VOA慢速英语--Watch Out for English and German ‘Falsche Freunde’

 

In recent weeks, we have talked about how people learning a foreign language can be fooled by “false friends.” These are words that look or sound alike in other languages, but have completely different meanings.

Today we will consider a few examples of false friends in English and German. For German speakers, the term for false friends is falsche freunde.

English itself is a Germanic language, and there are many English words that were borrowed from German. Two well-known examples are kindergarten and gesundheit - both of which are widely used in English.

In the United States, a kindergarten – which word for word means “child garden” in German – is a preparatory school for children. The German word gesundheit means health, and is often said after people sneeze. It means you are wishing them good health.

Some other German words would be immediately recognizable to English speakers. A few have the same meaning in both languages, but many do not. Here are a few of the most common false friends in English and German.

In English, the word labor¹ means work. It is also used to describe workers as a group. In German, however, das labor is used in scientific and medical terminology²; it means laboratory.

As we have already discovered, being tricked by false friends can lead to funny or unsettling situations.

One such example is the English word gift. Many people look forward to giving and receiving gifts while celebrating a holiday or birthday. But in German, the word gift has a much darker meaning. It means poison. So instead of showing up to a party with poison, German speakers would be pleased to know that you brought a geschenk -- the word for gift.

Do not be fooled by the English word bald, which is used to describe the head of someone with little or no hair. In German, the word bald means soon.

Cars, airplanes and other things can go fast. In English, the word fast can also describe when someone decides not to take in any food. But in German, fast means almost. The German word for doing something quickly is schnell.

The German word kurios is written almost like the English word curious. Someone is curious if they are interested in trying new things. But you would not want to make a mistake and call a person kurios, unless you find them strange.

The German word fabrik is nearly like the English word fabric³, a material used to make clothes. But fabrik actually means factory, which could be used to produce clothing or anything else.

Firefighters often use water from a hose⁴ when battling fires. But in German, the word hose means pants. And there are other differences in clothing. In English, one sometimes describes a woman who looks very good in a skirt as “rocking” her clothes. But in German, the word for skirt is, in fact, rock.

If you find yourself going to Germany, you might be surprised to see and hear the term gross⁵ in many places. An English meaning of gross is something unpleasant. There is also the English expression “gross me out.” It is used to describe something so unpleasant it may even cause someone to feel physically⁶ sick.

In German, the word gross is an adjective, just like it is in English. But it means something large. So having a gross ice cream in Germany is not something to be avoided. It can actually be very satisfying.

And speaking of taste, there is also an exact German version of this word. But taste is the German word for button. So this is often seen in public places to let people know where to push -- not what to eat.

You could also be fooled by the German words rat, pest and bad. While each of these describe generally something undesirable⁷ in English, this is not necessarily the case in German.

In English, the word pest describes someone who makes you feel tired or something that can cause damage. But pest, in German, is the word for plague⁸, a serious disease that spreads quickly and kills a lot of people.

Most English speakers would not want to come face to face with a rat, an animal considered a pest. However, the German word rat is a good thing. It means advice.

In German-speaking countries, it would not be unusual to see the word bad in a public place. But bad is nothing to be feared, it is the name for a place to swim.

While smoking is a common activity around the world, the German word smoking describes a nice dinner jacket.

The word mist looks the same in both languages. In English, mist describes small water droplets⁹ that can form in the air, sometimes making it difficult to see. A mist can also provide a cooling effect on a warm day. But mist has a completely different German meaning. It describes animal droppings, things that are considered nonsense or foolish.

Another false friend in German is gymnasium, which also exists in English. But while a gymnasium – or gym – is only used in the United States as a room for exercise, a gymnasium is a European secondary school.

You might think you know what kissen means in German. After all, it looks just like the English word kiss. But the word means pillow in Germany, where the term for kissing is küssen.

Another German word often mistaken is chef, which in English means the person responsible for meals at a restaurant. In German, it simply means the chief or leader of any kind of organization.

I'm Bryan Lynn. And I'm Lucija Millonig.

Words in This Story

garden – n. a piece of land where flowers, fruits or vegetables are grown

sneeze – v. to blow out air from the nose and mouth due to irritation¹⁰ or sickness

pants – n. a piece of clothing that covers each leg separately

skirt – n. a piece of clothing that hangs from the waist down

gross – adj. bad or objectionable behavior; offensive¹¹

button – n. a switch that is pressed to control a piece of equipment

rat – n. an animal that looks like a large mouse and has a long tail

bath – n. place where you wash your body

kiss – v. to touch with the lips as a sign of affection

pillow – n. a soft rest or support for the head

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 terminology   

n.术语；专有名词

参考例句：

• He particularly criticized the terminology in the document.他特别批评了文件中使用的术语。
• The article uses rather specialized musical terminology.这篇文章用了相当专业的音乐术语。

3 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。

4 hose   

n.输水软管，长统袜；vt.浇园子，用管冲洗

参考例句：

• Connect the hose to the tap and turn on the tap.把水管接在龙头上，打开水龙头。
• After raining,I always hose the yard out.雨后，我总是用软管把院子冲干净。

5 gross   

adj.全部的，粗俗的，肥胖的；vt.获得...总收入

参考例句：

• The gross weight of the box of chocolates is 500 grams.那盒巧克力的全部重量是500克。
• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。

6 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

7 undesirable   

adj.不受欢迎的，不良的，不合意的，讨厌的；n.不受欢迎的人，不良分子

参考例句：

• They are the undesirable elements among the employees.他们是雇员中的不良分子。
• Certain chemicals can induce undesirable changes in the nervous system.有些化学物质能在神经系统中引起不良变化。

8 plague   

n.瘟疫，鼠疫，祸患，灾难；v.烦扰，使痛苦

参考例句：

• Plague was then prevailing in that city.当时瘟疫正在该城流行。
• The plague once could wipe out a village.鼠疫曾一度可以夺走整个村庄村民的生命。

9 droplets   

n.小滴( droplet的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Droplets of sweat were welling up on his forehead. 他额头上冒出了滴滴汗珠。 来自辞典例句
• In constrast, exhaled smoke contains relatively large water droplets and appears white. 相反，从人嘴里呼出的烟则包含相当大的水滴，所以呈白色。 来自辞典例句

10 irritation   

n.激怒，恼怒，生气

参考例句：

• He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。
• Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说，但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。

11 offensive   

adj.令人不快的，侮辱的，攻击用的；n.进攻

参考例句：

• His mode of doing business is offensive to me.他干事情的方式叫我很不喜欢。
• If all else fails,I will take the offensive.如果其他方法不行，我将采取攻势。