| Страниц в теме: < [1 2 3] > | Off topic: Funniest "mis" translation (It, Fr, Sp, En) Автор темы: Matthew Holway
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It was a document about "bombas inyectoras de combustible" that I was given to proofread because in the translation they were using "bombs" instead of "pumps" and the client thought that there was something wrong with the translation, plus it was a bit scary
| | | | Heinrich Pesch 
Финляндия
Local time: 06:49
Член ProZ.com c 2003
финский => немецкий
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| Pregnant women | May 14, 2007 |
This is funny on all languages, and it doesn't need to be a translation. Women's bras are another funny item.
Cheers
Heinrich
| | | | May Turgeon
Канада
Local time: 23:49
Член ProZ.com
английский => французский
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| Point of view | May 14, 2007 |
I think we have to learn to laugh at ourselves and at the mistakes we do (we all are human after all).
Taking ourself to seriously is never a good thing
| | | | Jack Doughty
Великобритания
Local time: 04:49
русский => английский
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Памяти | Non-pregnant woman | May 14, 2007 |
Heinrich's comment reminds me of the joke about a foreigner trying to explain in English that his wife was unable to have children.
His first attempt was:
"My wife, she is impregnable."
When this didn't seem to get across, he tried again.
"My wife, she is unbearable". Still no good.
Third and last attempt:
"My wife, she is inconceivable!"
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Matthew Holway
Италия
Local time: 05:49
итальянский => английский
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Автор темы | I just fell off my chair! | May 14, 2007 |
His first attempt was:
"My wife, she is impregnable."
When this didn't seem to get across, he tried again.
"My wife, she is unbearable". Still no good.
Third and last attempt:
"My wife, she is inconceivable!"
That's funny stuff Jack!!, (though maybe a tad off the point of my original post) -
OOOps I should be working not laughing.. (back to translation mode)
(-;
| | | | Nicole Johnson
Италия
Local time: 05:49
итальянский => английский
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| Gotta love Bill Bryson... | May 14, 2007 |
Matthew Holway wrote:
Nicole
I'm pretty sure, if I remember rightly, it was in "Mother tongue" by the fantastic Bill Bryson (a keen linguist before moving on to higher things like travel writing..)
Thanks for that--I'll make sure to look for it. I'm actually reading one of his earlier works, "Made In America", at the moment. It's a great book on the history of the development of American English for anyone who is interested in that sort of stuff. From a linguistic standpoint it is quite informative. An he includes many fun facts and tidbits such as words that have been lost over the years. My favorite is "slobberchops", a word that was once used to describe a messy eater and has now become my Golden Retriever's new nickname!
Thanks for the fun topic Matthew!
| | | | | Gerard Hoffnung at the Oxford Union | May 14, 2007 |
Tony Keily wrote:
A very elegantly printed English language sign I saw in Barcelona some years back, in the window of a restaurant: "Food to eat here or leave."
Anyone remember Gerard Hoffnung's hilarious address to the Oxford Union the record of which was a big hit when I was a student? (It included "The Bricklayer's Tale").
He included some gems from foreign tourist brochures translated into English, such as:
"The hotel is next to a romantic gorge and we invite you to drop in."
And
"There is a French widow in every bedroom affording delightful prospects".
Can't remember the rest.
Regards,
Jenny.
| | | | Lia Fail (X)
Испания
Local time: 05:49
испанский => английский
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| Barcelona menus ..and more | May 14, 2007 |
Tony Keily wrote:
A very elegantly printed English language sign I saw in Barcelona some years back, in the window of a restaurant: "Food to eat here or leave."
One of the earliest memories I have of bad menu translations was "langostinos" translated as "locust" (same word in Spanish for large prawns and locust:-))
Another was "tarta de la casa" (house cake/pie) translated as "house tart" (dessert section, accomanied by a liquer of your choice;-))
There's a restaurant in the Raval area of Barcelona called "Muy Buenas" and with all due respect to their nice waiters and lovely old-world locale, the menu translated to English is just one scream after another.
Papas rellenas = Stuffed daddies (as one example). Papas also means potatoes.
I strongly recommend a visit with guests or friends who speak both English and Spanish, you will laugh til you cry:-)
Not to mention early years in Spain for an English teacher, who ordered "polla y huevos fritos" on behalf of herself and a friend in a restaurant. She meant chicken (pollo) and fried eggs .... but "polla" is the male organ and "huevos" is slang for the attachments (normally 2 in number) .....
Not to mention a Spanish friend, a big fan of chickens, who makes a point of referring to having the "biggest cock in Catalunya" to his Irish mother-in-law. The play of words doesn't exist in Catalan or Spanish... but once he learned the double-meaning of cock ...;.) He's the one who refers to birthday cake as "birth pie" or the city of Bath in the UK as Bathroom:-)
[Edited at 2007-05-14 22:20]
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| translating Italian... | May 14, 2007 |
I can't help thinking of the immortal "I know my chichen" *;
And, even more, the result of a tiny forgotten apostrophe: "God taxidriver"** - which an extimeed colleague of this site once replayed to with: "God, Dublin Bay shrimps and free!" *** (that happened in Kudoz comments, by the way; but it was all the asker fault - he added to his question a totally unrelated comment about the Scottish inventor of spaghetti - a certain McAron... how could we have stopped?)
At any... See more I can't help thinking of the immortal "I know my chichen" *;
And, even more, the result of a tiny forgotten apostrophe: "God taxidriver"** - which an extimeed colleague of this site once replayed to with: "God, Dublin Bay shrimps and free!" *** (that happened in Kudoz comments, by the way; but it was all the asker fault - he added to his question a totally unrelated comment about the Scottish inventor of spaghetti - a certain McAron... how could we have stopped?)
At any rate, "be beef" (stai manzo) and don't get excited...
For more, I'll refer you to:
http://friendsforfree.wordpress.com/2007/03/30/which-god-taxi-driver/
and take no responsibility!
Italian:
* "Conosco i miei polli"
** (WITH apostrophe): "Dio t'assista!"
*** Italian: "Dio (ne) scampi e liberi!" ▲ Collapse
| | | | Clarisa Moraña
США
Local time: 22:49
Член ProZ.com c 2002
английский => испанский
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| An English teacher, in Venezuela | May 15, 2007 |
Heinrich Pesch wrote:
This is funny on all languages, and it doesn't need to be a translation. Women's bras are another funny item.
Cheers
Heinrich
He was married to an Chilean English teacher. They were both my teachers at the School of Languages. He told as that when he was dating his girlfriend (the one who later became his wife) he was invited to a party, to met his mother in law. By some reason, he said something that perturbed his girlfriend, and wanted to apologize to the old lady, and he said:
-"I'm very sorry, madam, your daughter is embarrased and that's my fault". But he said that in Spanish, and said:
- Lo siento mucho, señora, su hija está embarazada y es mi falta.
For those who dont speak spanish, let me tell them that "embarazada" is "pregnant", not "embarrased".
Have a nice day
Clarisa Moraña
| | | | Andrea Brumma
Испания
Local time: 05:49
английский => немецкий
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| Not “mis”translation, but “mis”prounced. | May 15, 2007 |
One Saturday morning my Spanish boyfriend came into my office, where I had been translating away for several hours, in order to ask how much work I still had.
My eyes glued to the PC screen, still concentrated on the translation, not wanting to forget the sentence I was just typing, I wanted to answer him that I still had 7 pages to translate, “Me faltan 7 páginas”, but absent-minded as I was, I swallowed a couple of letters and it came out as: “Me faltan 7 pajas”. Well, “paja�... See more One Saturday morning my Spanish boyfriend came into my office, where I had been translating away for several hours, in order to ask how much work I still had.
My eyes glued to the PC screen, still concentrated on the translation, not wanting to forget the sentence I was just typing, I wanted to answer him that I still had 7 pages to translate, “Me faltan 7 páginas”, but absent-minded as I was, I swallowed a couple of letters and it came out as: “Me faltan 7 pajas”. Well, “paja” refers to the act of masturbation … I almost fell from my chair laughing when I noticed what I had said!
[Bearbeitet am 2007-05-15 08:47] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Rome, Piazza Bologna | May 15, 2007 |
I've posted this before, but it's a real favourite of mine. On a sign telling people to keep off the lawn (sic), it then warns you that "transgressors will be persecuted according to the law".
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| reminds me... | May 15, 2007 |
Marie-Hélène Hayles wrote: I've posted this before, but it's a real favourite of mine. On a sign telling people to keep off the lawn (sic), it then warns you that "transgressors will be persecuted according to the law".
It reminds me of "i tre spassosi saranno prosecuti" - a free translation of the all-too-frequent sign "trespassers will be prosecuted" I made a long time ago when travelling in the USA with a couple of Italian friends. "Prosecuti" doesn't mean a thing in Italian, but surely it sound ominous...
| | | | | A true story | May 15, 2007 |
Not really a "mistranslation", but rather a "misinterpretation" (as in translation vs. interpretation).
It happened during a flight of a Spanish airline which now charges you for meals.
I overheard an English-speaking passenger ask a flight attendant what food they offered during the flight. She smiled and said something like: "in short flights like this we offer only sweets and 'salads'."
In Spanish, when you say "dulce y salado", by "dulce" you mea... See more Not really a "mistranslation", but rather a "misinterpretation" (as in translation vs. interpretation).
It happened during a flight of a Spanish airline which now charges you for meals.
I overheard an English-speaking passenger ask a flight attendant what food they offered during the flight. She smiled and said something like: "in short flights like this we offer only sweets and 'salads'."
In Spanish, when you say "dulce y salado", by "dulce" you mean "sweets" not like in candy, but rather like in biscuits, doughnuts, etc.
And by "salado" you mean "savory" ("salty") snacks or appetizers such as sausage slices, nuts/peanuts, etc.
But the attendant had translated "salado" as "ensalada" (salad).
Luckily the passenger ordered a biscuit and not a "salad"...
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| | | | Spring City (X)
Local time: 11:49
китайский => английский
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| Bronze v. Copper | May 16, 2007 |
Jack Doughty wrote:
There is a famous statue in St. Petersburg called "Медный Всадник" (Medny Vsadnik), meaning the Copper Horseman. A colleague on a Russian course, thinking of the Russian verb to plant, (всадить = vsadit), translated this as "The Brass Gardener". He was himself known as the Brass Gardener for the rest of the course.
Jack, Медный Всадник is also the title of a poem by Pushkin, but its official name in English is the Bronze Horseman.
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