Problem
Many people heard the Queen's Speech on Christmas day in the English speaking world. But foreigners often have trouble understanding English. Even the British can be confused and embarrassed in France, the USA or New Zealand.
French Au Pair Girl's Problem
When my son was small I had au pair girls from France living with me to help babysit when I was out teaching English as a home tutor. One of my au pair girls complained that she could not understand people in restaurants, cafes and bars. She asked me, 'Why do they say 'yeah' when the school books teach you to say 'yes'? She said, 'When I listen to the Queen's Speech I can understand every word.'
The problem is that in everyday conversation, poeple often use slang, short forms, and new words. The younger generation are quick to take up new words. This is not a new problem.
Arabic and Hebrew
I read in books that Arabic comes in two forms, street Arabic and classical Arabic.
Modern Hebrew also has two forms. One is modern Hebrew. The other is the language of the Bible, known to Christians as the Old Testament because Christians also follow the New Testament about Jesus.
Londoners today don't use the same vocabulary as Shakespeare. Modern English is a polyglot or a language including speaking many languages, words we call loan words.
French
My family keeps a list of French words used in English. We have a list of about 300 words. Not counting foods such as croissant, and cooking utensils such as the bain-marie, we have many common words, such as bouquet, ballet, garage, and other récherché words, such as naive, panache, and whole phrases such as pièce de résistance.
Other European languages also have influenced English vocabulary. From the German language we get the everyday words kindergarden, child garden, and delicatessen. Dutch is similar to German. From the Dutch, across the water, we get the word yacht, a kind of boat.
We also know many words from Italian, Spanish, and Latin, such as villa, a grand detached house, and sombrero, a large hat and mañana, meaning tomorrow.
Bungalows
Some words cause confusion. In India a bungalow is a detached house. In England it is a one-storey dwelling, which in the USA would be a called a ranch house.
Embarrassing Moments in France
When I have travelled and lived abroad I have had moments of confusion, even embarrassment. In France we could not understand why the grand hotel closed at 5 pm just when we drove up hoping to check in. The sign outside clearly said, Hotel de ville, which we assumed was city hotel. No, hotel de ville means Town Hall, the chief municipal office.
I went to France on a press trip. The local Prince was showing the English journalists his castle. He said, "Now you have seen the front side, I will show you my backside. "I had hysterics. In English, backside is slang for a part of your anatomy, below the waist, for what we also call euphemistically, posterior.
The French man then continued to send me further into hysterics by repeating, "Angela has asked to see my backside. She thought it would be interesting, unlike any backside you have seen in England. What is so funny?"
Embarrassment in New Zealand
In New Zealand, we drove around looking for our hotel. A friendly local told us the hotel was next to the station. We drove on looking for a railway station and could not see it. We asked again. We discovered that in New Zealand the sheep outnumber the poeple, and the buses, and New Zealanders use the word station for something to do with sheep, called a sheep station.
We drove to a beach bar and restaurant and saw a sign, no thongs. In England thongs are a modern name for what used to be called G-strings, ladies underwear revealing all at the back. I was not wearing thongs, neigher as underwear, not a bikini. The bar tender pointed at my shoes. Thongs, in New Zealand, are what the English call flip flops.
Embarrassment in the USA
In America, my greatest fear was realised; I said something rude. I wanted to buy stationery: a ruler, a pencil and a rubber.
I asked an assistant, "Do you sell rubbers?"
She answered, "No. You need to go a drug store." I walked around, found my ruler, a pencil, and a rubber!
I asked an assistant, "If this is not a rubber, what do you call it?"
"An eraser."
"You don't use the word rubber?"
"We do. But it means something else."
"What does it mean?"
"You buy it in a drug store. It used to be made of rubber. Now latex."
"Ah what we, in England call a condom, after the French city of that name."
So now you know what to say - and not say!
Chinese Pronunciation
Finally, a few local words. Please pronounce the letter rs R and L. I used to hear a joke that a pilot on a flight to China wished everybody 'a present fright'.
It's not just a joke. When you get on a flight to China, the pilot does say, "We wish you a peasant fright."
A peasant is a poor man. Pleasant is pleasing.
A flight is when a plane flies. A fright is what you get when it descends too fast.
The study of English, and other languages, is always a joy.
Singlish - my next speech. Pick you at the airport. Borrow instead of lend. Off the light instead of turn it off. That's another story.
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
Many people heard the Queen's Speech on Christmas day in the English speaking world. But foreigners often have trouble understanding English. Even the British can be confused and embarrassed in France, the USA or New Zealand.
French Au Pair Girl's Problem
When my son was small I had au pair girls from France living with me to help babysit when I was out teaching English as a home tutor. One of my au pair girls complained that she could not understand people in restaurants, cafes and bars. She asked me, 'Why do they say 'yeah' when the school books teach you to say 'yes'? She said, 'When I listen to the Queen's Speech I can understand every word.'
The problem is that in everyday conversation, poeple often use slang, short forms, and new words. The younger generation are quick to take up new words. This is not a new problem.
Arabic and Hebrew
I read in books that Arabic comes in two forms, street Arabic and classical Arabic.
Modern Hebrew also has two forms. One is modern Hebrew. The other is the language of the Bible, known to Christians as the Old Testament because Christians also follow the New Testament about Jesus.
Londoners today don't use the same vocabulary as Shakespeare. Modern English is a polyglot or a language including speaking many languages, words we call loan words.
French
My family keeps a list of French words used in English. We have a list of about 300 words. Not counting foods such as croissant, and cooking utensils such as the bain-marie, we have many common words, such as bouquet, ballet, garage, and other récherché words, such as naive, panache, and whole phrases such as pièce de résistance.
Other European languages also have influenced English vocabulary. From the German language we get the everyday words kindergarden, child garden, and delicatessen. Dutch is similar to German. From the Dutch, across the water, we get the word yacht, a kind of boat.
We also know many words from Italian, Spanish, and Latin, such as villa, a grand detached house, and sombrero, a large hat and mañana, meaning tomorrow.
Bungalows
Some words cause confusion. In India a bungalow is a detached house. In England it is a one-storey dwelling, which in the USA would be a called a ranch house.
Embarrassing Moments in France
When I have travelled and lived abroad I have had moments of confusion, even embarrassment. In France we could not understand why the grand hotel closed at 5 pm just when we drove up hoping to check in. The sign outside clearly said, Hotel de ville, which we assumed was city hotel. No, hotel de ville means Town Hall, the chief municipal office.
I went to France on a press trip. The local Prince was showing the English journalists his castle. He said, "Now you have seen the front side, I will show you my backside. "I had hysterics. In English, backside is slang for a part of your anatomy, below the waist, for what we also call euphemistically, posterior.
The French man then continued to send me further into hysterics by repeating, "Angela has asked to see my backside. She thought it would be interesting, unlike any backside you have seen in England. What is so funny?"
Embarrassment in New Zealand
In New Zealand, we drove around looking for our hotel. A friendly local told us the hotel was next to the station. We drove on looking for a railway station and could not see it. We asked again. We discovered that in New Zealand the sheep outnumber the poeple, and the buses, and New Zealanders use the word station for something to do with sheep, called a sheep station.
We drove to a beach bar and restaurant and saw a sign, no thongs. In England thongs are a modern name for what used to be called G-strings, ladies underwear revealing all at the back. I was not wearing thongs, neigher as underwear, not a bikini. The bar tender pointed at my shoes. Thongs, in New Zealand, are what the English call flip flops.
Embarrassment in the USA
In America, my greatest fear was realised; I said something rude. I wanted to buy stationery: a ruler, a pencil and a rubber.
I asked an assistant, "Do you sell rubbers?"
She answered, "No. You need to go a drug store." I walked around, found my ruler, a pencil, and a rubber!
I asked an assistant, "If this is not a rubber, what do you call it?"
"An eraser."
"You don't use the word rubber?"
"We do. But it means something else."
"What does it mean?"
"You buy it in a drug store. It used to be made of rubber. Now latex."
"Ah what we, in England call a condom, after the French city of that name."
So now you know what to say - and not say!
Chinese Pronunciation
Finally, a few local words. Please pronounce the letter rs R and L. I used to hear a joke that a pilot on a flight to China wished everybody 'a present fright'.
It's not just a joke. When you get on a flight to China, the pilot does say, "We wish you a peasant fright."
A peasant is a poor man. Pleasant is pleasing.
A flight is when a plane flies. A fright is what you get when it descends too fast.
The study of English, and other languages, is always a joy.
Singlish - my next speech. Pick you at the airport. Borrow instead of lend. Off the light instead of turn it off. That's another story.
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
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