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  2. German to English

den ganzen Laden hochnehmen

English translation: turning the whole place upside down

00:46 Jan 23, 2002
German to English translations [Non-PRO]
Bus/Financial
German term or phrase: den ganzen Laden hochnehmen
From an article about a German company:

"Die fremde Besserwisser und Unternehmensberater...nehmen den ganzen Laden hoch. Hier herrscht blankes Chaos."
Lee Penya
Local time: 22:46
English translation:turning the whole place upside down
Explanation:
This best describes the state of chaos which exists as a result of their actions.
You could also try "taking charge of the place" or "scrutinizing the place"
Selected response from:

MGPATT
Grading comment
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +2to stir up the entire business [outfit]
Beate Lutzebaeck
4 +1turning the whole place upside down
MGPATT
4 +1upset the applecart
Trudy Peters
5Undermine the organization (Subvert the organization)
Deb Phillips (X)
4are taking the whole place over
Irene De Han
4Those know-it-alls have created an atmosphere of bafflement.
Ursula Peter-Czichi


  

Answers


17 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +2
to stir up the entire business [outfit]


Explanation:
hochnehmen (literally "auf den Arm nehmen" - to lift s.th. or s.b.) is a colloquialism meaning "to stir up", also "to pull s.b.'s leg", "to wind s.b. up", "to take s.b. for a ride", "to tease", "to fleece", defined in Wahrig/Deutsches Wörterbuch as "ausbeuten, übervorteilen, aufziehen, necken".

Btw: Laden is informal for "business" (not just a shop).


    Collins, German dico
    Muret-Sanders
Beate Lutzebaeck
New Zealand
Local time: 15:46
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in pair: 2079

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Ursula Peter-Czichi: Genau! Jemanden hochnehmen = to poke fun on somebody (using that person's ignorance or dumb perceptions)
16 mins
agree  Deb Phillips (X): fleece - false pretension - deception
1 hr
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19 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
are taking the whole place over


Explanation:
in the sense of "are rearranging everything"

Irene De Han
Local time: 23:46
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman
PRO pts in pair: 30
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31 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
turning the whole place upside down


Explanation:
This best describes the state of chaos which exists as a result of their actions.
You could also try "taking charge of the place" or "scrutinizing the place"

MGPATT

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Deb Phillips (X): taking charge of the place and turning it upside down
1 hr
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46 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
Those know-it-alls have created an atmosphere of bafflement.


Explanation:
Now there is nothing but chaos.

another possibility
(in line with Darien's answer, see above)

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-01-23 01:33:52 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

bafflement = perplexity

Ursula Peter-Czichi
United States
Local time: 23:46
PRO pts in pair: 242

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Deb Phillips (X): To baffle coworkers and customers -to struggle ineffectually - to practice deceit - leading to utter chaos
1 hr
  -> I meant 'bafflement' in the sense of confusion, --> ... created an atmosphere of confusion. Now there is utter chaos.
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
upset the applecart


Explanation:
the outside know-it-alls and consultants have upset the applecart and left everything in chaos.

Trudy Peters
United States
Local time: 23:46
Native speaker of: Native in GermanGerman, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in pair: 3087

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Deb Phillips (X): External arrogance in the guise of knowing it all and management consulting not seeing what was truly amiss has upset the apple cart provoking chaos. Now everything has gone awry... Has wreaked chaos on the organization... Wreaked its havoc.
30 mins
  -> Wow! That's better than the German original!
neutral  Ursula Peter-Czichi: They have done more: Those consultants and advisors have trashed that apple cart.
39 mins
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2 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
Undermine the organization (Subvert the organization)


Explanation:
External arrogance in the guise of knowing it all and management consulting not seeing what (was?) is truly amiss has undermined the organization and its core strengths leaving an indelible mark of chaos in its wake.

Deb Phillips (X)
PRO pts in pair: 77
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