...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 hrs (2024-03-05 21:31:52 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Her eyes stick to her phone like a glue
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 hrs (2024-03-05 21:30:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&sca_esv=21cc0bb1...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 hrs (2024-03-05 21:31:52 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Her eyes stick to her phone like a glue
Peer comment(s):
agree |
Ravindra Godbole
3 hrs
|
Thank you, Ravindra!
|
|
agree |
Angelina Kovaleva
: She's glued to her phone all of the time!
14 hrs
|
Thank you, Angelina!
|
|
agree |
Mark Hemming
16 hrs
|
Thank you, Mark!
|
|
agree |
Sofia Gutkin
: Glued to one's phone - YES, clung to one's phone - not grammatical English
2 days 8 hrs
|
Thank you, Sofia! I believe Asker's requirement is different. I provided the direct translation (which is not relevant here) of this.
|
5 hrs
phone/mobile zombie
*
Discussion