30.10.2008, 06:57
I was talking to my friend from London on the phone last night. He said, "My dad has a lot of people who work for him." I said, "Oh, he must be an undertaker." My friend was shocked when I said this. Why?
You understood that your friend's father has his own business or is an entrepreneur. You translated the German "unter" into "under", and "nehmer" into "taker". But the word undertaker in English means something very different - "Leichenbestatter"!
My Irish friend David was in our school play. I told him, "I hope you break your neck and leg!" David was shocked. He said, "That's a bit extreme!" What did I say wrong?
Oops! You wanted to wish your friend good luck. In German, actors say "Hals und Beinbruch" to each other before they go on stage. But in English, the leg is the only body part you should break. You should have told your friend to "break a leg"!
My friend from England came to visit me and we went for a drive. When we got in the car I said, "You should belt up." She said, "Oh, I thought you wanted to practise your English!" Why was she angry?
You tried to tell your friend to fasten her seat belt, or buckle up. In the US you can also tell someone to do that by saying belt up. But in British English, telling someone to belt up is another way of saying shut up!
I rang my friend in London to tell him that my parents were taking me to England this summer. I said: "When I heard the news, I was on cloud seven!" He answered: "I think you landed on the wrong cloud." What did he mean?
You told your friend you were on cloud seven , meaning you were extremely happy. Your friend probably understood you, because there's a similar expression in English. But in English you'd say you were on cloud nine, not seven!
Last weekend I was cleaning with my Irish host mother. My six-year-old host brother came in and took a bottle of bleach. I screamed, "Don't touch that! It's gift!" He said, "Oh, who is it for? Is it someone's birthday?" Why did he say that?
You tried to warn your host brother that the liquid in the bottle was poison. But you used the German word Gift, which in English means present (Geschenk) something that you give to someone on a birthday or other special day. Poison wouldn't be a very nice gift, would it?!
I went to a traditional Irish restaurant while on holiday in Ireland. I needed to use the toilet, but the doors had strange words on them. I didnt know what to do! I had to run all the way back to my hotel! Help!
How embarrassing !
The strange words you saw on the WC doors were the Irish words for men and women. Fir means men and mná means women. Dont forget this the next time youre in Ireland!
My Australian friend Harry asked me what I usually do during the day. I told him, "I visit school." Harry said, "That must be nice. I have to stay at school all day long." I don't understand!
You tried to translate Schule besuchen into English, but you made a mistake. When you visit a place or person, you stay at that place or with that person for just a short time. You should have told Harry that you attend or go to school every day.
Last Saturday night I was bored and had nothing to do. So I rang up my friend Kate and asked her if she wanted to go for a ride. She got angry! What did I say?
In Britain and Ireland if you ask someone to go for a ride it means you want to have sex with them. If you only want to get in a car and go somewhere, you should say you want to go for a drive.