False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
(moving this to the write thread )
Attic Greek: τέττᾰρες (téttares) "four"
Sheep counting*: teddera "three"
Teddera comes in some way from Brythonic *trīs, "three", (cognate with Attic Greek τρεῖς (treîs)), but no-one's entirely sure. Sheep counting systems tend to have non-multiples of 5 rhyme in pairs, with teddera followed by meddera, which ultimately derives from Brythonic *petwār, "four" (in other areas this is more clear with examples like pedder), and it's meddera that's ultimately "cognate" with τέττᾰρες
*I think mostly in some places in Cumbria, but my dad taught me tethera, and where I live it's tether. Few miles down the road and it's edder.
Attic Greek: τέττᾰρες (téttares) "four"
Sheep counting*: teddera "three"
Teddera comes in some way from Brythonic *trīs, "three", (cognate with Attic Greek τρεῖς (treîs)), but no-one's entirely sure. Sheep counting systems tend to have non-multiples of 5 rhyme in pairs, with teddera followed by meddera, which ultimately derives from Brythonic *petwār, "four" (in other areas this is more clear with examples like pedder), and it's meddera that's ultimately "cognate" with τέττᾰρες
*I think mostly in some places in Cumbria, but my dad taught me tethera, and where I live it's tether. Few miles down the road and it's edder.
You can tell the same lie a thousand times,
But it never gets any more true,
So close your eyes once more and once more believe
That they all still believe in you.
Just one time.
But it never gets any more true,
So close your eyes once more and once more believe
That they all still believe in you.
Just one time.
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
ema "rhea"
emu
emu
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
That's not really a false friend unless you're Brazilian and keep accidentally calling rheas emus in English. They're quite possibly cognates too, so probably not a coincidence either.
Glossing Abbreviations: COMP = comparative, C = complementiser, ACS / ICS = accessible / inaccessible, GDV = gerundive, SPEC / NSPC = specific / non-specific, AG = agent, E = entity (person, animal, thing)
________
MY MUSIC | MY PLANTS
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MY MUSIC | MY PLANTS
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
I guess I was looking too hard as to whether or not ema was derived from emu and didn't spend enough time to check and see if it was the other way around!Imralu wrote: ↑27 Feb 2018 02:35That's not really a false friend unless you're Brazilian and keep accidentally calling rheas emus in English. They're quite possibly cognates too, so probably not a coincidence either.
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
One I've been meaning to mention here:
canine
kanin, kaniini 'rabbit'
These look exactly like a typical modern neo-Latin-based internationalism adapted into these languages, but nope. Wiktionary tells me the Swedish word does actually have an etymology that ultimately goes back to Latin, but not to the same word (cunǐculus 'rabbit', as opposed to canis 'dog').
Speaking of Latin and canine rabbits, someone has apparently created a Canis lepus:
canine
kanin, kaniini 'rabbit'
These look exactly like a typical modern neo-Latin-based internationalism adapted into these languages, but nope. Wiktionary tells me the Swedish word does actually have an etymology that ultimately goes back to Latin, but not to the same word (cunǐculus 'rabbit', as opposed to canis 'dog').
Speaking of Latin and canine rabbits, someone has apparently created a Canis lepus:
Spoiler:
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
It's also related to <Cony>, which is weird, as I remember reading that it is of North Germanic stock, but maybe I was misrembering the fact that it comes from the Norman dialect of OldXonen wrote: ↑07 Mar 2018 00:10 One I've been meaning to mention here:
canine
kanin, kaniini 'rabbit'
These look exactly like a typical modern neo-Latin-based internationalism adapted into these languages, but nope. Wiktionary tells me the Swedish word does actually have an etymology that ultimately goes back to Latin, but not to the same word (cunǐculus 'rabbit', as opposed to canis 'dog').
Speaking of Latin and canine rabbits, someone has apparently created a Canis lepus:
Spoiler:
Many children make up, or begin to make up, imaginary languages. I have been at it since I could write.
-JRR Tolkien
-JRR Tolkien
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
I have a structural one: If you want to express "already" in Mandarin, you normally use 已经:
我已经有男朋友了。
Wǒ yǐjīng yǒu nánpéngyǒu le.
1SG already have boyfriend change_of_state
I already have a boyfriend.
However, if you negate this structure to:
我已经没有男朋友了。
Wǒ yǐjīng méiyǒu nánpéngyǒu le.
This normally does not mean "I don't have a boyfriend yet", as one propably would expect, but rather "I don't have a boyfriend anymore." The former would instead be:
我还没有男朋友。
Wǒ hái méiyǒu nánpéngyǒu.
1SG still not_have boyfriend
I don't have a boyfriend yet.
我已经有男朋友了。
Wǒ yǐjīng yǒu nánpéngyǒu le.
1SG already have boyfriend change_of_state
I already have a boyfriend.
However, if you negate this structure to:
我已经没有男朋友了。
Wǒ yǐjīng méiyǒu nánpéngyǒu le.
This normally does not mean "I don't have a boyfriend yet", as one propably would expect, but rather "I don't have a boyfriend anymore." The former would instead be:
我还没有男朋友。
Wǒ hái méiyǒu nánpéngyǒu.
1SG still not_have boyfriend
I don't have a boyfriend yet.
Wipe the glass. This is the usual way to start, even in the days, day and night, only a happy one.
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
Aryan and Arian.
Very unfortunate, given that the Witnesses were victims of the Holocaust, and they are classified by some Religious Studies experts as "Neo-Arian"
Very unfortunate, given that the Witnesses were victims of the Holocaust, and they are classified by some Religious Studies experts as "Neo-Arian"
Many children make up, or begin to make up, imaginary languages. I have been at it since I could write.
-JRR Tolkien
-JRR Tolkien
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
謝謝 xièxie "thank you" and 泄瀉 xièxiè "diarrhea"
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Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
And suddenly, the Japanese city of Niigata took on a whole new frightening resonance. . .
Having regained composure, of course, one realized that it was not, in fact, that character, but xì (潟), which means that our fair city is not 新瀉, but 新潟. We can put the hip waders away. Chalk it up to a pre-coffee senior moment. I will, however, sleep better tonight.
As for 謝謝, neutral toning that second syllable is, like, so mainland . My Taiwan dictionary still lists it as xièxiè, making your coincidence all the more unfortunate.
☯ 道可道,非常道
☯ 名可名,非常名
☯ 名可名,非常名
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
That's definitely good to hear as I almost certainly said xièxiè during my trip to China a few years back...
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
Japanese has stuff like this too since it took Chinese vocabulary but ignored the tones.
So we have things like 校門 kōmon "school gate" and 肛門 kōmon "anus" (both gates, of different sorts).
Also since you're talking about diarrhoea, the name Gary gets Japanesified as Geirii, even though e.g. Mary is Merii, probably in part to avoid it sounding like 下痢 geri "diarrhoea".
So we have things like 校門 kōmon "school gate" and 肛門 kōmon "anus" (both gates, of different sorts).
Also since you're talking about diarrhoea, the name Gary gets Japanesified as Geirii, even though e.g. Mary is Merii, probably in part to avoid it sounding like 下痢 geri "diarrhoea".
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
When I started learning Chinese (about eight months ago), I always was like "oh, cool, the last syllable is 5th tone, that means I don't have to learn it!"
Well yeah, that was obviously a misconception. Now I'm stuck with a bunch of words I pronounce wrongly with 4th tone although they are 5th tone. So yes, chances are high that I wish random Chinese people to get diarrhea if they show me the way.
Wipe the glass. This is the usual way to start, even in the days, day and night, only a happy one.
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
You know that the Dao De Jing can probably be found at your Library, there's no need to ask random Chinese people about it
Many children make up, or begin to make up, imaginary languages. I have been at it since I could write.
-JRR Tolkien
-JRR Tolkien
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
To be clear, (泄瀉 xièxiè) is hardly a common way of expressing the concept of "diarrhea", so even if your Chinese pronunciation is perfectly horrid, no sane person is going to construe your well-intentioned expression of courtoisie as "May your bowels evacuate like Vesuvius".Iyionaku wrote: ↑18 Apr 2018 14:27When I started learning Chinese (about eight months ago), I always was like "oh, cool, the last syllable is 5th tone, that means I don't have to learn it!"
Well yeah, that was obviously a misconception. Now I'm stuck with a bunch of words I pronounce wrongly with 4th tone although they are 5th tone. So yes, chances are high that I wish random Chinese people to get diarrhea if they show me the way.
Too, I'm scarcely on a crusade or anything, but I find the term "5th tone" an unfortunate term in Mandarin nomenclature. I would kind of consider it as the tonal equivalent of a schwa. Is pronouncing "different" with two syllables or three "right" or "wrong"? Answers will vary. Perhaps for some, a three-syllable "different" will sound affected or pretentious. I think this is also so for not neutral-toning. Not neutralizing 子 would sound really over the top most of the time, but other cases? I'm not sure there's a "right" or "wrong". Just listen to what the locals are doing and play along.
☯ 道可道,非常道
☯ 名可名,非常名
☯ 名可名,非常名
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
sellerie 'saddlery'
Sellerie 'celery'
Just stumbled upon this one and thought it was kind of funny that the Germanisation of the French loan 'céleri' is written the same as another French word
Sellerie 'celery'
Just stumbled upon this one and thought it was kind of funny that the Germanisation of the French loan 'céleri' is written the same as another French word
Native:
Learning: , , ,
Zhér·dûn a tonal Germanic conlang
old stuff: Цiски | Noattȯč | Tungōnis Vīdīnōs
Learning: , , ,
Zhér·dûn a tonal Germanic conlang
old stuff: Цiски | Noattȯč | Tungōnis Vīdīnōs
Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
<Być> /bɨt͡ɕ/ "To be" <Bitch>
Retardation" "Offensive Term for Cognitive Handicap" "Literary device involving the slowing of the pace of a work of fiction for dramatic effect".
I found this in Greek and Roman Classical Literature class, and after the professor introduced the literary device as a non-offensive term said "We are skipping chapters VIII-XI of the Aeneid because they are retarded."
Retardation" "Offensive Term for Cognitive Handicap" "Literary device involving the slowing of the pace of a work of fiction for dramatic effect".
I found this in Greek and Roman Classical Literature class, and after the professor introduced the literary device as a non-offensive term said "We are skipping chapters VIII-XI of the Aeneid because they are retarded."
Many children make up, or begin to make up, imaginary languages. I have been at it since I could write.
-JRR Tolkien
-JRR Tolkien
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Re: False friends and other unfortunate coincidences
To my understanding, these are etymologically related. The underlying meaning of "retard" is "to slow down". So "mentally retarded" means "slowed down mentally". See, for instance, flame retardant.Shemtov wrote: ↑10 May 2018 03:02 Retardation" "Offensive Term for Cognitive Handicap" "Literary device involving the slowing of the pace of a work of fiction for dramatic effect".
I found this in Greek and Roman Classical Literature class, and after the professor introduced the literary device as a non-offensive term said "We are skipping chapters VIII-XI of the Aeneid because they are retarded."
♂♥♂♀
Squirrels chase koi . . . chase squirrels
My Kankonian-English dictionary: 86,336 words and counting
31,416: The number of the conlanging beast!
Squirrels chase koi . . . chase squirrels
My Kankonian-English dictionary: 86,336 words and counting
31,416: The number of the conlanging beast!