Ok, so there is literally nothing funnier than mishaps in a language that is not your own. Some of the best have come from Italians speaking English (or at least, attempting). I will keep everyone anonymous to protect their dignity, no worries. Some of these have come from Massi, others from friends or acquaintances. I know that soon, I will be the one being laughed at with my slip-ups in Italian (why are tetta and tetto so darn close...!). But in the meantime, let's all have a laugh at sh*t my Italian friends say.
Me and Italian friends Simone and Silvia in Calgary, Canada.
"Look guys, a squirtle!"
English translation: Look guys, a squirrel.
Commentary: So in Italian, squirrel is scoiattolo. But somehow, the combination became a Pokemon.
"Do you have a rubber?"
English translation: Do you have an eraser?
Commentary: Depending on where you are in the world, a rubber can be one of two things...
"Don't worry, I'll finger it out."
English translation: Don't worry, I'll figure it out.
Commentary: It's probably not wise to tell anyone that you are going to finger something.
" Hello, I'm looking for a condom."
English translation: Hello, I'm looking for a condo.
Commentary: Yeah, not the same thing. The best part about this one is that this happened over the phone, so people had an Italian calling them randomly, asking for a condom.
"We prenotated a room for tonight."
English translation: We booked a room for tonight. This is an easy mistake because in Italian, prenotare is the verb for -to book (reserve). Still great though.
"Where do we have the collaction?"
English translation: Where do we have breakfast? Also understandable, in defense, fare colazione is to have breakfast in Italian.
The next requires some context. The speaker is working in a restaurant and asked for a description of some dishes available:
Please describe: Panna cotta
"White. Jelly. Creamy."
Please describe: Pappardelle
"Long, short, flat pasta."
English translation: Look guys, a squirrel.
Commentary: So in Italian, squirrel is scoiattolo. But somehow, the combination became a Pokemon.
"Do you have a rubber?"
English translation: Do you have an eraser?
Commentary: Depending on where you are in the world, a rubber can be one of two things...
"Don't worry, I'll finger it out."
English translation: Don't worry, I'll figure it out.
Commentary: It's probably not wise to tell anyone that you are going to finger something.
" Hello, I'm looking for a condom."
English translation: Hello, I'm looking for a condo.
Commentary: Yeah, not the same thing. The best part about this one is that this happened over the phone, so people had an Italian calling them randomly, asking for a condom.
"We prenotated a room for tonight."
English translation: We booked a room for tonight. This is an easy mistake because in Italian, prenotare is the verb for -to book (reserve). Still great though.
"Where do we have the collaction?"
English translation: Where do we have breakfast? Also understandable, in defense, fare colazione is to have breakfast in Italian.
The next requires some context. The speaker is working in a restaurant and asked for a description of some dishes available:
Please describe: Panna cotta
"White. Jelly. Creamy."
Please describe: Pappardelle
"Long, short, flat pasta."
Some random Italians.
RSS Feed
