If you see the words “I Fart” displayed on an elevator in Denmark, don’t panic, it just means “In Use.” “Fart” is Danish for “speed,” so keep that in mind when you see a road sign saying “Fart Kontrol” (Speed Control). “Habla” in Spanish means “to say” in Filipino it means 'a lawsuit/to sue'.įilipino lawyer: “Isn’t that a bit racist?”Īn unlikely scenario. “Bocas” would be the more appropriate word to use in Brazil if you’d like a snack (which actually means "mouths" in Spanish!) – keeping up? 14. You could easily land yourself a rosy cheek when asking your waiter for some “tapa(s)” in Brazil, which means “slap,” as opposed to the dish served in mainland Spain. In Thai, p̄hạk is pronounced /fʌk/, like the vulgar English word, and means “vegetable.”Ĭristen Andrews / Flickr 13. If you’re in the habit of speaking a mix of Thai and English, you should be careful when you have guests who only speak English over for a meal.ĭefinitely do not ask them, “Would you like some p̄hạk soup?” because they might just say yes and expect something completely different. Aptly, it also means “to get married” in Swedish, Danish and Norwegian. “Gift” means “poison” in German, Danish, Swedish and Norwegian. Gift: German/Danish/Swedish/Norwegian/English “Dick” is rude to call someone in both the German and English languages, in case you were even thinking of using it. Speaking of air, the Malay word “air” means “water” in English, where the word for air is “udara.” 10. In Singapore, where Malay is one of the four official languages, the air is cause for much frustration and debate because of the high levels of pollution. Try not to use this word when telling your girlfriend it’s over between you. In Swedish “slut” means “end/finished,” along with its many variations. If you’re British, don’t use the word “fag” to ask for a cigarette in other English speaking countries – it's not the most common usage, and is often considered derogatory.īrice Ambrosiak / Flickr 8. Schlimm: Dutch/Germanīeing “schlimm” (smart/successful) is something to be proud of in the Netherlands, but not so much in Germany where it’s used to describe someone who is dim-witted and unsuccessful. Oficina: Spanish/PortugueseĪ Spanish mechanic might be unduly flattered when asked about his “oficina” by a Portuguese speaker, since “oficina” means “workshop” in Portuguese, but “office” in Spain.
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In Poland you’d be welcomed for describing someone’s house as “won” (nice smelling), but in Russia you might not be so well received: in Russian it means “stink.” 5. Ydych chi'n hoffi moron? (Do you like morons/carrots?) “Moron” is Welsh for “carrots.” And also “moron,” unfortunately. So, if you ask someone how old they are and you aren't clear with your pronunciation, you might not get you the answer you expected! 3. The word for “old” in Thai is “gaae” but many students of the language end up pronouncing it as “gay” which means the same in Thai as it does in English. If you’re new to the Thai language you might want to check up on your pronunciations before embarrassing yourself. Avoid singing Korean pop in public in English-speaking countries!Ĭhinese also has a similar sounding phrase meaning “this is.” 2. “Ne ga” (pronounced nee-gaa) means “you” in Korean. Some of these words are known as false friends, and are either spelled or pronounced the same as words in other languages, but they can have very different meanings: they might be harmless in one language but quite insulting in another. Watch your language abroad: If you use any of these 15 words, people might think you’re a bit rude, or worse!