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  3. Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

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  • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

    Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

    In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

    When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

    Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

    In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

    #offtopic

    michael@westergaard.socialM This user is from outside of this forum
    michael@westergaard.socialM This user is from outside of this forum
    michael@westergaard.social
    wrote last edited by
    #52
    Funny fact, Queen Elizabeth was visiting my university some years ago, when she was still alive and I still went to university, and the lifts all had their "i fart" displays hidden using sticky tape to not offend her.
    1 Reply Last reply
    0
    • brianjohnson@mastodon.sdf.orgB brianjohnson@mastodon.sdf.org

      @randahl @CiaraNi My favourite is visitors seeing a walk-in cupboard with "LAGER" on the door, that is filled with all sorts of stuff, but never any beer.

      ciarani@mastodon.greenC This user is from outside of this forum
      ciarani@mastodon.greenC This user is from outside of this forum
      ciarani@mastodon.green
      wrote last edited by
      #53

      @brianjohnson @randahl Haha - that one had never occurred to me. How disappointed they must be when they open the door and find cleaning cloths and biros.

      brianjohnson@mastodon.sdf.orgB 1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • fiee@literatur.socialF fiee@literatur.social

        @Gupperduck @randahl
        WRT street signs, I love the French “Rappel” (remember the speed limit), which means about “tantrum“ or “to rattle” in German.

        jowodo@mas.toJ This user is from outside of this forum
        jowodo@mas.toJ This user is from outside of this forum
        jowodo@mas.to
        wrote last edited by
        #54

        @fiee @Gupperduck @randahl well this reminds me of French street signs "SAUF" which translates to "except(ion)" and in German it could be interpretation as "you, drink/booze!"

        1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • naturemc@mastodon.onlineN naturemc@mastodon.online

          @Pascal_dher 😱 from France. 😅 @waldschnecke @randahl

          dahukanna@mastodon.socialD This user is from outside of this forum
          dahukanna@mastodon.socialD This user is from outside of this forum
          dahukanna@mastodon.social
          wrote last edited by
          #55

          @NatureMC

          @Pascal_dher @waldschnecke @randahl

          I’m learning Danish as an English and French speaker and the “half of score(20) or 2 hands plus a number” mental model took some time to get used to - 😬!

          naturemc@mastodon.onlineN 1 Reply Last reply
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          • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

            Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

            In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

            When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

            Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

            In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

            #offtopic

            ahalam@social.vivaldi.netA This user is from outside of this forum
            ahalam@social.vivaldi.netA This user is from outside of this forum
            ahalam@social.vivaldi.net
            wrote last edited by
            #56

            @randahl I didn't know that Danish has so close to Dutch! 💀

            steltenpower@social.edu.nlS 1 Reply Last reply
            0
            • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

              Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

              In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

              When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

              Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

              In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

              #offtopic

              ascherbaum@mastodon.socialA This user is from outside of this forum
              ascherbaum@mastodon.socialA This user is from outside of this forum
              ascherbaum@mastodon.social
              wrote last edited by
              #57

              @randahl You are on to something! 😉

              Link Preview Image
              cppguy@infosec.spaceC 1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

                Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

                In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

                When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

                Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

                In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

                #offtopic

                xeno@hexokina.seX This user is from outside of this forum
                xeno@hexokina.seX This user is from outside of this forum
                xeno@hexokina.se
                wrote last edited by
                #58

                @randahl@mastodon.social the hardest is the pronounciation, honestly swedish and even norwegian have a lot of the silly-sounding-in-english words too

                i tried to explain to a native english speaker how like "Københavns Hovedbanegård" or "Hvis jeg kunne" is actually pronounced and they were just stunlocked for a few seconds

                xeno@hexokina.seX 1 Reply Last reply
                0
                • xeno@hexokina.seX xeno@hexokina.se

                  @randahl@mastodon.social the hardest is the pronounciation, honestly swedish and even norwegian have a lot of the silly-sounding-in-english words too

                  i tried to explain to a native english speaker how like "Københavns Hovedbanegård" or "Hvis jeg kunne" is actually pronounced and they were just stunlocked for a few seconds

                  xeno@hexokina.seX This user is from outside of this forum
                  xeno@hexokina.seX This user is from outside of this forum
                  xeno@hexokina.se
                  wrote last edited by
                  #59

                  @randahl@mastodon.social it might have been "Kan jeg sidde ned" that's another really goofy one

                  energetic_nova@mastodon.socialE 1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

                    Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

                    In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

                    When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

                    Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

                    In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

                    #offtopic

                    muzicofiel@mastodon.nlM This user is from outside of this forum
                    muzicofiel@mastodon.nlM This user is from outside of this forum
                    muzicofiel@mastodon.nl
                    wrote last edited by
                    #60

                    @randahl Oh dear, just learned that a social platform gonna correct “not allowed” Words in a chat conversation. It’s start with such Words you mentioned. Soon #trump dissides what Words are allowed. Hopefully wassingmachines Will still work after such update 😉

                    1 Reply Last reply
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                    • ciarani@mastodon.greenC ciarani@mastodon.green

                      @brianjohnson @randahl Haha - that one had never occurred to me. How disappointed they must be when they open the door and find cleaning cloths and biros.

                      brianjohnson@mastodon.sdf.orgB This user is from outside of this forum
                      brianjohnson@mastodon.sdf.orgB This user is from outside of this forum
                      brianjohnson@mastodon.sdf.org
                      wrote last edited by
                      #61

                      @CiaraNi @randahl Indeed. I worked for a very famous Danish brewery for some years and people obviously expected there to be a cupboard full of beer.

                      ciarani@mastodon.greenC 1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

                        Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

                        In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

                        When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

                        Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

                        In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

                        #offtopic

                        richardwrightfan@mastodon.socialR This user is from outside of this forum
                        richardwrightfan@mastodon.socialR This user is from outside of this forum
                        richardwrightfan@mastodon.social
                        wrote last edited by
                        #62

                        @randahl
                        Hilarious! And I thought Japanese was confusing.😂

                        #offtopic

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

                          Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

                          In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

                          When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

                          Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

                          In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

                          #offtopic

                          xs4me2@mastodon.socialX This user is from outside of this forum
                          xs4me2@mastodon.socialX This user is from outside of this forum
                          xs4me2@mastodon.social
                          wrote last edited by
                          #63

                          @randahl

                          It is actually funny if you take it from an english point of view 🤭

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

                            Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

                            In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

                            When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

                            Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

                            In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

                            #offtopic

                            tekguru@social.vivaldi.netT This user is from outside of this forum
                            tekguru@social.vivaldi.netT This user is from outside of this forum
                            tekguru@social.vivaldi.net
                            wrote last edited by
                            #64

                            @randahl @czottmann That is totally awesome!

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • ahalam@social.vivaldi.netA ahalam@social.vivaldi.net

                              @randahl I didn't know that Danish has so close to Dutch! 💀

                              steltenpower@social.edu.nlS This user is from outside of this forum
                              steltenpower@social.edu.nlS This user is from outside of this forum
                              steltenpower@social.edu.nl
                              wrote last edited by
                              #65

                              @ahalam @randahl I, Dutchman (mother tongue Dutch, reasonably decent English, some German), can make some sense of written Danish, but not from spoken Danish.

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

                                @rhempel nowadays were have the opposite problem, as window signs will often say "Sale!", which is confusing to Danes, as that means "Halls!", as if there is some big rooms inside the building.

                                mdione@en.osm.townM This user is from outside of this forum
                                mdione@en.osm.townM This user is from outside of this forum
                                mdione@en.osm.town
                                wrote last edited by
                                #66

                                @randahl @rhempel in French, "sale" means dirty (feminine), but it can be used as short for "dirty whore".

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • caman@connectop.usC caman@connectop.us

                                  @randahl I love linguistic crossover words and phrases with different meanings! I remember my high school German class when our rather jaded teacher was ready to teach a room full of adolescents how to conjugate the verb fahren. He told us to go ahead and get the guffaws and belly laughs out of the way so we could continue our lesson. He was right.

                                  When visiting Denmark, I’ll take the stairs. I do wonder if those elevators go both to the basement and the top floor. Just don’t ever hit the down button.

                                  mdione@en.osm.townM This user is from outside of this forum
                                  mdione@en.osm.townM This user is from outside of this forum
                                  mdione@en.osm.town
                                  wrote last edited by
                                  #67

                                  @CAman @randahl so, the god lift takes to to heaven and hell? 🙂

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • lies_das@digitalcourage.socialL lies_das@digitalcourage.social

                                    @randahl
                                    english 'gift' means in german 'poison'

                                    me_@sueden.socialM This user is from outside of this forum
                                    me_@sueden.socialM This user is from outside of this forum
                                    me_@sueden.social
                                    wrote last edited by
                                    #68

                                    @lies_das @randahl And 'married' in Danish, Swedish and Norwegian...

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • brianjohnson@mastodon.sdf.orgB brianjohnson@mastodon.sdf.org

                                      @CiaraNi @randahl Indeed. I worked for a very famous Danish brewery for some years and people obviously expected there to be a cupboard full of beer.

                                      ciarani@mastodon.greenC This user is from outside of this forum
                                      ciarani@mastodon.greenC This user is from outside of this forum
                                      ciarani@mastodon.green
                                      wrote last edited by
                                      #69

                                      @brianjohnson @randahl A reasonable expectation!

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

                                        Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

                                        In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

                                        When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

                                        Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

                                        In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

                                        #offtopic

                                        taatm@mathstodon.xyzT This user is from outside of this forum
                                        taatm@mathstodon.xyzT This user is from outside of this forum
                                        taatm@mathstodon.xyz
                                        wrote last edited by
                                        #70

                                        @randahl 🤣
                                        The people of the Netherlands of talk of ‘spread shit’ as it sounds in to English ears.

                                        Then they show you their spreadsheet.

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • randahl@mastodon.socialR randahl@mastodon.social

                                          Examples that Danish is the most confusing language for English speakers:

                                          In Denmark, when washing machines are done, their displays write, "Slut!", which means "Finished".

                                          When someone enters an elevator, the display changes to "I fart", which means "On the move".

                                          Tourists have difficulty finding a nice WC, because the signs often say "Bad toilet", meaning "Bathroom and toilet".

                                          In lobbies with multiple elevators, one sign may say, "Gods elevator", which means "Freight elevator".

                                          #offtopic

                                          thepolishdispatch@mstdn.socialT This user is from outside of this forum
                                          thepolishdispatch@mstdn.socialT This user is from outside of this forum
                                          thepolishdispatch@mstdn.social
                                          wrote last edited by
                                          #71

                                          @randahl oh, and counting. Don't forget the counting.

                                          1 Reply Last reply
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