Mr. Zhang / 张老师
전문 강사
False friends (false cognates) between languages

I don't know about you, but I find false friends entertaining. Anytime someone gets two similar sounding words that have completely different definitions mixed up, it can lead to some pretty funny moments.

The most enjoyable for me is when English speakers misuse embarazada when trying to speak Spanish, mistaking it to mean embarrassed. Too often I've heard:

"Ay, lo siento. Estoy embarazada."

It's even funnier if a man says it, since embarazada actually means pregnant =)

What are some of your favorite false friends (between any languages)?

2017년 1월 30일 오후 10:36
댓글 · 1

Well, in Brazilian portuguese we have a lot of false friends. For example:

Apologize: in portuguese 'apologize' seems a word 'apologia'. 'Apologia' meaning defend something.


 

2017년 1월 30일
Mr. Zhang / 张老师
언어 구사 능력
중국어(북경어), 중국어(기타), 영어, 프랑스어, 일본어, 스페인어, 스웨덴어
학습 언어
프랑스어, 일본어, 스페인어, 스웨덴어