Forum newsfeeds
Forum Newsfeeds


Sites for Teachers

Sites for Teachers


Go Back   UsingEnglish.com ESL Forum > Learning English > Teaching English

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1 (permalink)  
Old 27-May-2006, 07:36
patsensei's Avatar
Newbie
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Country: Japan
Posts: 14
First Language: English
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
patsensei is on a distinguished road
Default Making fun of our mistakes!

Hey everyone! I think everyone makes mistakes and when learning a new language some of these mistakes can be extremely entertaining. I've been learning foreign languages for a while and I can tell you I have made some beauties.
For example while in Japan I wanted to comment how my mother in law had such a large and spacious cupboard (oshiirei) but i pronounced this word slightly incorrectly and said (oshiri) which means "behind". So anyway my wife had a good laugh at my expense. But hey, I remember my mistake and have learnt from it plus I have a funny story to tell!
Anyone else got any good ones?

<URL deleted>

Last edited by Casiopea; 27-May-2006 at 14:53.
Reply With Quote
Sponsored Links
  #2 (permalink)  
Old 27-May-2006, 14:58
Casiopea's Avatar
VIP Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Country: Canada
Posts: 12,997
Current Location: China
First Language: English
Thanks: 0
Thanked 16 Times in 16 Posts
Casiopea is on a distinguished road
Default Re: Making fun of our mistakes!

Uhm, well, yeah. While swimming at a beach in Okayama-ken, Japan, I noticed what appeared to be 40 million jelly-fish floating around me. As I hastily paddled my plastic raft to shore, I frantically call out to all the swimmers around me, "KA-RA-GE! KA-RA-GE!" <deep-fried chicken balls!> Ahem, I should have said, "Kurage!" <Jelly-fish!> Or, is it the other way around?
Reply With Quote
  #3 (permalink)  
Old 28-May-2006, 13:09
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Country: Glasgow, Scotland
Posts: 44
Current Location: Hamburg, Germany
First Language: English
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Hamburg is on a distinguished road
Default Re: Making fun of our mistakes!

Making mistakes whilst learning a new language is part and parcel of the fun (if you can laugh at yourself, that is).
One of my wildest mistakes in German was "Der Soldat schiesst" which means "The soldier shoots", but by changing the vowels around I proudly told the class that "Der Soldat scheisst" (The soldier sh*ts") much to the general mirth of the rest of the class.
When I was at high school, I wrote one of the best howlers my english teacher had seen: "Unlike some of his contemporaries, Monte Cristo was a real Count." Sadly I'd forgot the first vowel in Count!
Oh well.

Last edited by Hamburg; 28-May-2006 at 14:17.
Reply With Quote
  #4 (permalink)  
Old 28-May-2006, 13:30
Casiopea's Avatar
VIP Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Country: Canada
Posts: 12,997
Current Location: China
First Language: English
Thanks: 0
Thanked 16 Times in 16 Posts
Casiopea is on a distinguished road
Default Re: Making fun of our mistakes!

Hamburg! How wonderful your words. Your faux pas reminds me of a similar example. In this case, "o" was added, not omitted:

"Hamlet's father was hoovering in the background."

Hoover (noun) a vacuum cleaner;
hoover (verb) to vacuum.
hover (verb) to remain in one place in the air.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Tags
making, fun, our, mistakes

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Afraid of making mistakes! Miss Qatar General Language Discussions 17 16-Sep-2005 11:41
three ineradicable mistakes separanets1 Ask a Teacher 1 16-Aug-2005 22:31
making the difference Anonymous Ask a Teacher 1 13-Oct-2004 15:47
questions - have to/must, article, mistakes Lenka Ask a Teacher 6 25-Sep-2004 06:32
English mistakes ? whl626 Ask a Teacher 5 29-Feb-2004 18:49


New To Site? Need Help?

All times are GMT. The time now is 03:50.


vBulletin, Copyright ©2000 - 2008, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.2.0 RC5
Copyright © 2002 - 2008 UsingEnglish.com