Dec 28, 2012 19:18
12 yrs ago
1 viewer *
Russian term

Вот тетери!

Russian to English Art/Literary Poetry & Literature
A soldier describing his surprise attack on the other side during WW2

Наша застава тут, а ихняя напротив нашей, в фольварке, рукой подать! Получили мы приказ 13-го в полночь выступать. Темно. Тихо. Им и в голову не пришло!

Proposed translations

+2
4 hrs
Selected

They were sitting ducks!

Seems a perfect fit for your context. Some other stylistic variations that popped in my head:

"Easy pickings!" "What chumps/suckers/etc!"
Peer comment(s):

agree Kazakov_Kirill
9 hrs
Thank you.
agree cyhul
2 days 11 hrs
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
9 mins

Dummies!

имхо
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20 mins

deaf as a door-nail

Это может быть сокращенная часть просторечного выражения "глухая тетеря". В этом случае оно может означать, что вражеские солдаты не слышали, как на них нападают.
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2 hrs

turkeys

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14 hrs

Such babes in the wood

The expression is mostly used to describe an absent-minded and naive person, suspecting nothing.

Narrator's attitude to the described subject matters, though.
If it's on the negative side, you may also say "Such nitwits".

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17 hrs

What a bunch of goofs!

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