Word that sounds like life

Most common words emphasized in bold.

Translation

Find a translation for Life in other languages:

حياة

Leben

vivo

vida

elämä

la vie

जिंदगी

kehidupan

vita

החיים

生活

ಜೀವನ

생명

leven

liv

vida

viaţă

жизнь

liv

வாழ்க்கை

జీవితం

ชีวิต

життя

زندگی

生活

生活

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Popularity rank by frequency of use

How popular is Life among other rhymes?

Word Cloud

A graphical representation of the words that rhyme with Life.

Citation

Use the citation below to add this rhymes to your bibliography:

Would you like this sound words list as a free PDF poster with pictures? Click here to get it.

We hear different sounds all the time. But how do we actually say them as words?

There are many different words for sounds. Let’s look at 42 sound words in English (plus some useful idioms with sound words).

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1. Sounds of things hitting things

Thud

The sound of something heavy falling and hitting the ground.

I don’t know why she’s dropping a brick from a high chair.

But it does make a fun sound.

Whack

The sound of a short, heavy hit.

This can also be used as a verb:

“She whacked him in the head with the pillow.”

Slap

The sound of someone hitting something (or someone) with an open hand.

You’ll hear this word a lot in idioms:

A slap in the face is used when someone has done something bad to you (given you something you don’t want or not given you something that you do want, for example), usually unfairly.

“I did all of the work for the project and then Sam gets the promotion — not fair. What a slap in the face!”

A slap on the wrist is when someone gets punished — but very, very lightly. Much less than they deserve:

“You heard about Hexon Oil? They polluted every lake in the country and only got a $2000 fine. It was barely a slap on the wrist, really.”

A slap-up meal is basically a massive meal — the kind of meal you have when you really don’t want to think about your weight or your health. Just enjoy it!

“I’ve sold the house! I’m taking you all out for a slap-up meal at Mrs Miggins’ pie shop!”

A slapdash job or slapdash work is work done really badly. I remember waiting in a cafe at Sofia airport, and these Austrian guys found it quite funny that there was just one plug socket in the whole cafe. And it was halfway up the wall. The designer definitely did a slapdash job:

“Don’t get that builder. He did such a slapdash job on our house that the roof fell in.”

Knock

OK, so “knock” is the sound that you make when you arrive at your friend’s house and hit their door with your hand.

There’s also the phrase “don’t knock it.”

It basically means “don’t criticise it.”

“Banana and crisp sandwiches are actually really good! Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it!”

Rattle

Stay away! It’s a rattlesnake. And it’s rattling its tail.

As a verb, “rattle” can also mean “disturb.”

Think about classic action heroes.

They can fall out of planes, jump off the edges of mountains, survive car crashes, helicopter crashes and bike crashes; they can be forced to swim underwater for five minutes and then run 200 metres over burning coals.

And after that, they’re just fine, right?

That’s because nothing rattles them. Nothing!

Splat

The sound of something wet hitting something else.

Like when you throw eggs or rotten tomatoes at the visiting politician.

Or a water balloon at your friend.

Clunk

This is one of those words that sounds like it sounds, if you know what I mean.

It’s a heavy, dull sound.

Clang

A noisy, metallic sound.

Clink

This is like clang’s baby brother.

It’s a small, sharp sound — usually made when metal or glass touches something.

Patter

A light tapping sound.

We usually use it to describe rain:

“I love sleeping through storms, don’t you! The patter of rain on the roof and knowing you’re safe and sound in bed.”

When I was a kid (and for too long afterwards — she still does this when I visit) my mother would greet me when I came downstairs in the morning with:

“You’re awake! I thought I heard the patter of tiny feet!”
“Mum — I’m 37 years old.”

Clatter

Clang is noisy and unpleasant, right?

Now imagine lots of clangs. That’s clatter.

Smash

The sound of something breaking into a million pieces. Usually violently.

“Smashing” can also mean “excellent”:

“She did such a smashing job that we hired her full time.”

Slam

We usually use this to describe closing a door very loudly.

But we can use it for other similar situations.

You can slam the phone down (if you’re using a non-mobile phone, like the retro kid you are).

You can also slam a glass on the table. (Think tequila shots.)

If someone slams the door in your face, they basically decide not to help you or give you information that you need.

“I called the helpline about it, but they refused to help. Completely slammed the door in my face.”

You can also just “slam” something. It means “give a very, very negative review.”

“The New York Times completely slammed his new book. But I thought it was pretty good.”

2. Mechanical sounds

Honk

When I lived in Istanbul, I would play a game.

I would try to count to five without hearing a single car honk its horn.

I never got past three seconds.

Also — it was a terrible game. But I was bored.

Whir

A continuous sound — usually quiet, often calming.

Tick

We almost always think of clocks and watches when we hear the word “tick.”

It’s that tiny, short sound.

So it wouldn’t surprise you to hear that we can use the phrase “time is ticking” to mean “hurry up!”

“Let’s get started! Time’s ticking.”

If you’re a bit angry (not furious — just a bit), then you can say that you’re “ticked off.”

“To be honest, I’m a bit ticked off. I didn’t expect you to tell everyone about what I told you. It was private.”

“In a tick” can also mean “in a minute,” “in a second,” “in a moment” or just “soon.”

“Take a seat. I’ll be with you in a tick.”

Click

A small, sharp sound.

Think about a light switch.

Or this annoying guy and his annoying pen.

When you click with someone, you immediately get on well. You start talking and it feels as if you’ve always been friends.

“I’ve been friends with Gudrun for 20 years. We clicked as soon as we met.”

Bang

A loud noise! Usually sudden.

This is most closely associated with guns. But the building site next to my house also produces a lot of bangs.

If you go out with a bang, you finish or leave something in a super-dramatic way.

“Wow! His last day of work and he throws coffee in the boss’s face! Talk about going out with a bang!”

When someone bangs on about something, they talk for ages about it while successfully boring the life out of whoever has the bad luck to listen to them.

“If you could just stop banging on about your new computer for a minute, I’d like to talk to you about what happened last weekend.”

Buzz

The sound of something vibrating.

When we talk about the buzz of a place, we’re talking about that special energy it has.

Some cities (like Vienna) have a real buzz, while some cities (like Swindon) don’t.

“What I miss about Istanbul most is the buzz. And the food. But mostly the buzz.”

You can also buzz someone in when you’re at home, and someone wants to get into the building. It saves you from having to walk all the way downstairs to let them in.

“Hey! I’m outside your flat now. Can you buzz me in?”

Finally, you can give someone a buzz. It just means “give them a quick call.”

“Let’s have that drink on Friday. Just give me a buzz, and I’ll let you know where I am.”

3. Electronic sounds

Ping

This is the sound of a very small bell.

Think of a typewriter or a hotel reception desk.

Blip

A ping will last for a long time (piiiinnnggggg). But a blip is very, very short.

Think of a radar in those films with too many submarines in.

Beep

A blip sounds quite nice, but a beep can get very annoying very quickly.

I don’t know how people working as supermarket cashiers don’t go crazy. Do they still hear the beeps when they go to sleep at night?

4. Organic sounds

Snap

A sudden breaking sound — think of the sound of wood breaking.

I guess because it’s quite an unpredictable sound, we can also use “snap” as a verb to mean “suddenly get angry.” When you snap, it’s probably a result of lots of things building up.

“It was when her kid put his school tie in the toaster that she finally snapped.”

It also has a second meaning.

Have you ever tried to talk to someone, and instead of saying “Hi!” or “Good to see you!” or “Nice hair,” they just angrily shout at you — completely unpredictable and sudden?

Then they snapped at you.

“I wouldn’t talk to him right now, if I were you. I just asked him if he was OK, and he snapped at me.”

You can also just say “snap” when someone else has something that you have. It could be a plan, an interest, or something physical, like a T-shirt.

“No way! Snap! I’ve got the exact same phone.”

Finally, there’s a snap election.

It’s a general election that the prime minister or president suddenly announces — usually because they think they’ll win. All of a sudden, we’re voting. Again!

“She said she wouldn’t call a snap election. Then she did.”

Crack

It’s like a loud snap.

If you want to celebrate, you can do so in style — by cracking open a bottle of champagne:

“You got the job?! Awesome — let’s crack open a bottle, yeah?”

If you drink too much of it, you might find EVERYTHING funny and just crack up all the time. It means suddenly start laughing. A lot. Until your face hurts.

“I told him my idea, and he just cracked up. I didn’t think it was that funny.”

Crackle

Lots of small cracks.

Fire and fireworks crackle. And not much else.

Pop

A tiny, little, mini explosion sound.

Because it’s such a short sound, we use it in phrasal verbs to describe something quick.

You can pop out (go outside — but only for a bit):

“I’m just popping out for some fresh air. See you in a few minutes.”

Or you can pop in somewhere (visit — but only for a bit):

“When you’re in town, why not pop in for a coffee?”

Sizzle

The sound of food cooking.

Rustle

There are basically only two things that rustle.

Leaves (especially dry, autumn leaves) and paper.

To rustle something up means to make a quick meal — like a sandwich or some toast.

“You haven’t eaten? Give me two minutes — I’ll rustle something up.”

Rumble

A continuous, deep sound.

Think of thunder.

Or your stomach when you’re really hungry.

5. Water sounds

Fizz

That nice sound of bubbles popping. Think about sparkling water or champagne.

Squelch

You just need to say this word to understand what it means.

Go on, say it. Feels good, doesn’t it?

It’s basically the sound of walking in mud.

Gurgle

This is the sound of bubbles being created.

Imagine lying down in the green grass next to a beautiful stream.

What can you hear?

The gurgle of the stream of course.

And the lion. Look out for the lion.

Glug

If gurgle is a series of sounds, then glug is a single one of those sounds.

Think of how you sound when you’re drinking water quickly.

Drip

“Drip” looks like “drop,” right?

Well, “drip” is the sound that a drop makes when it hits something.

Splash

The sound of something hitting water (or any liquid).

Think of the sound of kids in the bath.

Or the sound at the end of a water slide.

If you feel like spending a little more money than you should, then you splash out.

“Yeah, it’s a bit pricey. But it’s my birthday. I’m gonna splash out.”

Trickle

This is the sound of liquid flowing very slowly.

Squeal

Don’t step on the rat’s tail. He’ll squeal really loudly.

Also, it’s not nice. Leave the rat alone, you monster.

Squeak

A squeak is a small, high-pitched sound.

Think of the sound of a mouse.

Or an old bed.

Or a door that needs oil.

I once had a pair of shoes that squeaked a lot.

You can also use the phrase “a squeak out of someone” to describe any sound coming out of their mouth at all. It’s usually used in the negative.

“Right. He’s coming. I don’t want to hear a squeak out of either of you until he’s gone. I’ll do the talking.”

Hiss

OK. Repeat after me:

“Ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss.”

Good — you’ve just made a hiss.

Swish

This is another word that sounds like it sounds. (These words are called onomatopoeia, by the way.)

It’s a bit like a mixture between a hiss and a rustle.

Creak

When you open that old, heavy wooden door.

Or decide to take your kids to a playground that was built in the ‘50s.

Then expect to hear a lot of loud, high-pitched sounds of wood and metal rubbing together.

A lot of creaks.

Scrape

The sound of something hard or sharp rubbing against something else.

We use this a lot as a verb.

You might have to scrape ice off your car on winter mornings.

Or scrape the pancake off the pan after you’ve burned it.

Or scrape chewing gum off the table. Seriously, why do people do that?

There’s also the idiom “to scrape the bottom of the barrel.”

We use it when we’ve almost completely run out of options, and all we have are the worst choices.

“Is this the best we can do? We’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel here. I mean some of them don’t even have faces.”

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Congratulations! You now know 42 sound words in English (plus some new idioms).

So let’s practice:

1. Have you splashed out on something recently (like a slap-up meal or clothes)?
2. What ticks you off the most?
3. Can you remember cracking up over something that wasn’t funny? What was it?

Answer in the comments!

Did you like this post? Then be awesome and share by clicking the blue button below.

There is a hell’ in Hello’, lie’ in Believe’ and if’ in Life’. Sounds like a life lesson, doesn’t it? Well, these are actually tricks to remember the spelling of the trickiest parts of those words. Otherwise, one might spell them Halo’ or Belive’.

The above mentioned trick is one of the most used techniques to teach students the correct spelling of a word.

It is called a spelling mnemonic, a device often used to teach words with irregular spelling.

Does the term sound foreign to you?

It isn’t.

Spelling Mnemonic Definition

So let’s start with the basic. What is Spelling Mnemonic?

Mnemonic is a tool or procedure used for improving memory. It takes information from what the learner already knows and connects those information with the target word or any other content.

Simply put, it helps us learn a new thing and remember it through sentences, images etc.

This way the learner can relate the newly learned content to their familiar things; therefore, becomes familiar with the content faster.

There are multiple techniques of mnemonic including phonetic mnemonics, spelling mnemonics, keywords, acronyms, the Yodai’ method etc.

When to Use Spelling Mnemonics

Consider the word Queue’. It is difficult for children or ESL students to remember the spelling of a word that sounds only like the first letter. That is where the mnemonics come handy.

Spelling Mnemonics are the best for spelling the words that doesn’t follow the traditional spelling rules. Here are some of the cases:

Silent Letter

Words with silent letters are tricky to spell, especially if you’re using phonetic spelling methods. For example:

• Silent-C: Muscle, Scene, Conscious
• Silent-D: Edge, Knowledge, Wednesday
• Silent-G: Reign, Design, High, Gnome
• Silent-K: Knowledge, Knight, Knit
• Silent-T: Often, Listen
• And many more

Double Letters

Some of the words contains double letters that can’t be heard when pronounced such as

• Double-O: Zoo, Book, Spoon
• Double-P: Happy, Disappoint
• Double-E: See, Bee, Eel, Fees, Knee
• Double-S: Assumption, Blossom, Processing

What other words with double letters do you find hard to spell?

Irregular Spelling Patterns

These types of words often sound different than they are spelled. The spelling rules are also invalid in these cases. For example:

	Long e	Short e	Long a
EA	Leaf, Plead	Bread	Earth
EI	Received	Foreign	Reindeer
IE	Achieved, Believe	Friendly
AI	Aid	Gain, Plain

Learning phonetic spelling can help you understand the proper pronunciation. Check out examples of phonetic spelling to accelerate your learning speed.

Common Irregularly spelled words

Cold, Brought, Eyes, Father, Enough, From etc.

Make Your Own Spelling Mnemonics

It is a proven fact that you remember topics better when you have some practical experience them rather than simple memorizing facts. So obviously, the best way to remember a spelling mnemonic is to make one yourself.

The process itself helps you to understand and remember the spelling better. You can make your own strategies, assign words that are easier for you to remember. Here is how you make your own mnemonic:

Sentence Making

• Take the first letter of the word to remember and assign a word
• Repeat it till the end of the word.
• Make a sentence with the assigned words. It is okay if it doesn’t make much sense! The sillier they are, the better.
• You can change the assigned words to make the sentence easier to remember.
• It’s a clever idea to assign the new word to the first letter and make a sentence related to it.

Example

Does: Dad only eats sardines.

Sail: Sail Across Inari Lake

Rhythm: Rhythm Makes Your Two Hips Move

• You can assign a word to a chunk of letters instead of just one.

Example

Friend: FRIday END

Foreign: FOR Eating Ice, Go North

Remember the Tricky Parts

• Find the parts of the word you struggle to remember. Is it the double letters or the silent letter?
• Assign words or items to those letter.

Example

The word Necessary has a Collar and two Sleeves.

The word can accommodate 2 C and 2 M.

Find words inside the bigger word, make sentences to remember them.

Example

Emma faced a dilemma.Spelling Mnemonics: Tricks to Learn Irregularly Spelled Words

Be sure of your measurements.

Here, there, everywhere!

Are you curious to find out creative spelling art activities? Check out this guide!

Online Mnemonic Generator

There are a number of online mnemonic generator that will make mnemonics for the word you need to remember. But remember, the mnemonics they generate might be difficult for you to remember. So consider them as ideas to make your own.

Spacefem

Spacefem is an online mnemonic generator where you need to enter the target word and they will assign a word to each of its letter. They won’t generate a functional sentence though.

The Mnemonicizer

They help you make your own mnemonics using the letters of the word you want to learn. They provide a list of words for each letter and you can also add your own.

Popular Mnemonics

You can always use the popular mnemonics that never fails. They are widely used and easy to find on the internet. Here is a list of mnemonics for words that are often misspelled:

• Never believe a lie.
• That liar looks familiar.
• Miss Pell never misspell
• I Got Hairy Toes (-IGHT words such as Light, Might, Bright)
• Have a piece of the pie.
• A Rat In The House May Eat The Ice Cream. (Arithmetic)
• Slaughter is laughter with an S.
• You need to get her and you’ll be together.
• Desert is sandy but dessert is sweetly sweet.
• Can’t Open My Eyes (Come)
• You hear with your ear.
• Big Elephants Can Always Understand Small Elephants (Because)
• Your principal is your pal.
• I saw an ad for a dress at this address.
• People Eat Orange Peels Like Elephants (People)
• Right! I Go Home Tonight! (Right)
• I c’ that you want to acquire it.
• Silly Aunts In Dresses (Said)
• Laugh And You Get Happy (Laugh)
• I put the sass in assassin.
• Every New Ostriches Use Green Hat (Enough)
• An island is land surrounded by water.
• There is always a rat in separat
• CIA has special agents.
• Only Cats’ Eyes Are Narrow (Ocean)
• Oh You Lucky Duck (Could, Would, Should)

What other mnemonics do you know that might help to remember a complex word?

Spelling Rhymes to Remember

Rhymes are a fun way to learn spelling and not just kids, even older students love it. Remember the movie Matilda’ where the students learnt spelling Difficulty’ with a rhyme?

Mrs. D, Mrs. I

Mrs. F-F-I

Mrs. C, Mrs. U

Mrs. L-T-Y

Let’s spell another word using this rhyme.

Mrs. M, Mrs. I

Mrs. S-S-I

Mrs. S-S-I

Mrs. P-P-I

Can you guess the word? That’s right.

It’s Mississippi!

Rhyming is a technique that always comes handy in teaching spelling. Students can easily memorize Rhyme Spelling Mnemonics as they are stored by acoustic encoding in their brains.

You can make a rhyme with the letters, or you might make rhymes about the rules too. For example:

I before E

Except after C

Or when sounded A

As in neighbour and weigh

Or

Q and U

Stick like a glue

When -ing comes to play

E runs away

You can also make rhymes with similarly spelled words to remember. That makes it easier for students to remember more words.

The cat ate a rat

And after that

The naughty cat sat

On a big yellow mat

Can you make a rhyme for a word the kids need to learn how to spell? How about you teach your students to make their own rhymes?

Try these fun activities in class to keep your students engaged with the seemingly boring lessons!

Learn more about the stages of spelling development. Check out our thorough guide now!

Spelling Mnemonics for Struggling Spellers

Think about soccer. If you don’t improve your passing skill, no matter which passing technique you use, the result will always be disappointing.

Just like that, spelling mnemonics instructions are mostly based on memory techniques. So you need to improve your child’s memory skill first.

The problem with spelling mnemonic is that it misses the idea of sequential learning. And that is for valid reason as it mainly deals with the words with irregular spelling.

But for children with learning disabilities, who mostly depend on the sequence, patterns and rules, this technique might be overwhelming. They might mix up those rhymes and other instructions which leads to incorrect spelling.

However, if you teach your child the skill of memory first, then they can use the technique without much effort. You can also check your child’s progress with SpellQuiz Spelling Test and find out if they are using the instructions successfully.

But spelling mnemonics can be of special use who struggles to learn with traditional methods, namely memorization. It is helpful to those who face difficulties with specific strategies. Spelling mnemonics give them a different way to approach the words. They can get creative with building their own mnemonics.

Final Thoughts

Always make sure you remember the spelling mnemonics correctly, especially the ones you made yourself.

• Maintain a notebook and write down the mnemonics.
• Print posters of mnemonics and hang them on the wall of your room or classroom.
• Use images of assigned words and the target word.
• Revise them once in a while.

The uses of mnemonics are not only limited to spelling learning. You can use those techniques to teach months of a year, planet names and many more. Try the methods given above to expand your vocabulary along with your students. Use SpellQuiz Vocabulary Test to assess your vocabulary collection.

Happy Spelling!

What is onomatopoeia? To describe it in a zip, an onomatopoeia is a word that smacks the reader’s ears and makes them pop. Onomatopoeia words describe sounds by copying the sound itself.

Crash! Bang! Whiz! An onomatopoeia doesn’t just describe sounds, it emulates the sound itself. With this literary device, you can hear the meow of a cat, the whoosh of a bicycle, the whir of the laundry machine, and the murmur of a stream.

While some onomatopoeia words might seem juvenile to use, there are many more words to choose from. These sound devices can texture your writing with style and flare, while also drawing the reader into the world of your writing. So, let’s listen to this delightful tool that revs in the writer’s toolkit. We’ll take a look at some onomatopoeia examples in literature and discuss the surprising poetics of this euphonious device.

But first, let’s start with the basics, defining what an onomatopoeia is and isn’t. what is onomatopoeia?

Onomatopoeia Definition

An onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like the noise it describes. The spelling and pronunciation of that word is directly influenced by the sound it defines in real life. All onomatopoeia words describe specific sounds.

Onomatopoeia definition: a word that sounds like the noise it describes.

Some onomatopoeia examples include the words boing, gargle, clap, zap, and pitter-patter. When these words are used in context, you can almost hear what they describe: the boing of a spring, the clap of chalkboard erasers, and the pitter-patter of rain falling on the pavement like tiny footsteps.

Including onomatopoeia words in your writing can enhance the imagery of your story or poem. Technically, onomatopoeia is not a form of auditory imagery, because auditory imagery is the use of figurative language (like similes and metaphors) to describe sound. But, an onomatopoeia can certainly complement auditory imagery, as both devices heighten the sonic qualities of the work.

Note that not all onomatopoeia words are words listed in the dictionary. Many authors have made up their own sounds to complement their writing. In our onomatopoeia examples, you’ll see nonce words like “skulch,” “glush,” and “pit-a-pat.”

Sometimes, when these nonce onomatopoeia words are used often enough in everyday speech, they become dictionary entries. The etymology for “tattarrattat” is James Joyce’s Ulysses. It is also the longest palindrome in the Oxford English Dictionary.

Onomatopoeia vs Phanopoeia

A relative of onomatopoeia, phanopoeia is a literary device in which the general sensation of something is emulated in the sounds of the words that the author uses.

This is easier demonstrated than explained. Read this short poem below, by Franz Wright:

In bold is phanopoeia. The repetition of “s” sounds, as well as the spaciousness of the poem’s stanza breaks, resembles the sounds of echoes in a mostly empty church. The reader can experience the vastness of the church through alliteration and stanza breaks. There is a sonic and spacious quality to the poem that the reader, if attentive, can climb into and never leave. The poem does not have onomatopoeia, however: none of the words used are emulating real life sounds.

How to Pronounce Onomatopoeia

Onomatopoeia is pronounced “On-oh-mah-tow-pee-uh.” The bolded syllables are stressed.

It’s a weird looking word, right? Onomatopoeia comes from the Greek “onoma” (word or name) + “poiein” (to make). In other words, this literary device is “word making,” as these words are invented using the sounds that they describe.

Poiein is also the root of the modern words “poet” and “poetry,” as the Greeks viewed the act of writing poetry as an act of invention, creating something from nothing.

Onomatopoeia Examples in Literature

Let’s take a look at how authors have used this device in some onomatopoeia examples.

“The Pied Piper of Hamelin” by Robert Browning

Read the full poem here.

Just as he said this, what should hap
At the chamber door but a gentle tap?
Bless us, cried the Mayor, what’s that?
(With the Corporation as he sate,
Looking little though wondrous fat);
Only a scraping of shoes on the mat?
Anything like the sound of a rat
Makes my heart go pit-a-pat!

This poem, which is about the invasion of rats in a town called Hamelin, makes frequent use of onomatopoeia to emulate the sounds of scurrying rodents. Words like tap, scrape, and pit-a-pat situate the reader into the narrative poem’s anxiety and rat problems.

“I Heard a Fly Buzz—When I Died” by Emily Dickinson

Read the full poem here.

I willed my Keepsakes—Signed away
What portion of me be
Assignable—and then it was
There interposed a Fly—
With Blue—uncertain—stumbling Buzz—
Between the light—and me—
And then the Windows failed—and then
I could not see to see—

There’s only one onomatopoeia here, and that’s the word buzz. The poem’s speaker hears this one final sound before her death. Thus, the buzzing carries a dual meaning: it is both figuratively and literally the only sound of the poem, and after that, silence.

“Honky Tonk in Cleveland, Ohio” by Carl Sandburg

Read the full poem here.

It’s a jazz affair, drum crashes and cornet razzes.
The trombone pony neighs and the tuba jackass snorts.
The banjo tickles and titters too awful.
The chippies talk about the funnies in the papers.
The cartoonists weep in their beer.

The chaotic, cacophonous sounds of this poem perfectly emulate the feeling of being in a jazz bar. The instruments mixed with the peoples’ conversations overwhelms the reader, and the poem’s structured improvisation resembles jazz itself.

For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway

Read the full text here.

He saw nothing and heard nothing but he could feel his heart pounding and then he heard the clack on stone and the leaping, dropping clicks of a small rock falling.

This brief line offers so much context and imagery. With only the onomatopoeia words “pounding,” “clack,” and “clicks,” the reader can imagine a man standing at the edge of a cliff, overwhelmed by the grand endlessness of the world, feeling the terror of falling as pebbles skitter down the rocky earth.

“The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe

Read the full poem here.

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore—
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door—
“‘Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door—
Only this and nothing more.”

This poem’s tapping and rapping are so repetitive, the reader must feel how the speaker does—distracted and overwhelmed by an incessant sound. Poe is a master of using language to emulate sound: another poem of his, “The Bells,” repeats use of the word “bells” so much that the poem itself begins to jingle.

“The Weary Blues” by Langston Hughes

Read the full poem here. 

I heard that Negro sing, that old piano moan—
“Ain’t got nobody in all this world,
Ain’t got nobody but ma self.
I’s gwine to quit ma frownin’
And put ma troubles on the shelf.”
Thump, thump, thump, went his foot on the floor.
He played a few chords then he sang some more—

Langston Hughes is a prominent voice of the Harlem Renaissance, capturing the sound and vitality of mid-century Harlem, New York. This poem’s sounds and overall musicality capture the liveliness of the era, situating the reader in the sweet and soulful atmosphere of a blue’s bar.

Finnegan’s Wake by James Joyce

Read the full text (with annotations) here.

The fall (bababadalgharaghtakamminarronnkonnbronntonner-ronntuonnthunntrovarrhounawnskawntoohoohoordenenthur-nuk!) of a once wallstrait oldparr is retaled early in bed and later on life down through all christian minstrelsy.

James Joyce is famous for inventing and torturing language—to the point that native English speakers don’t recognize their own mother tongue. That long bababada word is an onomatopoeia that is supposed to represent the sound of thunder during the fall of Adam and Eve. While this nonce word may seem nonsensical, it actually pulls from a variety of languages, including the word “thunder” in Swedish, Hindi, Japanese, Danish, Gaelic, French, Italian, and Portuguese.

“I Was Sitting in McSorley’s” by E. E. Cumming

Read the full poem here.

E. Cummings’ Modernist poetry sought to translate experiences exactly as they happened. In “I Was Sitting in McSorley’s,” that experience is being drunk in a famous bar in the East Village, Manhattan. Cummings uses a variety of onomatopoeia words to capture the sounds and iniquities of the bar: real words, like tinking and slush, capture the sounds of drinks and glasses. But also, made-up words like glush, skulch, and ploc have a more disgusting sound to them, attempting to represent the grossness of the bar.

“Cynthia in the Snow” by Gwendolyn Brooks

It SHUSHES.
It hushes
The loudness in the road.
It flitter-twitters,
And laughs away from me.
It laughs a lovely whiteness,
And whitely whirs away,
To be
Some otherwhere,
Still white as milk or shirts.
So beautiful it hurts.

This poem has great onomatopoeia examples and phanopoeia examples. The repeated “sh” sounds make this poem feel blanketed by snow. You know how, after the first snowfall, the entire world is hushed? How there’s barely a breeze and no one outside and the sounds are muffled in blankets of “lovely whiteness”? This poem captures that through sound, making it an excellent onomatopoeia poem.

“TV People” by Haruki Murakami

You can find an archive of this story here. Originally published in The New Yorker, and then in Murakami’s collection The Elephant Vanishes.

Onomatopoeia Words

The following onomatopoeia list includes examples of the device that can be found in the dictionary.

Make note of two things: first, there are many onomatopoeia examples that exist outside of the dictionary. Because these words attempt to represent real sounds, they can be made up for whatever occasion in your own writing.

Second, some onomatopoeia words have multiple definitions. “Jingle,” for example, sounds like Christmas bells, but it also means a catchy song for advertising.

Some onomatopoeia words have multiple definitions. “Jingle,” for example, sounds like Christmas bells, but it also means a catchy song for advertising.

Try to use these fun sound words in your own writing!

A Note on the Translation of Onomatopoeia Words

Onomatopoeia words present an interesting conundrum to linguists and translators. Because these devices seek to directly emulate sound, one would assume that onomatopoeia words are the same across languages.

Oddly enough, this isn’t the case. For example, while in English the sound a dog makes is “woof” or “arf,” some Spanish speakers represent the dog’s bark as “guau;” in Japanese, “wan wan,” and in Catalan, “taula.”

How can this be? If you just speak English, you probably won’t hear “taula” no matter how much you listen to your dog. This conundrum points towards the unconscious ways that language shapes reality. The languages we speak restrict the sounds that we can produce and readily hear, so while an English speaker certainly hears their dog woof, a Japanese speaker undoubtedly hears their dog’s wan wan. (The Japanese language also possesses numerous onomatopoeia words, more than most languages do. Take a look at this list to see how Japanese language speakers hear sounds differently than English speakers.)

At the same time, many onomatopoeia examples in the English language come from Latin and Greek. “Bowwow,” for example, is influenced by the Latin baubor and the Greek bauzein, words which themselves are likely onomatopoeic. Of course, Latin and Greek root words make up about 60% of the English language dictionary. Perhaps that influences why we hear what the Ancient Greeks and Romans heard?

By noticing the ways that culture and language shape onomatopoeia words, you can also notice the many possible sounds that language hasn’t yet captured. The onomatopoeia is an experimental literary device, so play around with it, research how sounds are transcribed in other languages (for fun!), and lean into the possibilities of words and sounds.

Why Use Onomatopoeia in Your Writing?

Onomatopoeia words serve many different functions in writing. These include:

• Resembling Real Life. By capturing the sounds of everyday life in language, the writer makes the world of their story or poem much more accessible.
• Playing With Language. Onomatopoeia words can be very experimental, and whether the writer uses existing words or comes up with new onomatopoeia words, this device offers a playfulness with language that all writers should embrace.
• Drawing the Reader in. For the most part, readers love onomatopoeia words. These words are fun, interesting, and compelling to the reader, and they help establish the mood of a certain passage.
• Writing Comics. Comic book writers and graphic novel writers often rely on onomatopoeia words, both pre-existing and made-up, to show sound effects and keep the story interesting.
• Style. An easy way to add texture and variety to your writing style is with this literary device.
• Developing Mental Images. Although an onomatopoeia is not imagery on its own, it does help build a mental image of the writing’s sights and sounds. Imagery and “show, don’t tell writing” are essential tools in the author’s toolbox.

Explore Onomatopoeia at Writers.com

Want practice in fine tuning your onomatopoeia words? Whether you’re writing poetry or prose, the courses at Writers.com are designed to help every author on their writing journey. Take a look at our upcoming course schedule, where you’ll find courses for all writing levels that offer the support and structure you need.

Real-life incidents of In My Language, That Sounds Like….

Languages with seperate pages:

• Chinese
• French
• German
• Japanese
• Spanish

• Arabic has many words (unfortunately some quite high frequency) which sound suspect to English speakers. Most notably the word for «only» sounds similar to «fuck it.»
  • The Arab name Samar is pronounced like «summer» but means «blackness of the night».
• In Romanian, a lot of English words have been largely incorporated into the language informally (meaning that absolutely everybody knows what they mean), such as «movie» and «ball». Thus, when trying to pronounce «football» correctly in Romanian, the result is homophonous with the term «fut ball», which roughly means «fucking a ball».
  • Special congratulations go to EA Sports and FIFA, for abbreviating FIFA Ultimate Team to «FUT», which is written exactly like the Romanian word for «I fuck».
• Scandinavian-English examples:
  • Swedish has the slang word «moppe», which should not be translated to «mop» despite the first half of the word sounding very similar; it actually means motorbike.
  • Brad Pitt has been the butt of a few jokes involving his last name being spelled the same way as a crude word for dick in Swedish. (The pronunciation is off enough that phrases involving just the word «pit» don’t get the same treatment, though.)
  • «The End» in Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish is «Slut» (pronounced «sloot»). Tourists are usually fairly amused by the fact that the end of the train line in Swedish is marked by a giant sign that reads «Slutstation». The word is also the most common phrase used on film ending cards, inadvertently sending off international audiences with a swear.
  • In Danish «fag» means «topic, subject». Combine this with the previous example, and libraries in Denmark label their shelves with «fag slut» to mark, for example, where the books on physics end and the books on geography begin.
  • «Service elevator» is «Godselevator» in Danish. And when the Godselevator is in motion, a sign will light up reading «I Fart» (in speed/transit).
  • «Speed» (of vehicles) and «transit» is «Fart» in Danish, leading to words like «Fartplan» (transit timetable) and «Fartkontrol» (speed control).
  • In Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish, the word «gift» means both ‘poison’ and ‘married’ (the former as a noun, the latter as an adjective).
• A lot of names are problematic in different languages. Marika for example corresponds to «marica» (‘fag’) in Spanish, while the Japanese name Junko might look really bad on paper to any English speaker without knowledge of Japanese.
• This sometimes ends up in a pun when someone can’t use the ~ symbol in «año» (year) and asks «Cuantos anos tienes?» (Literally, «How many anuses do you have?»). Something hilariously similar happens in Italian, if you can’t pronounce double letters: «anno» (year) becomes «ano» — so asking «Quanti ani hai?» is, once again, asking how many anuses you possess.
  • In Portuguese, ano means «year». The plural anos (years), usually^note  sounds like ânus (anus). Once a reporter asked a female criminal who had just been arrested «Quantos anos você tem?» (literally «How many years you have», but meaning «How old are you»). The woman sarcastically answered «Ânus, eu só tenho um, mas se você quer saber minha idade, é 26» («I have only one anus, but, if you want to know my age, it’s 26»).
    • In Latin, which Spanish, Portuguese and Italian are derived from, annus is «year,» while anus means exactly what you would think it means. Both are declined identically, and the only difference in pronunciation is the length for which the «n» sound is held.
  • In Czech, ano (shortened to no, unlike in English pronounced with a monophtong) means «yes». In Polish, ano tak and no tak are also colloquial forms of «yes» (regular word is simply tak). And no, especially in internet communicators, may be interpreted as colloquial «yes» or English «no».
    • «No» in Czech, actually, can mean both «yes» and «well…», depending on context. Which of course means it’s a very frequently used word.
    • And «no tak» in Czech means something more along the lines of «come on».
  • In Japanese, «ano» means «that» or «um».
  • In Filipino, «ano» is the equivalent of «what».
• Old joke: In Estonian, the phrase for «twelve months» is «kaksteist kuud.» When pronounced correctly, it sounds like the English phrase «cocks taste good.»
• Finnish and Italian have many examples.
  • Finnish katso! [ˈkatso] («look!»), Italian cazzo! [ˈkatːso] («dick» or «fuck!» as an exclamation).
  • Finnish katso merta! [ˈkatso　ˈmerdɑ] («look at the sea!»), Italian »cazzo! merda!» («fuck! shit!»)
  • Finnish katso minkkiä [ˈkatso　ˈmiŋkːiæ] («look at the mink»), Italian cazzo minchia [ˈkatːso　ˈmiŋkja] («cock dick»)
  • Finnish katso sukkia («look at the socks») sounds like You No Take Candle Italian for a request for fellatio («succhia» means «suck»)
• Also, the old joke of the Swede that goes into a cab in Denmark asking to be taken to a fun place (ett roligt ställe), just to be transported to a graveyard (In Swedish «ett roligt ställe» = «somewhere fun», but in Danish «et roligt ställe»= «somewhere calm»). This also plays off stereotypes that Swedes and Danes have of one another (cautious and fun-loving, respectively).
  • Swedish and Danish are prone to this, as the two languages are very similar, with some amusing exceptions. For instance, the Swedish verb for «play ball» (bolla) sounds like the Danish verb for «have sex» (bolle) and the Danish word for «leek» (porre) sounds like the Swedish word for «porn» (porr).
• A Syrian singer earned the nickname «Pensselisetä» (brush uncle) in Finland after videos of his wedding singing group were put on YouTube with Finnish subtitles on how the singing sounded like. The «narrative» includes pulling Nile geese up my ass, among other absurd and raunchy twists.
• Similarly, a video of an Arabian song My Homeland, is famously known in Russian as «Furry Whores», due to the way it sounds. There are a couple of obscene subs on Youtube… very popular videos.
• In Dutch, the word for Cook is spelled Kok. For added interest, Kok or de Kok (the cook) are perfectly common Dutch last names. The Prime Minister through most of The ’90s was Wim Kok.
  • And in the other direction, the Dutch «kut» sounds like English «cut» but means «cunt».
  • Flickr, the website, sounds like «flikker» to a Dutchman, which is the local equivalent for «faggot».
  • A sign for a «Kiek in de Kok» museum (despite its Low German name, the most famous one is in Estonia) has become somewhat well-known thanks to this trope, sometimes in pictures where tourists act out what it sounds like. (It actually means «peep into the kitchen» and refers to a type of guard tower, on the idea of the guards being able to look straight into people’s houses.)
  • In Swedish, it’s spelled «kock».
• In Afrikaans, the word for «look» is «kyk» (pronounced like «kike»), and the word for «child» is «kind» (pronounced similar to «cunt»).
• The national currency of Vietnam is the đồng. An endless source of amusement for American soldiers during The Vietnam War.
• Similarly, the national currency of Botswana is the pula, which means «rain» in Tshwana but happens to mean «cock» in Romanian.
• The taxonomic term (via Latin) for seals is «phocids». It’s pronounced «fo-sids», but can sound obscene if mispronounced even in English.
  • Despite what you might think, the original Latin for seal («phoca») doesn’t have any unfortunate soundalikes. In classical Latin «ph» is simply a strong «p,» and in medieval Latin the «c» sound is soft. So you have either «Poh-ka» (classical) or «Foh-sa» (medieval), but not «foh-ka.»
• Averted when Ford Motor Company released its Kuga compact crossover. In Serbo-Croatian (Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin languages) and Slovenian, Kuga means plague. The company disregarded the awkward translation and released the model on the aforementioned markets with no name change.
• In Japanese, «tako», pronounced the same as «taco», is the word for octopus.
  • In Swahili, «tako» means «buttock.»
  • In French, «un tacot» is slang for The Alleged Car.
  • In Serbian, «tako» equals English «so (+ adjective)» or describes how is something done.
  • In Finnish, «takoa» means «hammer» (verb)
• According to Serbian slang, Coca Cola is pronounced the same way as «(he) is killing the car»
  • Only if you deliberately mispronounce it. Serbian uses pitch accent so although both are spelled as «koka kola», they are not pronounced the same.
• In Te Reo Māori, the language of New Zealand’s indigenous peoples, the particle «whaka-» is used to indicate causation. It sounds identical to the English «fucker». Cue tourists snickering at place names such as Whakatane and Whakapapa.
  • Doubly hilarious when you understand that «tane» (tah-ne) means «man» or «husband». Whakatane indeed.
• In Italy, you can go to the market and buy some «rape» (turnips).
• Faggot:
  • In Italian, «fagotto» is either a bundle or a bassoon. In Japanese, Russian, German, and Polish, a close homonym is the word for bassoon.
  • The word «fagot» also exists in archaic English and French in reference to a bundle (usually sticks or something similar).
  • «Fag» is British slang for a cigarette.
  • «Faggot» is also a (now obscure) British foodstuff, oddly akin to Swedish meatballs.
  • «Fag» (though it’s pronounced differently) is also the Danish and Norwegian word for «subject» or «lesson».
  • Fagot is also the NATO reporting name for the MiG-15.
• Another example: Italian «asso» («ace»).
• More directly, the German «Ass» and Polish «As», again, referring to the card and The Ace.
• The Italian word «caldo» means «hot», from the same root as «calorie» or Spanish «caliente». This can cause problems for tourists speaking languages where something similar sounding means the exact opposite, e. g. German «kalt» and English «cold». In the Billy Wilder comedy Avanti!, Jack Lemmon’s character gets an unpleasant surprise when he turns on the faucet marked «C» in an Italian hotel.
  • Caldo could be a dish, similar to a soup, in Spanish.
  • In Indonesian Kaldu means stock (as in beff/chicken stock).
• The Chechen word for their ethnic group is «Vainakh» (literally «our people»; more precisely, the term refers to the ethnolinguistic family that includes Chechens (Noxçi), Ingush (Ghalghai), Bats and Kists). «Voina» (pronounced «vaina») is, of course, the Russian word for «war.» This is even funnier if you remember that Chechen people have been at war with Russia for the better part of the past two decades and have developed a certain image.
• «Numnah» is a Hindi word.
• Martin Luther had the misfortune of being tried at the Diet of Worms. (Pronounced dee-et of vorms, but how often are you going to hear it out loud?) Similar problems befall the existence of the Japanese Imperial Diet, Japan having copied much of its modernization policies from German states.
  • Parodied in The Fifth Elephant — the treaty setting out Uberwaldian life was signed at the Diet of Bugs. Sam Vimes lampshades it.
    • And in an episode of Blackadder, with «the collapse of the Treaty of Insects.»
• When Sci-Fi Channel decided to get rid of their nerdy image by renaming themselves Syfy they didn’t do a simple text search of foreign dictionaries. It’s Polish for acne and also the plural of «syf», which is Polish slang for «syphilis». And that’s why the Polish channel was left unchanged.
• (All transliterated:) The Hebrew word «Oti» means «me». The Hebrew word «mi» means «who?». The Hebrew word «hu» (pronounced «who») means «he». And the Hebrew word «he» means «she».
  • All of this makes a lot more sense if you’re aware of their Arabic cognates, which sound less like the English words: Hebrew «mi»=Arabic «men»; «hu»=»huwa»; and «he»=»hiya.»
• Odd and Randi are perfectly normal Norwegian names…
  • Randy is a normal name in the US too, but it’ll raise some eyebrows (or cause fits of uncontrollable sniggering) in the UK. The word «snigger» itself will likely elicit controversy in the US due to sounding similar to a certain racial slur.
• There is an Austrian village by the name of Fucking, whose residents used to spend surprisingly large amounts of money on replacing stolen road signs until they ended up putting a sign made of concrete.
  • A beer named «Fucking Hell» has appeared, its name referring to this place and its color, «hell» meaning «light» or «pale».
  • Austria also has a town called «Windpassing».
• Someone in Honda discovered that «fitta» means female genitals in Norwegian and Swedish. Fortunately for Honda, this was before Honda’s new hatchback subcompact car went on the market, and Honda had time to rename it to «Fit» or «Jazz» depending on the market.
• In 1987, a German football player named Franco Foda played in Brazil. When he was announced, the stadium audience pissed themselves laughing. Why? His name just so happens to be (admittedly broken) Portuguese for «fucking for free.»
• «Gift» means poison in Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, and German (Modern German usage derives from the word ‘gift’-as-in-present being used as euphemism for poison in the Middle Ages). Make of that what you will.
• Russian and Hebrew have somewhat similar phonetics, especially when the speaker has a Russian / Eastern European accent, which is often the case. This renders mundane Hebrew phrases like «worried about losing eligibility for a postdated check» or «new tabernacles (sukkot) will be built» virtually unprintable in Russian. And Russian is not exactly the language of prudes…
  • In fact, the Hebrew word for ‘Ugly’ is also unprintable.
• Latin is a serial offender. «Labia» means «lips». In English, «labia» only refers to the «lips» of lady parts. The original Latin word and its meaning are preserved in Spanish «labios» and Portuguese «lábios». The English word for lip is from the same Proto-Indo-European root, just through Proto-Germanic.
  • In Portuguese, «labia» can also mean «meaningless conversation».
  • Most non-slang words for genitalia were dirty jokes/slang/euphemisms in Latin, which eventually became the standard terms. Along with «labia» (lips) there are «penis» (tail), «vagina» (scabbard), «anus» (ring/circle), etc.
  • In German, «Scheide» can mean both «scabbard» and «vagina».
  • One particular Latin textbook had a recurring character known as «Sextus». He is very annoying. The Latin word for «annoying» is «molestus». So you have, repeated over and over throughout the book, «Sextus molestus», or, «Sextus is Annoying». There’s a good chance that this was deliberate on the part of the publishers. Given the maturity level of the average high school freshmen, this causes problems.
• There’s also the Norwegian football team Fotballaget Fart.
  • Based in Vang, no less…
• The word «douche» is used to refer exclusively to a «vaginal wash» in American English. In about a dozen other languages and the UK, it still has its original meaning of «shower». (Words that sound like «shower», meanwhile, tend to mean «rainfall» in some Germanic languages.)
  • Or alternatively in English, a very unpleasant person.
• There is a Vietnamese soup called «Pho» (diacritical marks omitted), but the phonetic pronunciation is «Fa». ^note  Many Vietnamese restauranteurs have amused themselves by naming their shops things that are perfectly fine if you pronounce it like an ignorant American. «Pho King» and variants are quite popular.
• Traffic signs reading «Infart» are quite common in Sweden.
  • In Italian «infarto» means «heart attack (infarction)».
• In Denmark, a timetable will likely be labelled «fartplan».
• A popular Iranian cleaning product is called «Barf», the Persian word for snow.
• In a case crossing with Clean Dub Name, Star Wars: Attack of the Clones had in Portuguese Count Dooku changing his name to «Dookan» because «Dooku» is pronounced identically to «do cu» which means «from the ass». Although George Lucas didn’t seem to mind that the original name is itself reminiscent of «dookie» — American slang for «crap» (as a noun).
• Two of Jesus’ disciples shared the name Judas: Judas Iscariot and Judas Thaddeus. In English, the guy that didn’t betray Jesus is called Jude, while the other one is called Judas. Spanish makes no such distinction, with both being called Judas (Tadeo and Iscariote). Cue fundamentalists pointing out Latin-American parishes named San Judas as proof that Catholics are evil.
• Condoleezza Rice’s first name causes endless mirth among Czechs, «kunda» being a dirty word for female privates and «lízat» meaning «to lick». Newscasters refer to her simply as «Riceová» or «the [former] American secretary of state».
• The webpage of a Canadian sociology professor, Ziva Kunda, has become legendary among Czech and Slovak internet users. «Kunda» is a variant of Country Matters and «�ivá» means «living» — incidentally, Ziva Kunda herself died in 2004. Ms. Kunda was apparently aware of the source of her popularity in that part of the world and did not find it funny.
• Obviously, the Estonian town of Kunda is also very popular with Czechs.
• One book by Fritz Spiegl relates the story of how, in the Second World War, the obvious thing to do with the Allied Military Government of Occupied Territories was to abbreviate it to AMGOT. Unfortunately this turned out to mean something unprintable in Turkish and the abbreviation was hastily changed to «AMG». In a footnote, Spiegl adds that none of the Turks he knew was prepared to tell him what the meaning was. One, after he had finished laughing, said «no such word», which is strictly accurate — it’s two rude words^note  joined together.
• The Dutch word for «removable» is «demontabel.»
• To Americans, «bimbo» (pronounced /bɪm.boʊ/) is a derogatory thing to call a woman. To Mexicans, who pronounce it as /bim.bo/, it’s the name of their country’s largest food corporation and a colloquial term for for «bread», much like Kleenex is for tissues.
  • That brand of bread is available in the US; the label includes ‘Say BEEM-bo’ on it under the name.
  • In German, «Bimbo» can be a derogatory term for an African, or a servant or general dogsbody.
  • Any wonder why the Bimbo company, also a major bakery in the U.S., mainly make Arnold or Oroweat bread?
  • The fun part? «Bimbo» comes from the Italian word for «kid».
• Polish, Czech and Slovak: These languages are generally similar enough for Bilingual Dialogue to work, but the differences can lead to amusing misunderstandings.
  • For example the Polish word szukać (to look for) sounds a lot like a Czech word meaning to fuck. This has led to the following situation: A little Czech girl got lost somewhere in Poland. When she was finally found, she was apparently «intimidated by the language barrier». Especially after being told everyone’s been looking for her.
    • In fact, this happens even between modern Czech and classic 19th century Czech literary works.
  • «Zachód» in Polish means west, but in Czech and Slovak «záchod» means a toilet. They’re both derived from root words meaning to go down.
  • Czerstwy chleb in Polish means «old bread» while in many Slavic languages it means «fresh.» Further confusing in Polish «czerstwy staruszek» (staruszek means «old man») which means he is in good form rather than bad.
    • In Russian, «Cherstvy», when applied to a person, means «coldhearted».
• Orava with a capital «o» is the name of one of Slovakia’s northwest historical regions. In Finnish, orava means «squirrel», causing laughter for all Slovak learners of Finnish from Orava.
• Arabic-language news media (e.g. Al Jazeera) were put in a bind when Jean-Marc Ayrault was appointed Prime Minister of France—you see, «Ayrault» pronounced in the French fashion (i.e. «air-oh») is one small sound away from sounding like `ayruh, which is Levantine^note  Arabic for «his dick/cock/[insert vulgar word for male genitalia here]». They elected to pronounce the «lt» to avoid the problem…earning the ire of certain Arab intellectuals, many of whom are fans of the French.
  • In the opposite direction (more or less), a fairly classical way of insulting someone in Arabic is to call them «nājis», i.e. ritually impure. In colloquial use, where it is usually pronounced nijis, it’s come to mean either someone who’s just generally dirty or those whose habits you find unpleasant (it’s often used to not-so-subtly imply that the target frequents whorehouses). In most dialects, this doesn’t cause any funny business, but in Egypt, where the «j» is pronounced as a «g», it comes out as «nigis», which English-speakers might hear as…well…let’s just say black Americans visiting Egypt have gotten suitably offended, but not in the way the Egyptian meant it to.
  • Najis also happens to mean «excrement» in Malay (no doubt the word was mis-appropriated when Malacca was trading with the Arabs in the 14th century and absorbed some of the words). This is why many of the corrupt prime minister Najib Razak’s detractors and critics are calling him this.
• Not dirty but still amusing: In the Korean martial arts style Tang Soo Do, a bo staff (a long, smooth staff intended for striking) is referred to as a bong.
• The title of the First Minister of Wales in Welsh is «Prif Weinidog Cymru.» That’s right. «Minister» in Welsh sounds exactly like «whiny dog.»
• Lakota examples:
  • The names Che and Sean sound like [cɛ] and [ʃã], meaning «penis» and «vagina». The words aren’t considered «dirty», but still…
  • The name Che is exactly the same as a Latin American Spanish (most particularly from Argentina) slang that is used as a greeting.
  • Not really dirty, but cola sounds like [kʰola], «friend». This also applies to coda, due to the inherent Spell My Name with an S of Sioux languages.
  • Really complicated one: Kanji sounds like [kãgi], «crow». Not much, until you remember what crow is synonymous with in Kansai-ben.
  • Conversely, pi means «liver».
• Linguists use the following pseudo-French nursery rhyme to indicate the difficulty of parsing language when unsure which language is being spoken:

  Homme petit d’homme petit, s’attend, n’avale
  Homme petit d’homme petit, à degrés de bègues folles
  Anal deux qui noeuds ours, anal deux qui noeuds s’y mènent
  Coup d’un poux tome petit tout guetteur à gaine

• Inverted by English and Afrikaans with the sentences My pen is in my hand and My hand is in warm water, which are both written the same way and mean the same thing, but sound rather different. (And for a bonus, both languages know about The Problem with Pen Island.)
• Another Polish one: tampon means any bit of cotton wadding, particularly in medical or dental use. So the possibilities for mirth are endless when a language textbook openly talks about Ela going to the dentist and putting a tampon in her mouth.
  • In hungarian koton (pronounced the same as cotton) exclusively means condom, elementary schooolers learn this word quite fast, of course. Cotton in hungarian is either vatta for the wadding or gyapot for the plant.
• Be careful travelling to Korea in the winter. ‘Shiver’ sounds very close to something else there.
• The Swedish word svalka means ‘coolness’ and has pleasant connotations, so Ikea named a series of drinking glasses Svalka. Unfortunately, Ikea also operates in Russia, and in Russian сва́лка (svalka) means ‘garbage dump’. The Russian Ikea renamed the glasses to Свальк (svalk), resorting to using a soft l in order to make the words look different.
• The Russian word for boxwood is самши́т [sɐˈmʂɨt], like English «some shit» [ˌsɐm　ˈʃɪtʰ].
• The Russian words for «sew» and for «shield» sound awfully like «shit» in English.
• In many Slavic languages (for example Russian, Polish, Slovak, Serbian, Croatian), the word for «brother» is «brat» or, in Cyrillic, «брат» (pronounced more like the first syllable of «bratwurst» though). English speakers with annoying siblings are usually fairly amused by this.
• «Knikker» is the Dutch word for «marble», the children’s toy not the stone, but resembles British English knicker.
• In American Sign Language, the sign for «vagina» is made by holding your hands flat, fingers together, thumbs extended, and the tips of the thumbs and forefingers touching. Now think of how many times you’ve seen a hearing person making that sign or a close variation of it when they don’t know what else to do with their hands. Notable example: Michelle Obama on the cover of the Dec 2011/Jan 2012 Reader’s Digest.
• Great fun tricking new students of Russian into saying the phrase «brave (smelliy) like (kahk) sugar (sahar)» («smelly cock sucker»).
• «Kaka» means «cake» in Swedish. The first A is pronounced more like an «O» sound.
  • To German ears it sounds like a child’s word for «poo».
• The word written sein means «to be» in German and «breast» in French.
  • And it sounds somewhat like the Hebrew word zayin^note , which can mean «the seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet», «arms» (as in weapons), or «cock».
  • One wonders if this is what draws some Israeli or Jewish fans to One Direction.^note 
• Brazilian Portuguese also offers many examples.
  • The name of Brazilian soccer player Kaká sounds almost the same (without the accent) as the Latin form used in many other Romance languages (Spanish and French mainly) to say crap. Plenty of jokes were made whenever he’d play in the Brazil national football team alongside Elano (whose name sounds exactly like Spanish for «the anus»).
    • In Rome’s dialect it sounds like the verb «to shit». Cue tons of jokes when Kaká was playing in AC Milan and Totti, then captain of the Roma who speaks exclusively in his dialect, announced before a game that he didn’t fear him.
  • While technically Portuguese, Thiago Motta, another soccer player, counts. His name sounds like I make weed (for you).
    • And there’s another Brazilian player named Junior Borracha (real name: Enivaldo Manoel do Carmo Júnior).
• The fairly rare Israeli last name �Pines� (pronounced �pea-ness�). Notable cases include:
  • Israeli artist Ya�akov Pines^note . He mentioned how a reporter once asked him very politely whether he should change his name. �I gave him, that gentile, a proper answer: that «Ya�akov» was a fine Hebrew name!�
  • Ofir Pines-Paz, Israeli politician, who was made Minister of Interior.
  • Guy Pines, host of a popular entertainment news show, who often interviews Hollywood celebrities. He often checks into hotels saying his names is �Pines� (pronouncing it as the plural of �pine� tree), and when he told Julia Roberts his name was Guy Pines, she said hers was �Woman Vagina�.
• Continuing with Hebrew, «Thank you very much» is translated as «Toda Raba». For Japanese speakers, the whole expression would sound funny, since «Toda» is also a valid Japanese surname, making some names, such as Japanese voice actress Keiko Toda, sound funny for Hebrew speakers, especially when spelled using the Asian order, since it would sound like saying «Thank you, Keiko» in Hebrew, and «Keiko, thank you» when using her name in the western order.
• The high-IQ group Mensa chose its name because it means «table» in Latin, symbolizing the coming together of equals, but didn’t foresee a Mexican chapter of Mensa… and mensa means «^note moron» in Mexican Spanish. «¿Eres mensa?» means «Are you dumb?».

  • It probably is not coincidental that «Mensa» also contains the Latin word mens = «mind».

  • While not in dictionaries, Mensa can be interpreted as the verb menstruate in Swedish^note ; the contextual overlap is nonexistent but will produce a snicker or two should the club be brought up in an elementary school.
  • In German-speaking universities, a Mensa (plural: Mensen) is a students’ canteen, also from the Latin for «table», since Latin used to be the language of academics.
  • It’s a students’ canteen in Italian schools as well.
• Czech/Slovak/Polish/German fakt and Russian факт (meaning fact) is pronounced [fäkt] with open central vowel, like fucked in Australian English. The Czech word is often used to ask «is that a fact?» or «really?». Many a foreigner felt offended. In Czech and Polish the answer «Fakt.» means something like «It’s true.» Tables for «ash» and «honey» here suggest that fact /fækt/ in some English dialects may be pronounced like fucked /fʌkt/ in others — Separated by a Common Language?
• The Finnish poet Eino Leino is popular among Czechs though sadly not because they would be fans or great scholars of his work. It is his name that is well-loved: the rhyming itself is irresistible, but there is more. Eino is close enough to the Czech interjection «ejhle», which means «lo and behold», while Leino sounds exactly like «lejno», and that is a word for excrement.
• In Finland, the word «home» means «mold» (as in fungus). Home videos with English texts used to cause much hilarity to kids back in the video era.
• In Hungarian, the last name of Ferdinand Foch (French marshal during WWI) means «(liquid) shit».
• Barack means apricot/peach in Hungarian. Now, when a certain American politician was elected president…
  • In Russian барак (pronounced same as the name of said politician) means «shack». Needless to say, Russian media had much fun with that.
• Hungarian word for «tree» is «fa», and, following grammatic rules, plural of that («trees») would be «fák», which is pronounced almost exactly as you imagine.
• Non-obscene example from Hungarian: «uborka» means «cucumber», and Russian word «уборка», which sounds the same, generally means «cleaning».
• Generally Hungarian humour uses a lot of wordplays like this. A well known what is «How is (worker of a certain profession) called in (certain laguage)?
  • Example: How do you call an innkeeper in Greek? Abrosz Tisztakosz (Avrous Tiztakous). In Greek it’s gibberish, in Hungarian it means «the tablecloth is very dirty.»
  • How do you call the retired British gynecologist? Sir Ben White. It’s a normal British name, but in Hungarian it sounds like szőrben vájt, literally meaning «was digging around in fur.»
• In Bulgarian and some other Slavic languages, «неделя» («nedElya») or some similar word means «Sunday», and is an amalgamation of two words: «не» («ne»), which simply negates whatever follows, and old Slavic word that sounds like «delo», meaning «work» (so Sunday is «no-work-day»). Makes sense, it’s the day when nobody works, right? Both small words actually exist in Russian with the same meaning; but «неделя» also exists in Russian and means «week». Bulgarian used to have «nedelya» meaning «week» too, in the sense of «the time from one Suday to another», before it got replaced with «sedmitza» («seven-parter»).
• In Mexico, the name of the famous airplane manufacturer Boeing sounds the same as a famous brand of juice sold there named Boing. This becomes, after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, as a source of jokes between Mexicans:

  Kid 1: What do the Twin Towers have in common with two sandwiches?

  Kid 2: Dunno

  Kid 1: That’s easy: You can screw them with a Bo(e)ing!

• Also, Airbus sounds similar in Russian to the word for «watermelon».
• In the English- and Greek-speaking worlds, the name Kiki is an ordinarily fine name stemming from the Greek saint Kyriaki. Should this person travel to the Philippines, however, they may find introducing themselves to people a hassle, as their name means «pussy» in Tagalog. In Spain, meanwhile, a «kiki» is a «quickie».
  • Meanwhile in French, «kiki» is a childish word for «penis.» And oddly enough, a common name for small dogs.
  • The Thai name Pukitta is sometimes shortened to «Puki», another Filipino synonym for «kiki». Actually, «Puki» means «vagina» for most of South-East Asia (Thailand appears to be an exception), this is why the name of Garfield’s teddy bear is rarely mentioned in the region, and when it does come up conversations become very awkward. Also why you get dirty stares if you call your significant other by that term.
• If you say «pet» to a speaker of Catalan or Valencian he is going to understand «flatulence» not «companion animal», but conversely if you say «fart» he is going to understand «having had enough of something» not «flatulence».
  • In Polish «pet» is a common colloquial term for «cigarette butt». On the other hand, «fart» means «fluke» or «good luck». Amusingly, some companies name themselves with that word.
  • The «pet» thing also happens in French and partially in Italian (where «flatulence» is actually «peto», but still close enough to sound funny). Conversely, the Italian words «farti» and «fartelo» have nothing to do with flatulence: they both roughly mean «make you (something)».
• There are three countries in Europe, whose — and also whose capitals’ — Finnish names make complete sense in Finnish. They are Puola (Poland) — «spool» with capital Varsova (Warsaw) «foaling», Malta — «wait a minute!» with capital Valetta («It’s a lie!») and Turkki — «fur coat» (Turkey) with capital Ankara («harsh»).
• In English, the word «moot» can mean a number of things; a point up for debate, a suggestion, and so on. Albanian speakers would hear this as mut — their equivalent of «shit».
  • Similarly, a speaker of Albanian hearing an automobile owner referring to their mode of transportation as a car might snicker, as the word is a homophone for kar — or «dick».
    • And if you really wanted to stretch it, a karat — the unit to describe gold purity, is the definite plural of the same thing, albeit with a different pronunciation (Albanians stress the a as in «father»).
• In Tiberias, Israel, there’s a inn named Maman Mansion. Maman is the Japanese slang equivalent of the phrase MILF.
• «Deception» means, or sounds similar to the word meaning, disappointment in several Romance languages.
  • It’s also the case with the word «Ingenuity», that is similar to the word meaning «naivete».
• In Icelandic, the word for slush is «krap» and the word for professionals is «fagmenn».
• Learning about the Mongol invasions of Vietnam will invariably cause giggling fits amongst Vietnamese students. «Mongol-Yuan» is written as «Nguyên Mông» in Vietnamese, and the two words are homophones with «intact, whole» and «bottom». And given the fact that Vietnamese forces roundly kicked Mongolian butts (three times, totaling 9 months in the space of 30 years), let’s just say that, uh, the Mongols did not leave Vietnam with their bottoms intact.
• While Chicago doesn’t really mean anything in English, in Italian it sounds like «ci cago», which means «I shit there».
• Czech car company name, �koda (in Czech � denotes sound like English sh or Polish sz), sounds like Polish «szkoda» (damage, or it’s a pity, or as in waste of time/money/effort).
  • In fact, the Czech meaning is pretty much the same. The name comes from the last name of the founder of this company.
• Russian letter Щ name shcha sounds like Polish «szcza» (vulgar urinates).
• The name of the car Proton Jebat has been a source of many laughs in the Czech Republic since it’s been revealed. Jebat in Czech means to fuck.
• There is a lightbulb company named «Osram» (a portmanteau of «Osmium» and «Wolfram» (tungsten)). In Polish, this literally means «I’ll shit (on something)».
  • There is a similar joke in Slovak as well.
• The videogame company Sega sounds inherently funny to Italians. Why? «Sega» means «wank» in Italian. To be fair, it also means «handsaw», but that’s not the first meaning that comes to mind…
  • That’s why the name was pronounced SEE-gah in Italian ads.
  • In Portuguese it sounds like «cega» («blind female»).
• This trope occasionally also extends to mere abbreviations:
  • In the UK and much of the rest of the world, «RAF» stands for the Royal Air Force, who valiantly fought and gloriously beat back the Nazis in WW2. In Germany, however, it instead stands for the Red Army Faction, a 1970s pseudo-Communist terrorist group responsible for dozens of bombings and assassinations and decades-long nationwide manhunts and paranoia. So naturally, their connotations of «RAF» are much worse than in the UK. To avoid confusion, the British RAF and the German RAF are almost always referred to unabbreviated in Germany and the rest of the world respectively.
  • RAF is also British slang for an ugly woman — Rough As Fuck.
  • To Americans, «IRA» is a pension plan involving salary deductions — Individual Retirement Account. To the British it’s an especially nasty Irish terrorist group (Irish Republican Army). When McDonald’s tried to cut costs in its British operation by using payroll stationery imported from its American operation, employee deductions for pensions were listed on payslips under the heading IRA. Given that NORAID was routinely accused of funding the Irish Republican Army, the story went around that McDonald’s were making compulsory deductions from British employees to fund Irish terrorism. And pronounced like a word, «ira» is «ire» in Latin and several Romance languages (this even led the Brazilian band Ira! to spell their name with an exclamation point to make clear it’s a word rather than a acronym).
• Due to Hebrew orthographic limitations, the first name Finn is written in Hebrew the same way as the Hebrew word for «penis», pin (פין). This makes watching Finn Hudson, Finn the Human, Finn Polmar, and others on their respective shows in Israel (where dubbing is used exclusively for children-oriented material and subbing is used otherwise) very awkward.
• Rav or raban is Hebrew for «rabbi» (which originally meant «my rav«). Hebrew omits the copula in the present tense under certain circumstances. And now, every time you hear the name «Paco Rabanne«, you�ll get the image of a Mexican rabbi.
• When James May of Top Gear warned his fellow presenters that «car» and «peach» were rude words in Albanian, they blew him off. It turns out he was right: «kar» (pronounced like «car») means «penis», while «piçkë» (pronounced roughly like «peach») means «vagina».
• There’s a river in western Latvia called Pērse, which means «ass» in Estonian.
• Irishwomen named Órfhlaith (pronounced ORE-lah, lit. «gold princess») are in for an unpleasant surprise if they ever visit Israel; �orlá^Hebrew  means «foreskin» in Hebrew.
• «Tröja» is a Swedish word meaning «sweater». Italian «troia» means «whore».
• The British actor Tony Osoba’s surname means «person» in Czech.
• The Italian word for «down», «giù,» sounds exactly like «Jew».
• In English-speaking countries, Knepper is a more or less innocuous-sounding surname, but in Danish, «knepper» is an inflected form of the verb «kneppe» which means «to fuck». The «k» is not silent in Danish, though. Inevitably, a lot of Danes can’t read or talk about Robert Knepper while keeping a straight face.
• «Wahine», the Polynesian word for «woman», sounds like the Latin pronunciation of «vagina».
• The English raccoon and the Greek procyon look similar and both refer to the same animal, but have completely different origins. The former is derived from the Algonquin arakun («scratcher»), while the former is from Ancient Greek pro kuon («before the dog»).
• Finnish has a lot of words that look or sound like English words, but mean different things, such as «tie» (road) and «vain» (only). «Vain» is also pronounced like the English word «vine». «Vaippa» sounds like «viper», but it means «diaper». «Puu» (pronounced exactly how you’d expect it to be) means «wood» or «tree». «Pussi» (sounds like «pussy») means «bag». «Happi» means «oxygen». «Fagotti» means «bassoon» (similar to Italian and other languages). «Pasuuna» (which sounds almost exactly like «bassoon») means «trombone». «Harmonikka» means «accordion». «Flipperi» is the Finnish word for a pinball machine. «Kola» (sounds like «cola») is a generic Finnish slang term for any carbonated soft drink, not specifically Coca-Cola. «Me» means «we» and «he» means «they» (though they’re pronounced more like «meh» and «heh»). «Tyyppi» means «character», as in someone with a colourful personality (one Finnish business college had the quasi-English slogan «Enter the Type» at first because of this).
• The Italian word for goodbye, «ciao», sounds like the English word «chow», slang for «food» or «to eat».
• «Porn» is a common Thai name. Then there’s the cities of Bangkok and Phuket.
• The Scandinavian name Astrid, «divine beauty», looks and sounds like but is unrelated to the Greek word for «star child».
• The mare of Germanic folklore is not a female horse, but a demon that brings bad dreams, hence the cognate nightmare. The Filipino analogue is the batibat, which is not to be confused with Count von Count’s happy dance.
• Zalzalah Koh, a newly discovered island in Pakistan, means «Earthquake Island», for it was formed during a strong earthquake in Pakistan in 2013. But in the Philippines, it sounds like «I’m a wanker». Just look at this weather reporter failing to retain his serious composure.
• «Hell» means «Luck» in Norwegian.
• Hyundai’s brand new SUV is called the Kona. It’s another unfortunate name for a car, because «kona» in Polish means that somebody is dying. So, «Hyundai Kona» to Polish people sounds literally like «Hyundai is dying».
• The pioneer of Thai cuisine in the Philippines was a restaurant named Sukothai. However, its low success in its early years was partly blamed because its name sounded like «Suka Tae» — which is Filipino for «Vomit Poo».
• Some Malay to English examples:
  • The Malay word for money is both «Wang» and «Duit» (pronounced «Do it»). Yes, there are teen jokes about prostitution centered around the words.
  • When someone’s telling you «sakit» (pronounced «suck it»), they are in pain and asking for help, and are not rudely telling you off.
  • Then there is «tolong», which is sometimes misheard as «too long». Again, they are crying for help and not complaining about something taking too long to complete.
  • On the tamer side, the Malay word for water is… air.
• In Korean, sarang means love. In Malay, it means nest. Romantic connotations about starting a family aside, it is confusing to people who don’t speak Korean.
• In Dutch, «death» is «dood». An English-speaker with no knowledge of Dutch will assume it’s pronounced like «dude».
• There’s a Mexican movie director named Hari Sama, whose name is pretty funny in Japanese, since it could be translated as «Lord Needle» (針様)
  • In Malay, that usually means «same day» (as in, same day delivery).
• Finnish language has the words «matka» (journey) and «kotka» (eagle). In Polish, the same words mean «mother» and «female cat», respectively.
  • In Bulgarian, «kotka» also means cat, but «matka» means uterus.
• While «susu» in Malay and Indonesia means «milk,» which sounds innocuous, in Hindi it takes on a more offensive meaning: «piss.»
• «Kamala» means «horrible» in Finnish. As a result, some detractors of Kamala Harris who know Finnish have given her the Embarrassing Nickname «Horrible Harris».
• Bulgarian has a few:
  • German «Ebene» («plain» or «plane») and «eben» («just so»), cognates to English «even», sound like «ебане» [ebane], «[the act of] fucking». Ditto for English «ebb».
  • «Кур» [kur] used, as in Old Slavic, to mean «rooster», but much like «cock» in English, has evolved as an euphemism for phallus (and then also became just as obscene). In Bulgarian, it has only retained that meaning, making Russian «курица» [kuritsa] («hen») sound funny, as well as unrelated words like «курить» [kurit’] («to smoke») and names such as «Кура» [Kura] (in Bulgarian: «The Dick») and «Курск» [Kursk]; Other languages aren’t safe either, such as German «Kur» («cure») and «Kurort» («resort», which has been introduced to Bulgarian and is hence a subject of puns when complaining about a resort’s low quality) or Romanian «cur» («ass»).
    • Speaking of Romanian, there’s «buza» which means «lip» in Romanian but «cheek» in Bulgarian. One could imagine some romantic drama ensuing along the lower Danube. Other such words exist, owing to the two countries’ history of being closely associated with one another until the Late Middle Ages but then diverging.
  • Anything with «ser-» («serum», «seropositive», «serotonine», «serine», «serrated») could sound funny, because of the verb «сера» [sera] («to poop»). This includes any word derived from the Italian «sera» (evening), such as «serenade» or even the greeting «buona sera».
  • Any mention of the phrase «all I know» will raise eyebrows because it sounds like «о, лайно» («oh, [a piece of] shit»).
  • English names «Michael» and «Mike» sound like «майка» [maika] («mother»).
  • Even Latin isn’t safe. One notorious example is the mountain pine, Pinus mugo. When written together with the name of its discoverer, Antonio Turra, it reads like Pinus mugo Turra, which sounds like «‘mu go tura», or «[I’m] gonna put it into [him/it]».
  • There’s a joke about an Italian football team visiting and then departing with chants «Saluti e baci» («greetings and kisses»). To a Bulgarian, however, that sounds like «[they] are some sassy fuck-machines». Female fans commented «yeah, they only lived up to the sassy part».
  • «Путка» [putka] is Country Matters, so foreign critics make fun of Vladimir Putin’s name. One Bulgarian footballer happened to be interviewed by a South African journalist named Putco Mafani, which in Bulgarian sounds like a demented form of «you cunt, grab me».
  • In the early 2000s, the Indian company Mittal Steel, property of the Mittal family, purchased Bulgaria’s foremost metalworking facility. Their name coincidentally sounds like the Bulgarian word for «metal» as spoken with an Eastern Bulgarian accent.
  • «Add» and «Ad» both sound like «Ад» (hell).
  • Germans, especially former East Germans, saying «cheers» («Prost») should be aware that this means «uncultured/stupid [man]» in Bulgarian.
• «halal» means «lawful» in Arabic and is used for many things. In Hungarian «halál» means «death». An eerie coincidence, because when non-Muslims hear the Arabic word, the meaning they automatically think of is «halal slaughter» — an infamously brutal method of slaughtering animals without stunning them.
• During the Winter War and Continuity War and long after, the Finnish army had behind-the-lines special forces called «sissit». The singular, «sissi», sounds like the English word «sissy».
• In Latin, gallus (pl. galli) means «rooster.» It’s also identical to how the Romans wrote and pronounced the name of the Gauls, who inhabited what’s now France. This may be where the idea of the Gallic rooster comes from.
• The East African name Nasteho means «advice and mercy», but looks/sounds like «nasty ho».
• In Jamaican patois, «deejays» are dancehall/reggae musicians who toast or rap to instrumental music tracks(riddims), while actual disc jockeys are known as «selectors».
• Heinz sells a mayonnaise-ketchup combination condiment called Mayochup. When they began selling it in Canada, they found out that Mayochup sounds like the word for «shitface» in the Cree indigenous language.
• Ciara, an Irish name meaning «dark», is pronounced similar to the Italian name Chiara, which means «bright».
• The Icelandic word grey means «pitiful person, wretch». It becomes funnier when referring to CGP Grey, especially after he posted this video about how frustrating his research can be.
• The Hungarian word «lakat» sounds like the English word «locket» but actually means «padlock». This led to a translation error in the Hungarian version of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, where a locket is referred to as a padlock.
  • The same goof happened in the Italian translation, caused by a similar mix-up. In Italian «lucchetto» looks like «locket» but means «padlock».
• There’s a village in Northern Ireland called Ahoghill. It’s pronounced closer to «a-hock-ull» than «a-hog-hill», but many people — including other Northern-Irish people — snicker when they see its name.
• Non-Americans, especially non-English speakers, often assume the city of Waco (actually pronounced «way-co») is pronounced «wacko», and accidentally turn its name into an American slang word meaning «crazy person».
• The Sultanate of Rum was a kingdom in what’s now Turkey. Despite what it sounds like in English, it wasn’t actually famous for producing alcohol. Its name was derived from Rome, because its rulers conquered lands previously ruled by the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire.
• The second-to-last king of Luang Prabang (now part of Laos) was named Zakarine, also transliterated Sakharine. To English-speakers his name sounds like «saccharine».
• The Georgian word for both «I» and «me» is… «me» (მე, pronounced «meh»).
• The Latin for «old woman, crone» is «anus». The Latin for «six old women» is «sex anūs». The Latin for «six old women bring forth» is «sex anūs indūcunt»
• The personal name of King Sejong the Great of Joseon (Korea) was «I Do»^note , pronounced something like «ee doh».
  • For that matter the royal family of Joseon was The House of I, which to English speakers looks like a grammatically-incorrect way to say «my house». Korean royal families in general fall into this trope: the royal family of Goryeo was The House of Wang, the royal family of Balhae was the House of Dae, and the royal family of Goguryeo was the House of Go.
• A Danish physician of the 16th and 17th centuries had the hilarious name of Ole Worm (pronounced something like «o-leh vorm»).
• The Romanian word for «beech» (the tree) is… fag.
• In Burmese, the given name «Lisa» (popular in many Western European languages) has the unfortunate meaning of «eat dick,» given that li means «dick,» sa means «eat,» and the language’s word order is subject-object-verb (thus rendering the unfortunate translation a grammatically-correct statement).
• In Russian druzhba means «friendship». In Romanian drujba means «chainsaw». (There are historical reasons for this: a company of chainsaw-makers in the USSR decided to name their products «friendship». Romania imported lots of chainsaws with druzhba written on them, so somewhere along the line someone assumed that was the word for chainsaw.) In Croatian dru�ba means «gang».
• This Swedish children’s picture book◊ raised a few eyebrows when the now-defunct Sweden twitter account brought it to the internet’s attention. In Swedish, it’s completely innocuous, showing the words for «goat» and «kid» (as in young goat, not human child). To the eyes of English-speakers, the goats appear to be urging the reader to «get killing»…^note 
• «Bagrat» is a Georgian and Armenian name (ბაგრატ in Georgian, Բագրատ in Armenian). It looks odd to English-speakers, though it’s pronounced more like «ba-grat» than «bag rat».
• The ancient name of the Persians, Parsa, became mutated to Persai in Greek. This led the Greeks to create a myth making the Persians descended from the hero Perseus. Persai is also a declension of the ancient Greek word for «destroy» or «sack [a city],» which would make sense to the Greeks given how the two peoples were getting along back then.
• There’s a place in Vietnam called Thốt Nốt. It’s part of a city called Cần Thơ. Tumblr users had a field day when someone posted its Wikipedia page.
• Turkey has a province and a city both called Batman.
• The Polish word for «he had»^note  is «miał», pronounced like the English onomatopoeia «meow». This is mainly because Polish underwent L-vocalization (like certain dialects of English like Cockney and Estuary), so the cognates in many other Slavic languages are pronounced with an L, like Czech «měl» (~mnyel)

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