Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
#135254 11/16/04 11:43 PM
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 2,154
Z
Zed Offline OP
Pooh-Bah
OP Offline
Pooh-Bah
Z
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 2,154
I like finding words in other languages that twist the way I think about the English translation. For example The Spanish embarazada translates to pregnant, which, in my situation I would find very emarrassing. One Spanish translation of engaged is compromiso. Hmmm. And the French etiquettes becomes the English labels.
I am sure that some of these have actual historical or linguistic links but I just like the double take and silent smirk they give me.
One of my favorites was a very old Spanish English dictionary that translated the Spanish word macho as i)masculine, ii)a male mule or iii) a very stupid man.
Any one else notice others?


#135255 11/17/04 05:32 AM
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 725
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 725
I am reminded of the time when my German teacher informed us that although "heis" means "hot" in most senses, not to use it in reference to yourself. That is, "Ich bin heis" would not mean "I am very warm" but "I am turned-on!"

We thought that was awfully funny!


#135256 11/17/04 11:24 AM
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
To wander a little farther afield, in Spanish listo can mean ready or intelligent depending on which verb to be it is used with. Pedro está listo means Pedro is ready. Pedro es listo means Pedro is intelligent.


#135257 11/17/04 05:58 PM
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 67
G
journeyman
Offline
journeyman
G
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 67
It's not really related to what you asked, but when you mentioned "embarazada" I remembered a story I had heard.
According to: http://www.baetzler.de/humor/ads_gone_wrong.html,

When Parker Pen marketed a ball-point pen in Mexico, its ads were supposed to have read, " it won't leak in your pocket and embarrass you". Instead, the company thought that the word " embarazar" (to impregnate) meant to embarrass, so the ad read: "It won't leak in your pocket and make you pregnant".


(Plenty more stories in the same vein on that site, too.) Just thought I'd share.


#135258 11/17/04 10:16 PM
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,891
B
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
B
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,891
The Spanish embarazada translates to pregnant,

Ooof, good thing you posted this Zed. I have a (very) basic knowledge of Spanish and I do try to speak in Spanish in a Spanish-speaking place. It looks exactly like something I'd say - "Lo siento, soy mucho embarazada" - after butchering a sentence - and confusing my listener even more. I do try though. Do I get an A for effort?


#135259 11/18/04 12:05 PM
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 1,385
P
veteran
Offline
veteran
P
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 1,385
Hmmm. How about this:

In the early 1960s, an apocryphal tale went around about a computer that the CIA had built to translate between English and Russian: to test the machine, the programmers decided to have it translate a phrase into Russian and then translate the result back into English, to see if they'd get the same words they started with. The director of the CIA was invited to do the honors; the programmers all gathered expectantly around the console to watch as the director typed in the test words: "Out of sight, out of mind." The computer silently ground through its calculations. Hours passed. Then, suddenly, magnetic tapes whirred, lights blinked, and a printer clattered out the result: "Invisible insanity."

http://www.snopes.com/language/misxlate/machine.htm




Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,580
Members9,187
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
Karin, JeffMackwood, artguitar, Jim_W, Rdbuffalo
9,187 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 332 guests, and 0 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
wofahulicodoc 10,713
tsuwm 10,542
LukeJavan8 9,931
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5