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ten overnights off

English translation: overnight messages

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:overnights
Selected answer:overnight messages
Entered by: updownK

10:01 Oct 8, 2019
English language (monolingual) [Non-PRO]
Art/Literary - Poetry & Literature
English term or phrase: ten overnights off
Context:
‘There are *ten overnights off* the clacks, my lord,’ he said. ‘It’s good to have it back in operation.’
‘Indeed yes,’ said Vetinari, not looking up. ‘Otherwise how in the world would people be able to find out what we want them to think? Any foreign mail?’

More context, please click:
https://archive.org/stream/TheNewDiscworldCompanion/Book 33 ...
--quoted from Going Postal (2004, fantasy fiction) by Terry Pratchett

“Clacks” here is similar to the network/telegraph in our world.
Can “ten overnights off” be used to express “ten whole days (days & nights) off”? Because I think it makes more sense according to the plot.
Thank you!
updownK
China
Local time: 14:23
overnight messages
Explanation:
I've read this book and from what I remember it's about a post office and these "clacks" were towers that were used to send messages. To me, it means that they have received 10 messages from the clacks (in this context, "off" means from) which have travelled during the night (overnight).
Selected response from:

Emily Gilby
United Kingdom
Local time: 07:23
Grading comment
Thank you! I have corrected the term for the glossary entry.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
5 +5overnight messages
Emily Gilby
4no posts were delivered for ten days
AJ Ablooglu


Discussion entries: 4





  

Answers


15 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +5
overnight messages


Explanation:
I've read this book and from what I remember it's about a post office and these "clacks" were towers that were used to send messages. To me, it means that they have received 10 messages from the clacks (in this context, "off" means from) which have travelled during the night (overnight).

Emily Gilby
United Kingdom
Local time: 07:23
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
Grading comment
Thank you! I have corrected the term for the glossary entry.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Sheila Wilson: Indeed, "overnight" can be used as a noun, and in this context it will refer to messages received during the night
9 mins
agree  Yvonne Gallagher
26 mins
agree  B D Finch: The "clacks" were semaphore towers. So, the messages were sent and received overnight, but did not "travel". The header term needs to be corrected for the glossary entry, as the Asker has parsed it incorrectly.
46 mins
disagree  AJ Ablooglu: Several paragraphs earlier in the book a conversation between Moist and Groat indicates that clacks were shut down. No postal deliveries were done during that time that is why Vetinari said to clerk Drumknott “It’s good to have it back in operation.”
1 hr
  -> The clacks may have been previously shut down but were then "back in operation" for them to receive said overnight messages which is why Drumknott said as such.
agree  Sarah Lewis-Morgan: Yes indeed. These were overnight messages.
3 hrs
agree  Tina Vonhof (X)
6 hrs
agree  Ashutosh Mitra
4 days
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
no posts were delivered for ten days


Explanation:
Several paragraphs earlier in the book there is this conversation between Moist and Groat “…The clacks is being shut down, though. I’m sorry, it’s all complicated...”

Little bit later on there is this conversation between Moist (aka Mr. Lipvig) and Stanley “Everyone says we’ve won, sir, ’cos the clacks has been shut down, ’cos the directors are in prison, sir… Still, we’ve showed them, eh, sir? The Post Office is back!”

So there are no postal deliveries for ten days. And ten days later finally deliveries started again that is why Lord Vetinari said to clerk Drumknott “It’s good to have it back in operation.”


AJ Ablooglu
Türkiye
Local time: 02:23
Native speaker of: Native in TurkishTurkish
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you for your suggestion!

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