False friends (or cognates) are words in different languages that look and sound very similar, if not identical, but that have different meanings. Depending on who you are speaking to in English, mixing them up could be rather hilarious. But it may also be quite disastrous.
Here’s a list of the most frequent and likely embarrassing English - German false friends to grasp before a language immersion trip to England.
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Gift vs gift
The word ‘gift’ in English actually means to give someone a present. So completely different from the German translation which is ‘poison’ or ‘toxin’, which would obviously be a really terrible gift to give an English host family. Really best not to confuse them!
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Will vs will
These two false cognates in English really take some remembering because they are so similar. In German ‘ich will’ means ‘I want’, however ‘I will’ in English translates to ‘ich werde’. And whilst they might kind of make sense if mixed up, it won’t be what you’re meaning to say.
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Fart vs fahrt
Despite being pronounced exactly the same, these words have completely different meanings. The German word ‘(die) Fahrt’ translates as ‘journey’ in English. Whereas the definition of the English word ‘fart’ is ‘an emission of wind from the anus’. You see the problem?!
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Sea vs see
This pair of words are often mixed up because they are both in fact bodies of water. But they refer to different things. The English word ‘sea’ corresponds to the German word ‘(das) Meer’ and the German word ‘(die) See’ means lake in English. A little bit confusing right?!
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Wink vs winken
Now these two English false friends are relatively similar in that they can both be greetings. However there is a difference in the exact meaning. The German verb ‘winken’ signifies ‘to wave’ whilst ‘to wink ’in English corresponds to the German verb ‘zwinkern or blinzeln’.
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Bad vs bad
These false friends in English language don’t remotely correspond to the same meaning. The German noun ‘(das) Bad’ translates to ‘bathroom’ in English. While the German equivalent for the English adjective ‘bad’ is ‘schlecht, schlimm or böse’ depending on the context.
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Caution vs kaution
Beware replacing ‘c’ with ‘k’ when it comes to these false friends in the English language. The English word ‘caution’ means to watch out for a hazard whereas the German word ‘(die) kaution’ means ‘deposit’, for example when making a large purchase.
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Mist vs mist
The word ‘mist’ in English isn’t used to refer to something as ‘crap or rubbish’. It does in fact mean a light fog in the air, which is ‘leichter Nebel’ in German. The equivalent of using it as an non offensive expletive in English would be to say something like ‘damn’ or ‘damn it’.
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Bald vs bald
The word ‘bald’ is an adjective in English and means to have a scalp wholly or partly lacking hair. This is miles apart from the German adverb meaning of the word which is ‘soon’ in English. The translation for being bald-headed in German is ‘kahlköpfig or glatzköpfig’.
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Body bag vs bodybag
In English and German these words refer to bags used on a body in very different ways. The English version of body bag refers to a zip up sack used to transport dead bodies (der Leichensack in German). The German ‘bodybag’ means a handbag worn across the body.
Consuming as much English language media as you can is a great way to pick out false friends in preparation for an English language immersion experience.
But also don’t sweat it too much either - you don’t need to be perfect!
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