# "לקחת עצמו בידיים"



## roniy

We have this expression in Hebrew:
"לקחת עצמו ביידים"
Is there something similar in English ?


Thanks


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## elroy

Again, we need context. 

Please describe a situation in which this phrase might be used.


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## Nunty

Elroy, it's a very common expression. Let's see. "Get a hold of yourself" is similar, and so "Pick yourself up". It means to take responsiblity for yourself and do something without waiting for someone to do it for you.

In fact, how _do_ we say that in English?


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## elroy

Nun-Translator said:


> Elroy, it's a very common expression.


 That may be so, but that doesn't mean it's familiar to non-natives. 

It's to Roniy's advantage to explain the Hebrew expressions he asks about, so that he can get help from both natives who understand the expressions in Hebrew and non-natives who might be able to offer a translation based on his explanation. 


> In fact, how _do_ we say that in English?


 How about "paddle your own canoe"?


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## Nunty

elroy said:


> That may be so, but that doesn't mean it's familiar to non-natives.
> 
> It's to Roniy's advantage to explain the Hebrew expressions he asks about, so that he can get help from both natives who understand the expressions in Hebrew and non-natives who might be able to offer a translation based on his explanation.


Duly chastised, I beg everyone's pardon.


elroy said:


> How about "paddle your own canoe"?


I don't think so. Doesn't "paddle your own canoe" mean mind your own business and don't stick your nose into other people's?

לקחת (משהו) בידיים means to take the initiative and do something about it. It can be applied to tasks and situations, as well as to ourselves.


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## elroy

See this.  And this.  And this.  And this.  And this. 

I'm not familiar with the meaning you mention.


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## yotg

Maybe "to get oneself together" [you've got to get yourself together!]?


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## Nunty

Yotg, that sounds really good to me.


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## elroy

But that has nothing to do with what I think the Hebrew expression means, based on N-T's explanation.

To me, "get (or pull) yourself together" means "regain your composure" or "get over a difficulty" or "control your emotions."  It says nothing about being self-sufficient or independent, or having initiative and not relying on others. 

Perhaps I've failed to fully understand the Hebrew expression.


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## Nunty

Oh, I'm just bad at explaining. To me, it means all those things.


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## MiamianIsraeli

It's a very slang expression, but a very common one in English that means to take bold initiative is "to grab the bull by the horns."


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## pachyderm

Miamian, we have the same idiom in Hebrew: לתפוס את השור בקרניו, I wonder where it originated. At any case, this is not the meaning of "קח את עצמך בידיים" I'm familiar with. Though I'm not a native English speaker, I'd say that the best translation in this thread is "get yourself together", not in the sense of "regain your calm" (if it has this sense), but rather "become organized, get control over your life" (perhaps "get your sh*t together" is more univocal in this respect?).

A sample context for elroy:
אתה כל היום יושב בבית, רואה טלוויזיה ועושה סמים. אתה חייב לקחת את עצמך בידיים, למצוא עבודה, להיות בן אדם!


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## Nunty

Giving this more consideration, I think that it maybe means more of *get *yourself (or your sh*t) together, than *pull* yourself together. Pachyderm's example is perfect. Maybe "do something with yourself" would work, too.

I've reached that non-lingual stage this evening. Maybe tomorrow will be better.


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## MiamianIsraeli

על בקשת אחותנו אני כבר כותב בעברית. הדוגמה של פקידרם ממש מבררת את הנושא. אני לא יכול להשוב על בטואי חוץ מ 
"get yourself together"

אולי זה יפגע בי באמצע הלילה​


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## pachyderm

MiamianIsraeli said:


> על בקשת אחותנו אני כבר כותב בעברית. הדוגמה של פקידרם ממש מבררת את הנושא. אני לא יכול להשוב על בטואי חוץ מ
> "get yourself together"
> 
> אולי זה יפגע בי באמצע הלילה​




אני מפחד לערער את הביטחון העצמי השברירי שרכשת בעמל כה רב, אבל אתקן בכל זאת את הטעון תיקון:
*לפי* בקשתה של אחותנו
Clarify = להבהיר
לברר = To find out more about something, inquire into something
ל*ח*שוב
ביטוי​ 
בכל מקרה, ישר כוח, אתה בדרך הנכונה 
​​


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## elroy

In that case, I think the perfect idiom in English is "get your act together."  That's exactly what I would use to translate Pachyderm's sentence, and it has all the connotations we've been discussing.


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## Nunty

elroy said:


> In that case, I think the perfect idiom in English is "get your act together."  That's exactly what I would use to translate Pachyderm's sentence, and it has all the connotations we've been discussing.


Very good, Elroy. It also has the advantage of getting us out of our pile of asterisks.
Now, I wonder, is there a way to say that in slightly more formal register? Or has "get your act together" slipped into the vocabulary of people like parents, teachers, guidance counselors and so on?


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## Estiben

My Hebrew is pathetic, nonetheless, I have a suggestion: 
Pull your self up by your bootstraps.
See this link.  A little out of fashion, perhaps?


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## MiamianIsraeli

pachyderm said:


> אני מפחד לערער את הביטחון העצמי השברירי שרכשת בעמל כה רב, אבל אתקן בכל זאת את הטעון תיקון:
> *לפי* בקשתה של אחותנו
> Clarify = להבהיר
> לברר = To find out more about something, inquire into something
> ל*ח*שוב
> ביטוי​
> בכל מקרה, ישר כוח, אתה בדרך הנכונה ​​​


​ 
תודה רבה. אני גם צריך להבהיר ש"ל*ה*שוב" היתה טעות הקלדה. בכל זאת, אמשיך ככה ​


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## MiamianIsraeli

Estiben said:


> My Hebrew is pathetic, nonetheless, I have a suggestion:
> Pull your self up by your bootstraps.
> See this link.  A little out of fashion, perhaps?



That one crossed my mind also, but IMO it's a different context. To pull oneself up by the bootstraps implies a desire to improve one's situation as well as the will to take strong measures in order to do so. The context in this thread as far as I've understood it implies sloth.


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