# Pull the plug to reset time



## verogk

Hello! This is my first post, and I would appreciate if you could translate for me the phrase "Pull the plug to reset time" from English to Russian. I apologize for not even attempting to translate it myself, but I don't know Russian at all.

Context: I want to write this phrase in a drawing of a plug being pulled by a hand. The idea is that this "cosmological" plug (it could also be a switch) can set time to zero. 
I think there are different translations to "time" in Russian depending on the meaning. Here, by "time" I mean time as a philosophical / physical concept. And by "reset" I was thinking of when you reset the time in a digital clock. 

I hope someone can help me. I know it's probably confusing, so please ask all the questions you need to understand what I'm trying to say here. 

Thank you in advance!


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## learnerr

This one is hard. Either you lean towards the philosophical meaning, or you make use of associations about various devices. My attempt: "Щёлкните кнопкой, чтобы перезапустить время" ("use the button to restart time"; the button in a switch, i.e., a "radio-button", will do). This does not refer to clocks, and has only a tiny association with computers ("перезапустить программу" means "restart an application").


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## verogk

Hi, learnerr, thank you for your reply!

I think this part "чтобы перезапустить время", the "to restart time" part is great. But would it be possible to make it relate to the action of pulling a plug or a lever or a switch with your hand? 

I want to put this phrase in a drawing of a hand that is pulling (a lever, a switch or a plug of even a fuse) so the pulling (*) part is quite relevant. Do you have any other suggestion of how to make this phrase work?

I'm really thankful for your help!

(*) it could be pulling or removing or unplugging. Or perhaps another verb related to taking hold of a lever/switch/plug and exerting force to draw it upwards.


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## igusarov

verogk said:


> Or perhaps another verb related to taking hold of a lever/switch/plug and exerting force to draw it upwards.


There are such verbs: "выдерните вилку", "вытащите пробку". But be warned that the sentence would still sound strange. Pulling a plug is typically associated with some kind of finalization process. E.g. draining a tub after use, switching off an electrical device, etc. Whereas the action "reset" is typically used in the sense "start it again from the beginning". So the whole sentence turns out to be confusing: "start the Universe over by means of stopping something". Is this what you really want to convey by your drawing?


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## verogk

Hello, igusarov. Thanks for your reply!

I want to clarify that by "pull the plug" I don't mean the rubber plug used to drain a tub, I mean an electrical plug. 

I realize that the sentence sounds strange. But it also sounds strange in English, right? "Pull the plug/switch/lever to reset time". My idea is a drawing of an imaginary electrical plug/ switch / lever that can be pulled to reset time (in the philosophical/ physical sense) as if you were reseting time in your alarm clock. So I suppose the whole concept is strange. 

The verb should convey an action similar to these: 

Can you think of another phrase that could convey this meaning?

My very humble (and Google Translate-aided) attempt is: 
"Потяните Рычаг, чтобы перезапустить время" 
Could this be a possibility?

Thank you for your help!


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## learnerr

I would say "выдерните шнур" to match the first picture, or "потяните рычаг" to match the third. I don't know how the second thing is called, perhaps "перемычка". If so, then "выдерните перемычку". But "потяните перемычку" is fine, too, to my ears, I think it is even better if you plan to draw a hand that is pulling it.


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## verogk

Hi, learnerr. Thanks for your help!

I'm not sure whether the second thing "перемычка" is right (because I'm not sure what that is!), but the first option sounds like a possibility to me (although my knowledge of russian is zero). 

Is using just "выдерните" or "потяните" a possibility? As in: "выдерните/потяните чтобы перезапустить время". 
This could be written as a sign right on the switch/lever/electrical plug of my drawing, so maybe there's no need to mention the object (although I don't know if that is correct in Russian). Perhaps it could work as a sign with a phrase meaning "unplug to reset/restart time" such as the typical "in case of emergency, break glass" signs.  

Thank you!


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## learnerr

verogk said:


> Is using just "выдерните" or "потяните" a possibility? As in: "выдерните/потяните чтобы перезапустить время".


No, I don't think so. Not that it would not be understood, just unbeautiful. "Шнур" actually means the cord, not the plug. The choice between "выдернуть"/"потянуть", actual for the first two, goes like "have pulled out"/"pull", but the first verb also refers to some jerk.

The only one I am absolutely certain of is the third, "потяните рычаг". But wait for _igusarov_, I think he knows better these technical things.


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## Maroseika

learnerr said:


> I don't know how the second thing is called, perhaps "перемычка".


This is предохранитель. So - Вытащите предохранитель.


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## learnerr

Maroseika said:


> This is предохранитель. So - Вытащите предохранитель.


Ah, nice. Thank you. I see.


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## verogk

Hi, Maroseika. Thanks for your reply!

Does "Вытащите предохранитель" mean "pull/ remove fuse"? Could "Вытащить предохранитель" be a better option (Google suggested it)?

Also, could I simply have a sign that says "выдерните/потяните/Вытащить чтобы перезапустить время" without mentioning the object (in English it would be "unplug/ pull to reset time", I think)? Or is that wrong in Russian?

Thank you!


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## Maroseika

verogk said:


> Does "Вытащите предохранитель" mean "pull/ remove fuse"?


Yes. But I doubt this is what you need for your translation.



> Could "Вытащить предохранитель" be a better option (Google suggested it)?


Вытащите is Imperative, вытащить is Infinitive, so both variants are possible, but the variant with Infinitive is more formal.



> Also, could I simply have a sign that says "выдерните/потяните/Вытащить чтобы перезапустить время" without mentioning the object (in English it would be "unplug/ pull to reset time", I think)? Or is that wrong in Russian?


To say the truth, I don't understand how pulling the plug can reset time. Having pulled the plug out you will just cut off power and the timer as well, won't you? Maybe you mean "pull the plug and push it back to reset time"? Then in Russian it will be Выньте вилку и вставьте обратно, чтобы перезапустить время. Or just Выключите и включите прибор, чтобы перезапустить время (Turn off and turn on the device to reset time). Or even without "device": Выключите и включите, чтобы перезапустить время.

By the way, "to set time to zero" is обнулить время (or обнулить таймер - to set timer to zero). You may use this too.


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## verogk

Hi, Maroseika, thank you for your reply!

I know it sounds strange, to pull a plug to reset time. There is no such device in reality that works like this, it is just a drawing of a device I imagined. I want to write this phrase in a drawing of a plug being pulled by a hand. The idea is that this "cosmological" plug (it could also be a switch or a lever) can set time to zero. I think there are different translations to "time" in Russian depending on the meaning. Here, by "time" I mean time as a philosophical / physical concept. And by "reset" I was thinking of when you reset the time in a digital clock.  

So if you could think of time as a philosophical and physical concept, what I'm trying to draw here is the magical plug or switch or lever that is capable of restarting time in the universe when pulled. And what I'm asking for is a phrase to write on a sign on one side of the plug / switch / lever.

In this context, which phrase would work out best in your opinion?

I apologize for being so complicated and thank you for your help.


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## learnerr

"Вытащите предохранитель, чтобы перезапустить время" is just fine. Don't omit the object. The infinitive would work bad.


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## Maroseika

verogk said:


> In this context, which phrase would work out best in your opinion?



In Rusisan "time" is время in philosophical as well as in alarm clock or physical senses.
But since in the timers we usually press button to reset time and since you need a phrase, similar to what we use to do when reseting time in our devices, you can say: Нажмите на кнопку / поверните выключатель / дерните за рычаг, чтобы перезапустить время.
With plug I can think only of unplugging and plugging: Выдерните штепсель (вилку) и вставьте обратно, чтобы перезапустить время. 
Of course, you can say exactly what you wrote in English (Pull a plug to reset time): Выдерните (выньте) вилку (штепсель), чтобы перезапустить время. But for any Russian native it will sound technically weird.


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## Maroseika

learnerr said:


> "Вытащите предохранитель, чтобы перезапустить время" is just fine. Don't omit the object. The infinitive would work bad.



I can hardly imagine device, where time is reset by removing a fuse. People will think about the weirdness of this system rather than about the philosophy represented by the drawing.


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## learnerr

Maroseika said:


> I can hardly imagine device, where time is reset by removing a fuse. People will think about the weirdness of this system rather than about the philosophy represented by the drawing.


As I see it, it's not any philosophy, it's just a joke. You can reset a computer (clear its memory) by turning off power, otherwise you can reset time.


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## Maroseika

learnerr said:


> As I see it, it's not any philosophy, it's just a joke. You can reset a computer (clear its memory) by turning off power, otherwise you can reset time.



I'm afraid you cannot reset computer by turning off power. Such a way you can only shut it off. To reset computer you should turn power off and then on.


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## learnerr

Right. By time is not computer. It's alive, it will start again by itself, without power from the source.


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## Maroseika

learnerr said:


> it will start again by itself, without power from the source.



Do you guarantee this?


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## learnerr

Fifty-fifty.  You see, the picture says "don't pull", so the pulling _might _be dangerous. 
Of course, _verogk _knows more on this matter; I'm just saying the joke makes sense to me.


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## verogk

I'll have to get back to you with my drawing to show you what happens when you pull this thing, but my best guess is that time should restart by itself, without power from the source. No guarantees, though. 

I do see Maroseika's point about how pulling a fuse makes no sense if one is trying to restart something. How about replacing a fuse? "замените предохранитель, чтобы перезапустить время." Could this be a possibility?

Otherwise, I think my favorite option is "дерните за рычаг, чтобы перезапустить время"

I'm really thankful for your help!


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## learnerr

verogk said:


> Could this be a possibility?


Way too many details for me; this version does not cause immediate reaction like any joke of this kind should. But it's up to you.
The version with "дёрните за рычаг" is fine to me. Just start the sentence with the capital "Д".  I personally like it less than "вытащите предохранитель", because this version looks more conventional, while I like unconventional things.


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## Maroseika

verogk said:


> I do see Maroseika's point about how pulling a fuse makes no sense if one is trying to restart something. How about replacing a fuse? "замените предохранитель, чтобы перезапустить время." Could this be a possibility?
> 
> Otherwise, I think my favorite option is "дерните за рычаг, чтобы перезапустить время"



Technically I don't think replacing fuse to restart time is good choice. Replacing fuse is a subsidiary action to restart device and, consequently, reset time. Like when you disconnect battery in the car, your radio usually resets time after the battery is connected back.
The variant with lever or handle (дерните за рычаг, чтобы перезапустить время) is very good per se, but if only there is really a lever or handle in the picture. But if there is a plug, such inscription will look extremely misterious.
Just to clarify: in Rusisan we call рычаг something looking like a gear-change stick in the car.


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## verogk

I made this rough sketch of how the lever/handle would look like:



Would the inscription "дерните за рычаг, чтобы перезапустить время" look strange in this context? Would it work only if the handle were to be pulled backwards as the green arrow shows, or would it also work if it were to be pulled upwards as the black arrow shows?

I hope the sketch helps to clarify the action and the look of the handle.

Thanks for your help!


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## Maroseika

verogk said:


> Would the inscription "дерните за рычаг, чтобы перезапустить время" look strange in this context? Would it work only if the handle were to be pulled backwards as the green arrow shows, or would it also work if it were to be pulled upwards as the black arrow shows?



I would not call this handle рычаг. It looks more like what we call ручка: Дерните ручку (потяните за ручку)...
Рычаг is a gear-change lever in the car, for example.


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## alexzzzz

Потяните рычаг/рукоятку (level/handle) на себя, чтобы перезапустить/сбросить (restart/reset) время.

or the other way around, which sounds better for me
_Чтобы перезапустить/сбросить время, потяните рычаг/рукоятку на себя.
_
PS
or even better

_Чтобы перезапустить/сбросить время, потяните за рычаг/рукоятку.
Потяните за __рычаг/рукоятку, чтобы __перезапустить/сбросить время.

_PPS
The term for reset is usually _сбросить_ or _обнулить_. _Перезапустить время _sounds like the device is a time machine.


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