Miscellaneous: Today, I found out that while on foreign exchange for over six...

By nullroute - 16/02/2016 11:34 - Switzerland

Today, I found out that while on foreign exchange for over six months now, I have been pronouncing the word for "night" in German wrong. Apparently, this whole time, the way that I have been pronouncing it in German means "naked". This explains a lot. FML

I agree, your life sucks 20 147

You deserved it 2 813

Thanksgiving: Turkeys and Skids
Family meals that turn absurd, because Thanksgiving is also about laughing at little disasters. More…

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Same thing different taste

Scheiße!

By Xerfox - 03/07/2016 18:05 - Germany - Löwenstein

Today, I found out the German I've been learning for nearly a month is a dialect only spoken by people in a small area of the country. This means I'll need to re-learn most of what I thought I knew. FML

I agree, your life sucks 13 504

You deserved it 1 986

Back home

By Anonymous - 30/12/2012 19:21 - Germany - Neunkirchen

Today, I returned to Germany for a break from my studies abroad. I got lost while out for groceries, so I tried asking a guy for directions. I went totally blank and strained to think of the right words, prompting him to mutter about rude foreigners not bothering to learn the local language. FML

I agree, your life sucks 28 045

You deserved it 5 367

Kwinoah?

By Anonymous - 29/01/2023 02:30 - United States

Today, I found out that I've been pronouncing "quinoa" wrong for years. FML

I agree, your life sucks 560

You deserved it 268

By traveling - 09/07/2013 11:18

Today, I arrived in Germany for a summer-long stay. The family I'm supposed to stay with had said they spoke fluent English. They don't. I don't speak German. It's going to be a quiet two months. FML

I agree, your life sucks 47 979

You deserved it 6 415

The more you know

By Anonymous - 12/03/2023 06:00

Today, I learned that I've been saying a word wrong my whole life and all my friends have been too polite to correct me, when I found out that "Segue" and "Segway" are pronounced the same. FML

I agree, your life sucks 610

You deserved it 185

By nolinguist - 22/11/2009 17:39 - Austria

Today, I arrived in Austria. Within about an hour, I realized that I couldn't understand any "German". Turns out they have a totally different dialect here to anything I was taught in school. I'm here till May. FML

I agree, your life sucks 28 316

You deserved it 18 792

By lostforwords - 06/08/2011 19:10 - Ireland

Today, I found out that my German wasn't as great as I thought it was. Trying to give directions to some German tourists, I tried to say, "I hope I don't get you lost." Turns out I actually said something closer to, "I hope I don't seduce you." FML

I agree, your life sucks 28 083

You deserved it 6 303

Moving on

By Awesome - 17/08/2011 00:05

Today, I found out that I was moving to Germany. I'm going to be put back a year in school because of the system change. I also don't speak a word of German. Why? Because my mother wants to brag about this experience to her friends. FML

I agree, your life sucks 34 980

You deserved it 2 802

By anon - 25/09/2014 05:48 - United States - Germantown

Today, I have learned a lot of "big" words from reading so much, but can actually only pronounce about half of them correctly. FML

I agree, your life sucks 29 887

You deserved it 6 803

By Jan - 27/02/2013 04:50 - United States - Ann Arbor

Today, a German guy came into the place where I work. Eager to use the German that I'd learned from my immigrant mother and her family, I started a conversation. Things were going well until the term I grew up thinking meant "Africa" turned out to be racist, translating as "Ape Land." FML

I agree, your life sucks 33 288

You deserved it 4 324

WCARlover 34

Tuesday 16 February 2016 17:48

Why would it take 6 months for someone to correct you? I can imagine you saying something like "last naked we went out to dinner" would make a person confused and then realize you meant night and would teach you how to say it correctly way before 6 months went by

BlackHawkSavior 28

Tuesday 16 February 2016 17:48

I can just imagine OP asking, "Are we hanging out naked?"

Comments

heyalmao 13

Tuesday 16 February 2016 20:44

Looks like you'll have some naked nights.

xLIGHTS_fml 23

Tuesday 16 February 2016 20:50

It's a common mistake for Americans. I'm fluent but my dad is American and pronounced it that way until he was fluent too.

Futacy 29

Tuesday 16 February 2016 21:09

I'm surprised nobody corrected you, I guess Grammar Nazi Germany is long gone.

Waschlappen 23

Tuesday 16 February 2016 22:05

Aw, that sucks OP, but don't worry, people tend to let it go when it's a foreigner speaking, and those to words are similar. My German teacher in High School told us about a student who did something way worse at her final exam. She was suppose to talk about her spare time activities, one of which where shooting, but instead of saying 'Schiessen', she said 'Scheissen', which instead means shit. Very embarrassing.

UltJan 11

Tuesday 16 February 2016 22:23

Good Night > Good Naked

BlubberKing 15

Tuesday 16 February 2016 22:25

"See you tomorrow naked!"

Qualm 6

Tuesday 16 February 2016 22:33

JFK once said he was a jelly donut during a speech in Germany so don't feel too bad.

NalaBaloo 13

Tuesday 16 February 2016 22:42

Well, a "Berliner" is a person from Berlin as well as the pastry, so he wasn't wrong. ;)

Sora_McKain 36

Thursday 12 May 2016 18:37

Ich bin ein Hamburger?

HelenErutherford 18

Tuesday 16 February 2016 22:42

I'm actually German and I know this phenomenon from personal experience. it's just one of those things you don't correct so you don't seem impolite but on the inside your laughing your ads off.