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samkfj

I have never heard that used in speech before out here.

Bex

My German-English Dictionary says:
Climbing something Upwards.
Are you sure you didnt ment "shine" instead of "shin"?

Kes

@Bex Nope, I definitely mean "shin" up. It means to clamber up, scramble up something e.g. a ladder.
@samkfj that's sad. I can't offhand think of an alternative that would fit my character's way of speaking.

samkfj

What's your character's way of speaking? More American and improper?

Kes

I'm a Brit. I would never try and consciously write a character as an American as I would make too many mistakes. I try and find ways that work in both UK and US English. He has a direct, informal way of speaking.

samkfj

What about "scale" as in scaling a mountain.

Kes

"Scale" is quite different in meaning, it doesn't imply scrambling/clambering, but instead something done perhaps with skill. The sentence would have been "If you think I'm going to shin up that, then you don't know me!"

samkfj

Ahh--I see, yeah in context it wouldn't make sense then.

What about "shinny." I suppose it would be shin up, but saw it and it's more North American--though if it were me, I'd say "I ain't climbin' up that mess."

Tai_MT

Never heard of it before. I'm thinking we don't use it in American English. It's likely an idiom which only has context in its native language/nation of birth.

Tai_MT

You could perhaps use "Shimmy Up", which is basically the American way of saying "climbing up" something, though it's got connotations with doing it in an ungraceful way that would remind someone of an inchworm or wriggling as they climb.

Kes

@samkfj and @Tai_MT Thanks guys. It looks to me as if I shall have to find a different way to say this, as neither shinny nor shimmy quite work. Sigh. Finding language which works across cultures/nations is actually hard work. I can see why some people don't bother, they just write what they would normally speak.

Sharm

I've never heard of shinny, but is it like shimmy? I think it implies climbing with difficulty, or using a lot of movement to do it. Like climbing a pole not a ladder. Scamper could also work, quick and not careful movement, not necessarily climbing, but it's got a childish connotation that you might not want.

Sharm

Scamper has a lot of lovely synonyms that could be good too. Scurry, scuttle, dash, dart. Nothing wrong with using clamber either.

Tai_MT

Well, unless the native idiom is difficult to decipher, there's usually not a reason to change from your native way of speaking. Usually, the best way to write for "all audiences" is just to avoid using idioms in your writing as well as slang. Usually, enough information is present in a sentence to infer what is meant, even in a native language.

mlogan

Shimmy in my mind, conveys well what you are trying to say, though I guess it is not "English neutral" so to speak. Otherwise I would go with scurry or clamber, though probably most people don't say clamber, it's more of a written thing, in my opinion.

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