For help, advice and discussion about stuff not related to aviation. Play nice: no religion, no politics and no axe grinding please.
By Joe Dell
#1519410
From an ad on AFORS by a Polish wheel spat supplier.

"All fairings are covered with soil and are ready for painting". :lol:
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By kanga
#1519454
Joe Dell wrote:From an ad on AFORS by a Polish wheel spat supplier.

"All fairings are covered with soil and are ready for painting". :lol:


serendipitously or deliberately poor or unfortunate translation in advertising can be an effective bit of marketing..

In Ottawa in the '80s, every Friday night at about the same time there would be an advertisement on the local French language commercial TV channel for a used car dealership on the Ottawa (majority anglophone) side of the river. In it the anglophone proprietor would show and talk with great enthusiasm about what great bargains were available that weekend. He did this in the most appalling French, accent grammar and vocabulary all being dreadful, but delivered very volubly with much gesticulation. Several of my francophone colleagues (as most were) said that they and many people they knew would switch to that channel at that time just to see the newest ad, as it was such good entertainment value. He probably got some extra visits and sales as a result. :)
By cockney steve
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1519483
Urban Legend?......POW camp commandant calls a parade, having heard rumour of a planned escape attempt.

Addressing the Parade,- " You think I know nozzink? Vell i tell you, I know Fxxk ALL "

Ah, the nuances of the English Language!
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By Ben
#1519523
My father was born in Germany and forced out, hence Hebrew wasn't his 1st language.
As he was an intelligence officer in the Jerusalem area he was asked to brief a group of female officers.

During his brief he noticed that all the ladies and the male escorting staff were laughing, at times out of control. Once it was over he asked for the reason and was told that instead of talking about "the Fronts" (in Hebrew "Hazitot") he was talking about "the Bras" (in Hebrew Haziot)
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By Charles Hunt
#1519623
My father had a light 15, and we always pronounced it sit-run.

Trying to describe this to a native speaker, when comprehension finally dawned, she used she used three distinct syllables see-tro-enn.
By Paultheparaglider
#1519626
Back at the time when the film Wall Street came out, I was working for a well known US brokerage house at its London HQ. One of the younger members of our team decided to try the Gordon Gekko style and turned up with a pair of bright red braces. In walks our lady boss who had a really strong Texan drawl. "Gee, John. I sure do like your suspenders."

We all fell about laughing while she struggled to see what she had said that was so funny.
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By kanga
#1519635
Charles Hunt wrote:My father had a light 15, and we always pronounced it sit-run.

Trying to describe this to a native speaker, when comprehension finally dawned, she used she used three distinct syllables see-tro-enn.


The normal American pronunciation for Peugeot and Renault seems to be Pew zho but Ren ohlt. But of course they also say mayter dee for Head Waiter
By Spooky
#1519657
One of my friends was visiting France. Utilising his GCSE French and a dictionary, he plucked up the courage to ask a girl he liked "Baise-moi" . He received a slap to his hopeful grin. He had wanted to say "kiss me"!

My opposite number during a rugby game (again in France!) aggressively stated "I will f*$k you hard". They had a Brit on their team who jokingly told him to say it as a way of intimidating me .

We had a chap from Canada visiting as a guest coach for a few months. He told a team of 12year olds "Take your pants off for training. I don't want see you wearing pants" :lol:
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By kanga
#1519665
Paultheparaglider wrote:... In walks our lady boss who had a really strong Texan drawl. "Gee, John. I sure do like your suspenders."

We all fell about laughing while she struggled to see what she had said that was so funny.


In US in '80s I had a colleague whose teenage daughter was on a fairly unAmerican then term's exchange in a school in France. One day she wrote (pre e-mail!) home in great indignation. In her English class, taught by a Frenchman, pupils had been told to translate into English a text which included the word malade. She had rendered this is sick. The teacher had marked it wrong; she should have put ill; sick was only for vomiting. Teacher was, of course, teaching British English.

Before they started elementary school there, we carefully explained to our children that the correcting bit at the top of a pencil was called an eraser in the US.
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By Rob P
#1519680
kanga wrote:... the correcting bit at the top of a pencil was called an eraser in the US.


Cue the story of the Aussie temp wanting adhesive tape...
By JoeC
#1519695
Last trip to France in the local boulangerie my kids enjoyed the spectacle of me having a brain fail and asking for the delicious looking apple tart as the tarte aux pomme de terre. :oops: I think I may have said it two or three times before realising my error. :oops: :oops:
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By Bert Presley
#1519716
PeteSpencer wrote:Interesting that the French call a 'French letter' a 'capote anglaise'.....


This story may be apocryphal, but I hope it isn't.

An Englishman, who lived in France, walked into un magasin. He spoke to a sales assistant and made the elementary error of confusing 'chapeau' with 'capote'.

'Je voudrais acheter une capote noire'.

The sales assistant raised his eyebrows in surprise: 'Une capote noire, M'sieu? Pourquoi une capote noire'?

The Englishman's face saddened: 'C'est a cause de ma femme...' He moved close to the sales assistant and spoke in confidential low tones: '...tristement, elle est morte'.

The sales assistant's eyes widened in understanding: Ah M'sieu. D'accord. Je comprends. Quelle delicatesse'.
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