Spotlight - 11.2019

LOST IN TRANSLATION 11/2019 Spotlight 53

LOST IN TRANSLATION

VANESSA CLARK turns her attention to

a particularly interesting word or expression

that could be a challenge to translate.

ADVANCED

Usage
People who “ride the gravy train”, or who are “on the gravy train”,
are earning easy money. They know how to take advantage of the
system and are thought to get a lot of money for very little effort,
which might seem unfair to the rest of us. They may also be said
to “be getting rich at someone else’s expense”. The money could
be in the form of subsidies from the government or a generous
allowance to cover living and travel expenses. Politicians, espe-
cially members of the European Parliament who receive a large
allowance because they live away from home, are sometimes
accused of “riding the gravy train”.
In German, in a similar context, you might use phrases like
leichtes Geld machen or fürs Nichtstun bezahlt werden — or you could
accuse people of absahnen.

Background

The phrase “ride the gravy train” arose in the context of US rail-

road workers in the early 20th century. Men who worked on the

railroad used the expression “gravy train” to mean “a company

where they could work for good pay”; so, to “ride the gravy train”

meant to “earn good money”. Why “gravy”, though? Gravy is a

sauce made with the juices of roast meat, but it is also an old

slang word for “money”, or “easy money”, that has been in use in

the US since around 1900. In the business world today, it is an

informal word meaning “a good profit”.

Example

“Farmers ride the gravy train as Trump

boosts welfare to the Heartland”

marketwatch.com, 25 May 2019

The journalist who wrote this

line believes that US farmers are

getting rich by receiving extra

money from the government.

allowance [E(laUEns]
, Zulage, Aufwands­
entschädigung

subsidies [(sVbsEdiz]

, Subventionen, Förder­

mittel

Answer: A

Exercise A

In which of the following contexts would “riding the

gravy train” make sense?

A. “The former president is on an international tour,

receiving £200,000 per speech. He’s .”

B. “As a teacher, I receive £25 for an hour’s lesson.

I’m .”

idiom )raId DE (greIvi treIn

ride the

gravy train