# Norwegian: lekestue



## The_Red_Lion

Hei,

I’m stuck with some Norwegian again . What is the meaning of the following headline that contains the word *lekestue*:

Fransk *lekestue* i bronsekampen.

Frankrike latterliggjorde verdensmester Tyskland i bronsekampen i EM. Seieren endte på 36-26.

I seem to get a literal translation of something like “toy room” or “play room”. I know there have been a couple of TV programmes with the title *Lekestue*, and the word also seems to refer to an outdoor playhouse for children. But I just don’t understand the meaning in the headline.

Takk på forhand!


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## Wilma_Sweden

In this context, they are using the word playhouse metaphorically: France made Germany, the world champions, look ridiculous in the European cup match for bronze. The winner scored 36-26.

The headline suggest that the French wiped the floor with the Germans with great ease, like child's play.

For comparison, lekstuga is used in the same way in Swedish, with the metaphorical meaning of child's play. The other metaphorical meaning is playground.

Here are some pics of the typical Scandinavian playhouses in their literal shape:
http://www.sommerbutikken.no/lekest-prod.htm

/Wilma


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## The_Red_Lion

Tack så mycket Wilma_Sweden.


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## oskhen

The_Red_Lion said:


> Hei,
> 
> I’m stuck with some Norwegian again . What is the meaning of the following headline that contains the word *lekestue*:
> 
> Fransk *lekestue* i bronsekampen.
> 
> Frankrike latterliggjorde verdensmester Tyskland i bronsekampen i EM. Seieren endte på 36-26.
> 
> I seem to get a literal translation of something like “toy room” or “play room”. I know there have been a couple of TV programmes with the title *Lekestue*, and the word also seems to refer to an outdoor playhouse for children. But I just don’t understand the meaning in the headline.
> 
> Takk på forhand!


 

Wilma explained the meaning well, but I'd like to make a few clarifications: The word "stue" usually means "living room" in modern everyday Norwegian, but might - especially in older texts - also refer to a small house or hut (the connection is presumably that such small houses mainly consisted of one single room, but I don't know for sure). It's this last meaning of the word that is used in the word "lekestue", so it's correct that it's a small playhouse for children. You would never use it for one single room, as far as I know. I don't know if there is a proper word for it in English, but I would propose "playing house" - or "playing hut", perhaps. By the way: "leke" in "lekestue" seems to me to refer to the verb "å leke" ("to play"), not to the noun "leke" ("toy").

All this said, I think the use of the word in the aforementioned headline seems a bit weird, although the meaning is clear. I don't know how common that use is in Norwegian, to be frank, but perhaps it's borrowed from Swedish, or something, since Wilma wrote that it's common there.

To be even more frank, I don't know how common the word "lekestue" is in Norwegian at all. I haven't encountered it much. To me, it would be more natural to say "hytte" ("hut"/"cottage"). At least, that's what I used to call my own "lekestue".

(The red word "word" is edited in: I had written "verb", that was wrong, since I was referring to the noun "lekestue")


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## Wilma_Sweden

oskhen said:


> Wilma explained the meaning well, but I'd like to make a few clarifications: The word "stue" usually means "living room" in modern everyday Norwegian, but might - especially in older texts - also refer to a small house or hut


For comparison, the modern Swedish meaning of 'stuga' is a small house or cottage, although in the old days it could also refer to the main (heated) room of the house. Both words - stue/stuga - have the same etymological background as English stove, incidentally, originally a heated room, and German stube. 



> All this said, I think the use of the verb in the aforementioned headline seems a bit weird, although the meaning is clear. I don't know how common that use is in Norwegian, to be frank, but perhaps it's borrowed from Swedish, or something, since Wilma wrote that it's common there.


 Since we won't use the word as is for an English translation, we don't need to worry too much about it. I'd put the headline in English as "Child's play for France in bronze game" or something to that effect, using child's play as the effective metaphor.



> To be even more frank, I don't know how common the word "lekestue" is in Norwegian at all. I haven't encountered it much. To me, it would be more natural to say "hytte" ("hut"/"cottage"). At least, that's what I used to call my own "lekestue".


I googled lekestue as well as lekstuga and got a good amount of hits, with all three above meanings represented in both languages. I've also seen the Danish word legestue used metaphorically in the same manner as the above headline, but now I'm of course curious about the Danish use of the word, too. Perhaps there is some Danish forero out there who could enlighten us?

/Wilma


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## The_Red_Lion

oskhen said:


> I don't know if there is a proper word for it in English, but I would propose "playing house" - or "playing hut", perhaps.


 
From the pictures Wilma provided and the descriptions that have been given. I think the British English description would be "Wendy House".

I'm a bit curious to know how you would translate the meaning of *lekestue* in the following:

Stavanger *holdt lekestue* da laget oppnådde en av klubbens største seirer ved å utklasse et tafatt Kristiansand.

Does it just mean that Stavanger dominated the "playground". Meaning that they had most of the play. Or does it just mean that the victory was simply "child's play".


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## oskhen

The_Red_Lion said:


> Stavanger *holdt lekestue* da laget oppnådde en av klubbens største seirer ved å utklasse et tafatt Kristiansand.
> 
> Does it just mean that Stavanger dominated the "playground". Meaning that they had most of the play. Or does it just mean that the victory was simply "child's play".


 
I would read it as the last one (and then wonder what kind of teachers the writer had in Norwegian at school...)


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## oskhen

The_Red_Lion said:


> From the pictures Wilma provided and the descriptions that have been given. I think the British English description would be "Wendy House".


 
My suggestions were of course 100% unqualified guesswork... 

But I find the word funny. Do you have any idea of the origin?


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## The_Red_Lion

oskhen said:


> My suggestions were of course 100% unqualified guesswork...
> 
> But I find the word funny. Do you have any idea of the origin?


 
Join the guesswork club. 

I would use the word "Wendy House" quite readily, but I had to look the actual origin up. There is a plausible explanation in the English version of a well known free online encyclopedia. (I'm not sure what the forum rules are on providing links)

It is apparently derived from the character Wendy Darling from the play called Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie.

It also says that Wendy Houses are used as practical survival refuges in Northern England when lost on the moors. A bit similar to a Norwegian "hytte".

But I must admit that I haven't heard a Wendy House being used to describe a refuge hut before.


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## oskhen

The_Red_Lion said:


> Join the guesswork club.
> 
> I would use the word "Wendy House" quite readily, but I had to look the actual origin up. There is a plausible explanation in the English version of a well known free online encyclopedia. (I'm not sure what the forum rules are on providing links)
> 
> It is apparently derived from the character Wendy Darling from the play called Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie.
> 
> It also says that Wendy Houses are used as practical survival refuges in Northern England when lost on the moors. A bit similar to a Norwegian "hytte".
> 
> But I must admit that I haven't heard a Wendy House being used to describe a refuge hut before.


 
Thanks for the lesson, it's very interesting.


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