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50 Of The Best And Worst Things Bilinguals Heard Someone Say When They Thought Nobody Would Understand Them
Imagine how intriguing life would be if we could read other people’s minds. It would be fun, awkward, maybe even chaotic! While mind-reading isn’t exactly possible (yet), there is something that comes pretty close: knowing someone’s language when they think you don’t.
Bilingual people online are sharing the best things they’ve overheard when others thought they wouldn’t understand a word. From shocking insults to juicy secrets whispered in plain sight, these stories prove that sometimes being multilingual is the ultimate superpower.
Keep scrolling, if you dare, to find out what people really say when they think you’re clueless.
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#1
I'm Dutch and my GF is Hungarian.
I went to meet her parents for the first time at Christmas a couple of years back and my GF suggested that I should learn a couple words like: Hello, how are you. Those kind of things.
I took it a step further and got a lot of help from 2 workmates, just to surprise my girlfriend and parents.
When we got there, her father was not so keen of me being not Hungarian.
He was saying some things to my girlfriend like "How will we ever communicate?" and "It's such a shame that you couldn't find someone who is Hungarian or at least speaks it.
I look at my GF, then calmly responded to her dad that although my Hungarian isn't the best, I will learn it for them because now they are my family too. I also thanked then for having me over and asked my GF's dad that I hope that one day he can accept me for who I am as a "Outsider" as how he likes to call it.
The moment I did say that, he teared up and said that no one ever did some much for his daughter and his family in this way and he appreciates it very much.
After that, A bottle of Palinka appeared on the table and from that moment on I don't remember much from that night.
Now several years later, me and my GF's dad are really close although we live at the other side of Europe.
Soon I will go again to Hungary for Christmas, And now I am planning to ask him for his daughter's hand.
I hope I will pronounce it correctly.
Lee Banks 1 month ago
Good on you. I dated a Russian fellow and learned a bit when I found out his mother was visiting. Apparently I nailed the pronunciation so well she assumed I was fluent. He had to awkwardly I only knew a few key phrases. And to naysayers about asking for her hand, it's none of your business. Tradition is important to some folk. I'm pretty much married, we discussed it first, for some reason he's still going to ask my super feminist mom. She thinks it's stupid, but cute.
Rosecat 3 weeks ago
My husband asked for my hand from my father. He said no. We still got married.
Load More Replies... Ivona 1 month ago
No mean feat, considering how difficult Hungarian is! No wonder they were touched.
Petra Peitsch 1 month ago
Yaps, for people, who don't have in their language special letters like á.é,ő,ü,ö,ű ... cs, gy, ty, dz, dzs, ny, ly and any look-a-like strange things, it's really dificult. So, yeah, it's very much appreciated, when somebody tries. Especially, because we are speaking about here of a mini-language, spoken just by 12-13 million people.
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WindySwede 1 month ago
Please stop with asking her father, she is an adult and not a property of her farther! She is the only one that needs to agree on the marrying part! Show some respect for the lady, and don't ask her father! 🤢
Nikki Sevven 1 month ago
In general, I agree with you. But it may be that the young lady wanted it this way as a gesture of respect toward her father, who is clearly old school.
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Bryan Wright 1 month ago (edited)
The more Hungarians we can entice into the West, the better.
RELATED:
#2
American who works abroad- it always baffles me how some American tourists seem to think that nobody else in the world speaks English.
The one that comes to mind was at a train stop where some tourists who were clearly American were talking about how smelly everyone in the country was. Tourist A mentioned that Tourist B should keep her voice down, and Tourist B replied, "Why? None of them know what I'm saying." A guy standing behind them piped up with something like "Pretty much all of us speak English." The tourists faces dropped and they were silent until the train came.
It was excellent.
E: This was in Argentina, for those asking.
cecilia kilian 1 month ago
This may be because many Americans do not speak another language, and just assume everyone else is the same.
Michelle C 1 month ago
This is a part of why I speak four languages well and I know a little bit of several more.
Upstaged75 1 month ago
I speak Spanish - well actually I understand/read it better than I speak it. I'm not capable of rolling my R's.🤷♀️ (I studied it extensively in school, starting in 8th grade and all the way through college) But I don't look like I speak Spanish. I always love the surprise on peoples' faces when I respond to them after they assume I don't know what they're saying. It used to happen all the time when I worked in a hotel. More recently, when I moved last year all the movers were Hispanic. 2 of them were talking about the legs on my couch (there are 5) and they both stopped and stared when I broke in to the conversation. 😂 So don't assume that pasty white American girls don't know you're talking about them. A LOT of Americans speak Spanish, and it's taught in most schools.
Wang Zhuang 1 month ago
Many Americans have no concept of life outside of the US and don't realize that much of the world has at least some grasp of English
Janissary35680 1 month ago (edited)
Mark Twain describes a similar incident in a Paris shop in his book "The Innocents Abroad" (1869). I've had the pleasure of doing something similar myself several times in both languages.
TCW Sam Vimes 1 month ago
American tourists are by far the most ignorant. They often think everything is inferior (then why even come abroad?), or that most ppl don't understand them. There are worse tourists, because the US thing is mostly about ignorance and a failed education
Bryan Wright 1 month ago
What is most galling, is some Americans actually believe what they speak is the "correct" form of English, and we in Britain have somehow corrupted it. Morons.
April Conner 1 month ago
American who wants to travel internationally one day here...I plan to learn at least the polite words (please, thank you, yes, no) in whatever language I need to but I am so glad to hear that English is pretty common. The potential communication barrier scared me a bit
R Dennis 1 month ago
Wow. These comments are amazing to lump us all into that terrible monolith. Although I'm not fluent by any means, I have a passable knowledge of Spanish, German, and Italian. I can read a smattering of Russian and Greek. But I can pretty much only introduce myself and know a few sentences in Bulgarian, Japanese, and Korean... American arrogance is often derided, but the people doing so often ignore their own arrogance. (Fully expect a massive downvote, but that's the truth.)
#3
Am ethnically Chinese but grew up learning German.
I was in Germany for student exchange and attended a dorm party one night. Two German guys at the party started flirting with me and openly discussed who would be able to sleep with me that night.
Played dumb and rejected both their advances. A week later at another party I conversed with other friends in fluent German in front of them. Their expressions were priceless.
Petra Peitsch 1 month ago
They were dumb. There are many people with asian background over here, who are even german citizens. Sure, in the countryside lesser, but in the bigger, and especially in university-cities is not something rare.
Learning a new language can be one of the most exciting journeys you ever take. It’s not just about memorizing words and grammar rules, it’s about unlocking an entirely new way of seeing the world. Today, more and more people are picking up new languages for all kinds of reasons. Some want to study or work abroad, while others dream of traveling to faraway places. Many learn a partner’s native tongue to feel closer to them. For others, it’s simply a passion for culture, movies, or books. Whatever sparks it, the adventure is worth it. It’s a gift that keeps giving for life.
Cynthia D’Souza, a French teacher from India, knows this better than most. “Whatever the reason, speaking a new language comes with its own share of benefits,” she says. Cynthia’s own story started during an exchange program in France. She fell in love, not just with the country but with the language itself. “I spent a year learning and perfecting it,” she says with pride. That year turned into a lifelong passion. Today, she teaches hundreds of students and inspires them to follow the same path.
#4
Used to teach in Korea in a fairly small town. Some kids I taught told me about their grandma. She saw a black man at the train station and muttered at him, in Korean, to go wash his skin. She, of course, assumed there was no way he spoke Korean but he immediately answered back, in Korean, “Don’t hate, grandmother.”
She was so shocked and embarrassed she just stood up and left the station. Took the afternoon train instead.
Ace 1 month ago
It used to be quite common as a slur, reflecting the belief that dark-skinned people are inherently dirty.
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Wang Zhuang 1 month ago
Black people encounter racism like this all over the world. This kind of nonsense thinking also exists in China.
Bryan Wright 1 month ago
I think you tend to find that people that have never travelled abroad or watched news,media etc have a very old-fashioned approach to anyone/thing out of the "normal" in their mindset.
#5
Strangers in my city.
They were German and I am half German half Italian (I live in Italy guys) and they asked me in english where they had to go to reach the city center.
I told them where (in english again) and than put my headphones on,but I could hear them say: "look,I told you,not every Young person is bad. For example this girl:she could have ignored us but she helped us" (in German) they were an old couple.
I love these two.
#6
English and Italian. I am fluent in Italian and find it the most beautiful language. I like the culture and history. Anyway, was young and chose as a starting point for two week trip across the Europe Italy.
My friends speak only English. So we are at the bar, and talking with some locals. One of them is a girl so cute that , at the time, I would never had courage to approach. We all speak English, but she turns to her friend to tell her silently that she wonders if I am good kisser and she plans to find out.
I stayed in Milan for few days longer than planned.
Michele campfens 3 weeks ago
I speak Dutch, but live in Australia. Friend and I were on a train. My friend, she is well endowed. Dutch guys were talking about her and her b***s. She asked me how to say “see you guys” in Dutch. When we got to our stop in a clear voice. Said goodbye and then swore at them in Dutch. She knew that word already…she has Dutch relatives. The guys went red. We went off laughing.
Bruce Mardle 1 month ago
"she turns to her friend to tell her silently that...": In sign language?
But Cynthia’s first days in France were far from perfect. She still laughs at her memories of Lyon. “I remember my first day in Lyon, where I couldn’t even say croissant correctly,” she admits. It was awkward, humbling, and sometimes embarrassing. But she stuck with it, step by step. “Two years later, I could order like a pro,” she smiles. The locals were always surprised by her fluency. “I was once in the metro and a group of boys were discussing in French how pretty I was looking. I blushed the entire way. Of course, I didn’t tell them I understood!”
Those moments made Cynthia realize just how powerful language can be. It’s not just about ordering food or asking for directions. “Learning a second language improves your communication skills in several ways,” she says. When you know a new language, you naturally pick up new words and richer expressions. You understand context better, too, the small cultural things that shape how people speak.
#7
It happens to me all the time because I look middle-eastern when I'm really hispanic. I was working at a coffee shop and two hispanic men came in talking smack about our food and confused about the menu. Right in front of me the guy's like "Lets ask this guy" "This guy? What's this camel gonna know about anything here" (I guess camel is a slur for middle eastern or something?) I responded in Spanish and it was back-pedal o'clock.
Lee Banks 1 month ago
Love back-pedal o'clock. Also you're right about the slur. My Egyptian buddies used to get that all the time... usually followed by 'jockey'.
Upstaged75 1 month ago
One of my good friends that I grew up with is Pakistani. He and his best friend (who is Greek) have had an insult contest going on for almost their entire lives. Nothing is off limits. Camel Jockey was one of his BFF's favorites. You'd have thought they hated each other based on the name calling, but it's just part of their close relationship. Dudes are weird. 😂
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#8
So not me but a friend of mine.
So he is a manager in a kitchen and when he got this sweet gig in a new kitchen it was like 90% Cuban women. Now my friend is straight up Irish, red hair, pale skin with freckles, green eyes, totally a white boy. His mother though was a Spanish teacher and raised him to speak fluent Castilian Spanish. Well for his first two weeks the ladies talked a lot of smack about him in Spanish to each other and totally dissed him non stop. He decided to let it roll and when the two weeks was up he held a big meeting with them all to go over the changes he was gonna make. He held the whole meeting in Spanish and he said every women's face just dropped and went bright red lol needless to say they stopped talking smack in Spanish.
BrownEyedGrrl 1 month ago (edited)
I love this. My son is a 6'5" red haired green eyed white guy who happens to be fluent in Spanish. He had a Mexican work crew who talked smack about him AND his sister until he let them know he could understand them.
Upstaged75 1 month ago
I worked in a restaurant a long time ago where all the bussers and one of the hostesses were Hispanic. When I first started I told them right away I could understand them after a busser came up and asked the hostess about me while I was standing there. (It wasn't anything bad. He just asked where I previously worked) But I didn't want to have any awkward moments where they started talking about my @ss or something. 😂
Load More Replies... #9
Had a customer speaking korean and I heard them say the coffee was good and I said thank you in korean. They were super nice and tipped more than I thought they should have.
Lee Banks 1 month ago
There are a lot of middle eastern and indian shopkeepers in my neighborhood. I've made a point of learning "thank you" in every language and dialect. My order is usually on the counter before I ask..small thongs make big differences.
Cheese 1 month ago (edited)
In India and the Middle East, it's very important to give shopkeepers small thongs to show respect. If you really respect them, get them a comfortable, high quality thong.
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BookFanatic 1 month ago
I learned how to say "have a good night" in Arabic, courtesy of a very patient gentleman and his son. Although I'm pretty sure I butchered the pronunciation because the kid started giggling. Ah, well.
Learning a new language is also great for your brain. “It improves cognitive sharpness,” Cynthia explains. “It keeps your mind active and flexible. You practice problem-solving without even realizing it. Switching between languages is like mental gymnastics. The more you do it, the better you get at other tasks too.” In a world that demands fast thinking, that’s a skill you’ll never regret building.
Another benefit people don’t talk about enough is memory. “Better memory is a huge plus,” says Cynthia. “Languages are famous for giving your memory exercise.” Every new word you learn must be remembered and used correctly. “An often overlooked language skill is the act of recalling,” she adds. It’s not just about stuffing words in your head. You must pull them out at the right moment. This strengthens your memory in everyday life too. It’s one reason language learners often stay sharper as they age.
#10
French, English, German and Spanish.
Have had some fun ones with the latter two. Once, German tourists were in town, talking about how North Americans are rude and dumb. I politely responded to them that generalizing all North Americans is dumb, and saying things like that was very rude. That shut them up.
In Spanish, I was out with my partner, and a group of Spanish speaking boys started saying things about my partner that while I understand why they'd think them, you shouldn't say out loud, and what they'd do to her. I responded that this is what I thought of their mothers as I was having them the night before. Once again: triumphant silence and indignant shock was their reaction.
The best polyglot story ever was my Godmother, who is this White French Canadian who was raised in India, and speaks fluent Hindi and Marathi. So these two guys in an elevator start talking about her physique, berating her for being on the plumper side. As she exits the elevator, she says in fluent Hindi how their mums would not approve of how they were talking and treating women.
zububonsai 1 month ago
I absolutely LOVE the look of shock and pleasure in the faces of people from India/Afghanistan/Pakistan when I start blabbering Hindi to them. I'm a Caucasian blonde/redhead (you hardly can look more "white bread" than me). I deliver a parcel to an Indian restaurant: "Eek parcel, Aap kya naam hai?"(One parcel. What's your name? , because I have to write down the last name of recipient)/ ...and big boss was melting down ... "Whaaaat? How?!" // Me: "Bollywood fan. It's Sharuk and Kajol's fault!" And we giggled together....
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
I have the same experience with Spanish XD I'm white af, blonde/blue eyes. But I was adopted at birth into a Hispanic family, so I speak Spanish fluently. I live in Southern California, where there is a large population of Hispanic people. When I worked retail for two and a half years, we got a lot of customers who would try to ask for a specific supplement, but would clearly be struggling with their English, so I would ask them (in Spanish) what they were looking for. I got a lot of shocked looks XD After a while, ALL the other employees in the other departments would come get me if they needed translation help with customers in THEIR departments as well XD
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Stardust she/her 1 month ago
The last story reminds me of this Marathi youtube channel because one of the members of the team is also a white French Canadian but she’s so fluent in Marathi and Hindi that she sounds like a native speaker because she doesn’t misprounounce anything
#11
So once when I used to work at GameStop and this lady and her older mother walked in and they started to speak Spanish to each other looking for a game that the lady’s son wanted for Christmas. They eventually find it and then they come to the register and this is where the fun begins. (Now I do speak fluent Spanish but because of a recent work incident I didn’t speak Spanish to people unless they asked me to). So this lady and her mother are trying to gather their dollars together and while they’re gathering the money I asked them if they wanted to add insurance on to their game for $3 and the lady looks up and says yes and then resumes to look for more money and then they finally get together the original $11 that it cost to buy the game but we’re surprised to when it said $14 on the screen. The mother of the child asked why it went up to $14 and I said because of the insurance for the game, the lady then says I don’t want the insurance. The lady’s mother then asked why it jumped up and the her daughter said “He added insurance without telling me” in Spanish then her mother proceeds to say “Wow, he’s just trying to take advantage of people for not speaking his language”. This ladies and gentleman is where I lost and went full Spanish speaking mode and explained to both of them what was going on and they both apologized and they paid for the insurance and didn’t say a word for the rest of the transaction.
David Morgan 1 month ago
They weren't intending to pay that. The staff are 'encouraged' (required) to offer the 'extended warranties' and protections on any and all purchases, regardless of the relative values. Believe me, they are well aware of how stupid the policy is, but management makes them do it.
Load More Replies... #12
I was working downtown (in the US) in a part of the city that is mainly tourists and waited on a Chinese family one day. The restaurant is the equivalent of a sit down chain like Olive Garden. I greeted them in English and they responded in English, so I figured that this would be the best method of communication since they did not ask if I spoke Cantonese. Once I moved onto my next table I heard the mother tell the father that it is such a shame that my parents worked so hard for me to not speak Cantonese and work at a restaurant. I went through the whole meal speaking in English and at the end as I was handing them the bill, I said in Cantonese that "it was a pleasure serving you and I hope you come again soon". The mother's face dropped and she thanked me profusely and left a decent tip. I might speak English well, but I also know how to work the Chinese guilt.
Language learning doesn’t just change your brain, it changes your heart too. “Learning multiple foreign languages exposes individuals to different cultures, traditions, and worldviews,” says Cynthia. Every new language is like opening a window into someone else’s life. You learn how people think, celebrate, joke, and express love or anger. You understand subtle differences you’d never see in translation. This makes you more open-minded and empathetic.
Creativity also gets a boost when you think in another language. “Enhanced creativity is another perk,” Cynthia smiles. You learn to play with words in new ways. Sometimes, a word or phrase in one language doesn’t exist in another, so your brain finds creative ways to express the same idea. Many writers, poets, and artists find inspiration from languages. It’s a secret tool for fresh ideas.
#13
People in the PRC used to ALWAYS assume that the white girl does not understand Chinese....*even if they have just interacted with the very white girl, in Chinese, about two seconds ago*.
My favorite instance was when I walked into a convenience store, asked the clerks where something was, went to buy it, and had the clerk turn to the other clerk, and laugh about how he was going to short change the dumb laowai (foreigner). The dumb laowai was not pleased.
Wang Zhuang 1 month ago
Absolutely! Fortunately, with WeChat and AliPay being the dominant forms of payment, these kind of rip offs don't happen much any more. My Chinese has improved a lot (still far from fluent), and i can hear snatches of things that people say. Many foreigners who live here are getting a lot better with the language
Load More Replies... LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
Dated a Chinese guy for 24 years. His parents are immigrants and spoke Chinese at home most of the time (though both could speak and understand English just fine.) I spent enough time at his house that I started picking up on it pretty fast. I struggle with pronunciation/actually speaking it (the inflections are brutal), but these days I can understand it pretty well XD His mom had a stroke and lost some of her English, so sometimes she'd forget and ask me something, but in Chinese. I'd respond back, either in English or my sh!tty Mandarin. She would look surprised for a second and then grin XD
Hugo 1 month ago
A cousin spent a year teaching in China and made sure she learned the language. She said she frequently heard "It sounds as though you're speaking Chinese but that's not possible because you're a foreigner."
Upstaged75 1 month ago
That's so stupid! Shouldn't they be glad people want to learn the language?
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Uncle Panda 1 month ago
I hit a streetside money changer and when she saw me begin counting the bills, she already had the amount she was going to short me in her hand, already coming forward.
#14
I’m French. I was in NYC, on top of the Empire State Building and a young couple was standing next to me admiring the view, the guy turns to his gf and says in French "ahh I need to poop so bad". I couldn’t not laugh.
Nadine Debard 1 month ago
Translation for you people. "Putain, j'ai une de ces envies de chier!". You're welcome.
Ace 1 month ago
Err, if he was speaking French he would have said neither.
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#15
In high school I spoke Spanish fairly well. It was not common for that time and for my area.
A family was buying groceries, and as I was ringing up the items the father said "he has not seen the stuff on the bottom, dont get it."
I rank up what was on the belt, and sat there, after a few moments I asked about the stuff on the bottom. They would not look at me for the next 2 mins or so of the transaction.
Michele campfens 3 weeks ago
Worked in predominantly Lebanese suburb, all ladies working in the store spoke Dutch. It was handy for security reasons.
Of course, there’s the practical side too. “Career opportunities multiply,” Cynthia says. “There are so many options.” Knowing another language can help you work as a translator, interpreter, or language teacher. Companies with global teams are always looking for bilingual staff. Even in tourism or hospitality, it gives you an edge. “You can travel the world and connect with people everywhere,” she says. Doors open that you never imagined before.
For Cynthia, the biggest reward is watching her students discover all this for themselves. “I really encourage my students to take up a new language,” she says. She knows it’s not always easy, it takes patience, effort, and courage. But the payoff is huge: more confidence, more adventure, more opportunities, and a lifetime of surprising moments. In her words, “Learning a new language doesn’t just change how you speak, it changes who you are.” And that’s something worth saying oui to!
#16
Hard to describe but I thought it was adorable. I was at a weekend retreat for people studying Sign Language. It was held at a residential school for the deaf and the children were away at home but a few teenagers were hanging around. A couple of the teen boys were trying to flirt with a girl. I wasn’t paying close attention, and I’m not fluent anyway, but I could tell one boy was asking the other boy to talk to the girl for him, probably because he was too shy to talk to her himself. Finally I "overheard" (oversaw?) the boy ask her "What is your weight?" The girl looked confused and a little disgusted. He repeated the question. The first boy slapped the second boy's hands away and emphatically signed "What is your NAME?" The girl was happy enough to answer that and I was glad none of them could hear me laugh out loud.
Lukas (he/him, it/its) 1 month ago
I know very, very little sign language, but "name" is making the letter "h" (two fingers extended and held together) and tapping the two fingers of one hand on top of the two fingers of the other twice. I looked it up, and "weight" is very, very similar- both hands making an "h", but instead of tapping them together, you rest the two fingers of one hand on top of the two fingers of the other, and with the top hand, you kind of move your hand in a wave motion? without lifting the fingers. The best way I can describe it is like rocking a knife on a cutting board. They are very similar, I can see why he made the mistake!
Upstaged75 1 month ago
I dated a deaf guy in college. He read lips so well that sometimes people didn't realize he couldn't hear. Usually the only things I signed to him were peoples' names. The other signs I remember off the top of my head are for drunk, beer, and pen!s. 😂 Because those are the words all my college friends asked him to teach them. 🙄🤣
#17
I've heard my 2 aunts gossiping about me, for 2 hours in a car ride.
I learned Farsi (which is what they spoke) by myself, so they had no idea I can suddenly understand them.
From the moment I picked them up, to the moment we arrived to destination, they never stopped gossiping about me (in Farsi).
They were sure I didn't understand them and they talked about EVERYTHING!
My romantic life, my job, my studies....
At the end of the car ride I told them to have a good day, in Farsi.
It was worth it all just to see the look of horror on their faces.
#18
American tourists being totally oblivious that a heck lot of people in Europe are fluent in English. I'm Swiss, which means I've learned 2-3 languages in school before the age of 18. It's always great fun to see peoples faces turn white or bright red when I respond to what they're saying in their language.
But American tourists seem to forget the fact that English is being widely spoken a lot. When I was working in retail I once had a family of 6 (parents, children, granddad) coming into my store, touching everything and making snide comments about the prices along the lines of "it looks so cheap" and "how do these people even live here, they must all be crazy rich" . Then they'd side-eye me and comment on my clothes like "nah, look at her" and "maybe her boyfriend is rich and she isn't even Swiss".
You'd bet I had the nicest smile on my face when I went over and asked them if they needed some help finding a product in my best American English. The dad ushered the kids out of the store while the mom and granddad asked me with horrified expressions if I heard what they had said. That day was very satisfying.
Ace 1 month ago
Yes, in Switzerland you will never find a local assuming the a tourist doesn't speak their language, we're just so used to the fact that most people speak at least two or three. Even in Graubunden with locals speaking in Romansch there's a pretty fair chance that French and Italian speakers with an attuned ear re going to understand a fair amount of it.
TCW Sam Vimes 1 month ago
Thar is some ignorant BS. I'd say you're American because that's just the ignorance I associate with most US citizens (the white ones, mostly). Germans are very helpful, older citizens might be ashamed of their accent, but if we can help and are asked in a friendly way and not the condescending tone so many US tourist seem to have as natural attitude, we will. We have a saying: how you adress someone dictates the response (direct translation doesn't make much sense, but that's the gist) so, if you're obviously an entitled A55hole, be prepared to be answered in kind
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Lastly, we think being bilingual definitely adds a little fun to life, especially when people assume you don’t understand a word they’re saying! Just like these stories show, sometimes it’s the best secret superpower. So, which one of these made you chuckle the most? Or has something like this ever happened to you? Share your funniest overheard moment with us!
#19
My great grandmother.
Great grandma and grandma were in an elevator. Two women started speaking in Yiddish, "Oh look at the poor washer woman".
As my great grandmother got off, she turned and said "I can understand everything you said. Be nice.".
Lee Banks 1 month ago
This is why you should learn to at least recognize as many languages as possible, then learn how to say "goodbye". Even if you don't understand the words, you can read the tone. Freaks people out in either shame or pleasant surprise.
TheStormIRide 1 month ago
Lovely Lady has a very international job and talent for languages. She usually learns at least basic phrases when she goes somewhere. The thing is she gets pronunciation perfectly and the staff at the Polish site was stunned and thought she actually spoke Polish.
Load More Replies... #20
Very innocent comment towards my Dad, but regardless they clearly didn't think I could understand them. I once overheard some middle aged guys say that my Dad looks like "the oldest kid from The Brady Bunch if he grew up" in Spanish. My dad was down the aisle getting something and I was manning the cart and they were semi near me. I just start laughing because my mom had a crush on Greg from The Brady Brunch as a kid,so it was perfect! Even my Dad's name is Greg!
No one was offended, but the guys did look scared for a minute.
#21
In high school, I spent a month in Germany as an exchange student. The family had a son my age. Everyone I met commented on the fact that they had never met an American who could speak German. Until they met me.
One night I shortly after I arrived, I was at a party. Two girls about my age sat down close to me and started talking. I tried to look oblivious.
Girl1 (In German): Isn't that the American boy staying with Peter?
Girl2 (German): Yes. He's rather cute, yes?
Girl1 (German): Yes! I'm going to say something!
Girl1 (English): Hey! Aren't you the American staying with Peter? I'm Birgitte, and this is Hilde.
Me (In German): Yes, I am! It's nice to meet you both!
They both turned bright red. It was one one of the funnest trips I've ever had.
#22
I'm bilingual (going tri-lingual) and I have a full traditional Japanese sleeve.
Day before thanksgiving was at a Korean/Chinese jjajangmyeon restaurant. My family and I sat down and behind me, there was a kid...maybe 10/11 and saw my sleeve. His eyes got BIG and told his mom "im going to get tattoos" in his native tongue (which I speak as well). Mom was shocked and stated "if you get tattoos, you'll end up homeless, nobody will like you, you wont have a job, and you'll be a criminal." I turned around and said "I have a career, have a BIG house, and am not a criminal" She turned very red with embarrassment, got her order, asked them to pack it for her and they left. My family and I had a good laugh.
#23
Sometimes my students forget I speak Russian, and start saying stuff that is way inappropriate for English class. The best was when this one boy, who always finishes his work early and fidgets around with things, was pretending to swallow a pencil. Another boy, who thinks he's very funny, said in Russian, "I always knew you could deep-throat."
That kid turned a beautiful color when I reminded him I could understand.
#24
Not me, but a teacher of mine
Teacher, who spoke both fluent French and fluent German, was on a horse drawn tour of a city, sitting in the center row of the carriage.
A French couple sat in the rear row, and a German couple with small children sat in the front.
The children were tired and cold and making a small fuss, but nothing outrageous.
The French couple started insulting the parents and children in French, snidely. The German family didn't speak French and had no idea what was going on, trying to soothe their children and enjoy the ride.
Teacher scolds the French couple in French, saying something along the lines of "if you two bitter people ever manage to hold this relationship together, you'll likely be in the same situation one day. Show some decorum."
Teacher then turned to German couple and, in German, reiterated what the French were saying about them and what he said in return.
The German couple asked him to convey their apologies, their hotel room wasnt ready and the children hadn't eaten yet, and they were killing time until they could check in. That they were sorry for disrupting their evening.
Teacher did. French couple looked embarrassed. Teacher spent the rest of the evening visiting with the German family in German.
#25
I'm from Hungary and I lived in Germany for a few years as an au pair. I was honestly surprised how many times I heard random Hungarians. They never said anything offensive or rude about others, just...swore a lot, really loudly. I almost never swear in English (a sad lack of variety) but when my friend visited after 6 months, and I could finally talk with someone from home, I did the exact same thing! Maybe it's a cultural thing.
Shortstuff 1 month ago
My dad always said...people who swear don't have the intelligence to use proper language.
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Petra Peitsch 1 month ago (edited)
Azt a rohadt mocskos életbe! De most komolyan, egy ilyen petri-csésze szökevényt! Yeah, hugarians are swearing a lot. But it's not in a mean way, most like kind of stress-releasing. And the language is rich enough to not use the "bad" words (like fck, h.oe, yo momma-kind of things), but is still swearing. That's tha best part of it ....
Okido 1 month ago
I speak Hungarian since I was a toddler (I live in the Netherlands), but I never learned how to swear in Hungarian. All I heard from my mother was “az anyád térde” or “a rosseb egye meg”. And I don’t even know what the latter means.
Load More Replies... Janissary35680 1 month ago
The ability to swear properly and in the right context in another language is a true test of bilinguality. It's extremely difficult.
#26
I speak mandarin, heard some weird stuff,
“I wouldn’t marry you if you owned all the kittens in the world” overheard in a restaurant was great. But I also speak some French, and while in Baltimore airport, I overheard a little girl, who was pointing at a huge preying mantis on the window and say “it’s not going to come on the airplane is it?” Adorable.
Janissary35680 1 month ago
Yes. Now I must absolutely find an occasion to use that phrase!
Load More Replies... Michelle C 1 month ago
Oui, la Baltimore accueille beaucoup d’émigrés d’origine algérienne, camerounaise, canadienne, française, malienne, marocaine, sénégalaise, etc.
#27
So I speak like 1.2 languages English and Japanese. My Japanese is poor but gets me around town, let's me be pleasant in the most basic conversation, order food and beer, and try to pick up girls.
I was on a bus in Australia one time and overheard the two girls on the bus say something along the lines of "those guys are cute/cool". I responded with something of along the lines" Thanks! You're cute too. Would you like to drink beer with us?" In Japanese. They were shocked! They did not get a beer with us be I did get her phone number. Fortunately for me, her English is much better than my Japnesee and we did meet up after!
#28
Well, as an Italian I overheard many American tourists diss my town, the service workers and many other things.
But the most fun I had was abroad when two thugs talked badly about me and my father in our face (even with sporadic eye contact) in a second-generation-immigrant-esque version of Italian while we were touring NYC.
Boy did they look surprised...
#29
I worked in the field building houses for a couple years. I'm a pale, freckled, irish-american that looks as white as they come but I speak spanish very well. On my first day at a new jobsite, our gas for the generator went missing. I asked the framers if they saw anything and one guy says to his coworker in spanish "Thats the gas we used for our van yesterday"but then said "No" in english.
I went and gave him a straw from my car and told him he better put it back!
#30
I‘m from Switzerland and I can speak German and English.
One summer my friend invited me to a vacation to Florida. Pretty much at the beginnning of that vacation her family and I went to a McDonalds for quick bite. We had to wait a little but there was this really cute cashier there. My friend and I were openly talking about how cute he was in Swiss-German, which is basically just an dialect even some Germans don‘t understand. So we did that a lot in Florida.
Well the line moved eventually and we were in front of that cashier. He smiled at us and asked us if were from Switzerland. We nodded and then he told us how his family used to have mainly Au-Pairs from Switzerland and he knew some German. We went red and he thought it was very funny and was flattered. At least I hope so lol.
#31
I'm from Sweden so everyone assumes that I speak English and I do speak English. it's a bit different tho when I'm in Spain and some people there talk s**t about me and then I speak Spanish to my friend just make them feel uncomfortable.
#32
I took a youth group to Six Flags. We had extra tickets from a couple of no-shows, so I decided to scalp them.
A Korean family walked up and I made my pitch. They conferred together in Korean. I'm a white guy, but I lived in rural Korea for a year and bargained with a lot of shopkeepers, so I knew their counter-offer and what they were willing to pay before they announced it in English.
#33
I was sitting in my grandmother's living room. I hadn't been there since I was 7(I'm 19 in this story) and had said nothing as at that time I was a quiet introvert. My two aunts were talking about how I was "A stupid American" and "How I never could understand the language of my family". I then smiled and said "You know I understood everything you just said, right?" They didn't talk to me for a while after that.
#34
I can speak in English,French,German and Turkish.
I have heard a lot of french speaking tourists especially males comment about me(and I am 23M) about my look my body etc. When I say "merci beaucoup" when I pass by their side they usually freeze.It is really giving me the most fun time I have.
#35
On a transatlantic flight I had a row to myself. In the air the flight attendant asked me to switch with a couple who didn’t have an extra seat for their baby. No problem. Then they moved me again for some reason. After I sat down the lady across the aisle asked me to switch with her boyfriend, who was one row ahead of me. I let out a deep sigh and she told me not to worry about it.
The food service came and on reflection I realized it wasn’t a huge deal to move again so I decided I’d offer after the flight attended cleared the trays. Then they started talking to each other in French and called me fat and lazy. So I stayed in my seat.
The weird thing is this was an Air Canada flight. Most Canadians aren’t bilingual but know enough to understand the insults. They weren’t being very secretive.
Hyacinth (Any pronouns) 1 month ago
And the rest of us had terrible French teachers!
Load More Replies... #36
I used to work at a name brand retail store. This attracts a lot of Chinese clients as Chinese people are really big on name brand products.
Most of our Chinese clients are tourists or people who've moved to the US later in life and don't speak that well and prefer to speak in Chinese. I hate dealing with actual Chinese clients because their manners are usually not the best and once they know you speak Chinese they start demanding lots of stuff from you.
So at work, I avoided speaking Chinese as much as possible, leading to me to insulted many times by them thinking I don't understand. I've been called all kinds of profanities and blamed for cheaping them out and not giving them better prices or free stuff(this is a retail store not the street market).
I usually don't confront these people but one time this older lady in her 70s yelled "HURRY UP" to my face in Chinese. He daughter turns to her and told her even if you tell her to hurry up she can't understand you. Only reason why it was taking longer than usual was because she wanted me to individually wrap everything she bought. So I decided to take my time, give her the shopping bag and said "慢走" which is a formal greeting Chinese people use when people are leaving their house/store.
I'll never forget the old lady's face when I said that.
nm 1 month ago
It isn't the first time that I read about mainland Chinese and their rude/bad/impolite manners. It seems party indoctrination doesn't include teaching them politeness.
Petra Peitsch 1 month ago
There are some hotels in Germany, what doesn't accept mainland Chinese tourist groups. With a very good reason. Sure, by rejecting them, is always said, they are overbooked for the asked period.
Load More Replies... Wang Zhuang 1 month ago (edited)
One of the unfortunate side effects of these lists is that they give rise to stereotypes. Please don't do it. I have lived in China for more than 6 years now, and I can tell you honestly that most Chinese are quite polite and generous. Are there some who are rude? Certainly. But you'll find some people like that almost everywhere. It's sad that OP is being forced to deal with with the dredges of Chinese society.
ILoveMySon 1 month ago
Agreed. It would be nice if Amercans were not generalized so much.
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#37
I’m half korean, and can understand fluent Korean and can only respond in simple Korean or I just respond in English. But I was eating by myself in a korean restaurant and the servers were speaking korean, literally badmouthing me. I just looked up at them as soon as they were talking among themselves about me, and they noticed and just dispersed / went separate ways. I’ve talked to other half korean folks I know and we’ve all talked about similar experiences of full korean folks badmouth, all the while them not realizing we understand what they’re saying. It’s embarrassing.
Edit: I didn’t think this was going to blow up! I have been told that I look more white than korean. I have blue hair, some nostril piercings and I don’t remember what I wore that day but that’s what they were talking about! They were talking about my appearance. Unfortunately this was just a recent example, i used to hear more comments when I was younger. I think people are more open minded now, interracial couples werent as accepting back then like it is now imo! But this was purely people not realizing I can understand them when they’re speaking their native tongue.
#38
English-French
Walking around in New York with my gay cousin who lives there, some french tourist points out my cousins nails and says to his family:
“Regarde moi ça, ya vraiment des mecs bizarres ici”
“Get à load of this guy’s nails, there’s really some weird people here”
We both turned and starting bombarding the dude with “ya un problem?” And asked him why are his nails a problem to your life (in French)
His baffled face was worth it.
#39
I work in the utility industry. I had a guy I was working with trying to get new service to his residence. During one of our meetings he was on his cell phone when I got there. He continued talking for a few minutes then said something along the lines of "I've got to go, that stupid white boy is here". He was laughing on the phone then looked at me. The look on my face must have told him I understood everything he said, because he got stone sober professional.
#40
My wife's family asked her " I thought you didn't date white guys" She says "He's Mexican and he understood you." I smiled and nodded. After that, I was repeatedly asked If I'm sure I'm not white.
#41
Amish in public places talking about us non-amish people and they're doing it in German. I took 4 years of German in school and can pick up some Amish phrases here and there. Sometimes they're rude. Sometimes they're curious.
Lee Banks 1 month ago
This! My family lives in Amish country and often do trades. I picked up some of the local dialect over the years. I can't accompany them on runs anymore. Apparently my tattoos create lust in the boys, curiosity in the girls, and a whole lot of disdain from the elders. Got some serious side eye when they realized I could understand.
#42
When I was 13 my family moved to Switzerland. At first I didn’t understand french at all, but slowly i began to learn. My classmates didn’t realize I was learning though, so I got to hear them “discreetly” argue about who had to sit next to me, or who had to put me on their team in gym :(.
Lee Banks 1 month ago
Kids can be awful in any language. You know at least two, which is cool.
TheStormIRide 1 month ago
and then there's the Swiss. They even have some Swiss that call themselves 'edigenossen' who look down upon other Swiss because apparently their family has been there for longer. Xenophobia and casual racism is more popular here than you'd think.
Load More Replies... #43
A friend and I (both male) were sitting at a restaurant. Two girls next to us were speaking spanish, arguing with each other about which one of us was more attractive. Eventually they both agreed on my friend so as we walked out he thanked them in Spanish and they both went beet red.
#44
Back when I worked in retail, I had a very angry customer who DESPISED the idea of self-checkout lanes. Unfortunately for him and his wife, those were the only checkouts without a line, and they were not the type to wait.
The man used the machine for maybe 30 seconds before becoming so frustrated at the weight sensor that he dropped all his items and stormed out while yelling profanities in another language. His wife slowly followed out with a sigh, but not before I said 'good night' to them in the very same language. That got a hearty chuckle out of her!
#45
I was in high school ordering food at a food truck and the person ahead of us in line had left a soda on the counter. Since the counter is below the window they couldn’t see it. We ordered our food and went to step away, leaving the soda, and I heard the guy after us tell the man at the window that we were stealing a soda in Spanish.
He wasn’t being malicious but I was glad I could understand him to explain that we weren’t stealing!
#46
A polish guy at work started swearing at me profusely in his tongue , I learned a little polish from a friend , I told him I understood everything he just swore at me whilst I stared him straight in the eye . He didn’t say another word.
#47
I was stationed in Germany and out processing to get out of the Army. I had been there for almost 4 years so I was pretty fluent by then. At one office worked a Germany lady and a German guy. The lady gave me a paper to sign and as I am reading it she turns to her co-worker and says hella snarkily, "die sind meine lieblings Kunden, die die Alles lesen müssen" or "they are my favorite customers, the ones that have to read everything.".
#48
Korean family visited university i went to. They were lost and needed help. They dont speak English. As i was passing them.
Dad: "He looks Korean. Let s ask him."
Mom and daughtor " He s Chinese. Let s not ask him"
10 mins later. I met up with my friend and was walking toward dining plaza. They saw my friend and asked her "where is this and that"
My friend " sorry i m not sure" turns to me and asked " hey do you know?"
I ended up telling them in Korean where to go and watch their shocked faces as they didnt think I was Korean.
For info: i do kind of look like Chinese. Chinese families always asked me questions at school. So i had to learn "sorry i m not chinese. I dont know how to speak chinese. I am korean" in mandarin.
#49
Ill just say as someone that knows sign language i can eavesdrop from across the room.
the other thing is deaf people dont have the same social political correctness if they want to say that they saw someone undo their pants, they WILL undo their pants to show what they want to convey even in public.
so i see a guy telling some others, in sign language, about someone commenting on his button fly jeans. he is standing in the corner of a coffee shop when he grabs his button fly and pulls it open. people around the room gasp in shock with WTF type comments. i was able to get the lead up to the fly show and he was talking about how someone asked how he undid all those buttons so quick.
#50
I remember hearing two Chinese tourists, both males in their late teen/early twenties, in the United States talking about a woman they thought was attractive. Nothing overly inappropriate or rude, it was just kind of funny they were discussing it so loudly.
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What do you think ?
Rick Murray 1 month ago
[context: I live in rural France] Just the other day a teenager randomly said "Oh, hey, f**k you!" to me. Me, walking around doing the shopping by myself. I just side-eyed him and said that he probably shouldn't be learning English from South Park, and walked off leaving a 😮 behind.
Bruce Mardle 1 month ago
Now I want to know the French for "I am a cop and you will respect my authoritah" 🙂
Load More Replies... Hugo 1 month ago
Somewhat off topic here. At the railway station in Oslo I asked the girl in the ticket office "kan du tala engelsk?" which is probably closer to Swedish but I reckoned she would understand. Unfortunately I didn't understand her reply and asked her to repeat it. She was speaking English with a Cockney accent! Unexpected, so I didn't recognize it at first.
Bruce Mardle 1 month ago
"Ere ya, love, get yer laughing tackle round this!"
Load More Replies... Auntriarch 1 month ago
I've never heard a French person assuming that I can't understand and being rude about me. Nearest I ever got was working in an office with two Egyptian girls, the one was rude about me, the other one (who is still my friend to this day) said "she may be English but she speaks French"
Stardust she/her 1 month ago
I can speak only English, Hindi and Marathi but still in the process of learning Kannada so my parents will often talk s**t about me in Kannada assuming I don’t understand even though I actually can understand, it’s just that I can’t speak the language
Lukas (he/him, it/its) 1 month ago
"Only" English, Hindi, and Marathi? That's three languages and you're learning a fourth. That's insanely impressive, don't sell yourself short
Load More Replies...
Wang Zhuang 1 month ago
It's really sad how many people think it's okay to talk badly about someone because they assume that person understand what they're saying. I'm glad these OPs embarrassed them
Earonn - 1 month ago
In my old multilingual team we once discussed how we feel when we hear our mother tongue from tourists in the bus. The Spanish, Italian, French, and German (me): "Oh, no, what embarrassing stuff are these people going to say?" The Swedish colleague: "I love it, they always praise the architecture!". We all wanted to be her....
Natalie Zayas Bazan 1 month ago
I’m Latina but I look middle eastern. I’m also disabled. I’ve had Latinos mock how I walk and I turn around and say something in Spanish and they answer shocked ‘you’re Latina? But you’re so white’. WE WERE CONQUERED.
BookFanatic 1 month ago
The only bits of Polish I know are from a HS friend's grandma. We may or may not have gotten her drunk at our joint graduation party and asked her to teach us how to swear. Many many years later my mother's nursing home roommate is big mad at the TV repairman and hisses out "Go f**k your mother you dirty m**********r" in Polish and I nearly choked trying not to laugh. She looked over at me and gave me such a sly smile and a wink.
Bruce Mardle 1 month ago (edited)
I once read that "f*** your mother" is a common expression of surprise in Russian. Apparently there's a joke: 2 Russians are discussing the foreign holiday 1 of them has just had. "The food was amazing, f*** your mother, and the clothes: f*** your mother! The architecture was... f*** your mother!" The other Russian replies "what beautiful memories you have!"
Load More Replies... Rick Murray 1 month ago
[context: I live in rural France] Just the other day a teenager randomly said "Oh, hey, f**k you!" to me. Me, walking around doing the shopping by myself. I just side-eyed him and said that he probably shouldn't be learning English from South Park, and walked off leaving a 😮 behind.
Bruce Mardle 1 month ago
Now I want to know the French for "I am a cop and you will respect my authoritah" 🙂
Load More Replies... Hugo 1 month ago
Somewhat off topic here. At the railway station in Oslo I asked the girl in the ticket office "kan du tala engelsk?" which is probably closer to Swedish but I reckoned she would understand. Unfortunately I didn't understand her reply and asked her to repeat it. She was speaking English with a Cockney accent! Unexpected, so I didn't recognize it at first.
Bruce Mardle 1 month ago
"Ere ya, love, get yer laughing tackle round this!"
Load More Replies... Auntriarch 1 month ago
I've never heard a French person assuming that I can't understand and being rude about me. Nearest I ever got was working in an office with two Egyptian girls, the one was rude about me, the other one (who is still my friend to this day) said "she may be English but she speaks French"
Stardust she/her 1 month ago
I can speak only English, Hindi and Marathi but still in the process of learning Kannada so my parents will often talk s**t about me in Kannada assuming I don’t understand even though I actually can understand, it’s just that I can’t speak the language
Lukas (he/him, it/its) 1 month ago
"Only" English, Hindi, and Marathi? That's three languages and you're learning a fourth. That's insanely impressive, don't sell yourself short
Load More Replies... Wang Zhuang 1 month ago
It's really sad how many people think it's okay to talk badly about someone because they assume that person understand what they're saying. I'm glad these OPs embarrassed them
Earonn - 1 month ago
In my old multilingual team we once discussed how we feel when we hear our mother tongue from tourists in the bus. The Spanish, Italian, French, and German (me): "Oh, no, what embarrassing stuff are these people going to say?" The Swedish colleague: "I love it, they always praise the architecture!". We all wanted to be her....
Natalie Zayas Bazan 1 month ago
I’m Latina but I look middle eastern. I’m also disabled. I’ve had Latinos mock how I walk and I turn around and say something in Spanish and they answer shocked ‘you’re Latina? But you’re so white’. WE WERE CONQUERED.
BookFanatic 1 month ago
The only bits of Polish I know are from a HS friend's grandma. We may or may not have gotten her drunk at our joint graduation party and asked her to teach us how to swear. Many many years later my mother's nursing home roommate is big mad at the TV repairman and hisses out "Go f**k your mother you dirty m**********r" in Polish and I nearly choked trying not to laugh. She looked over at me and gave me such a sly smile and a wink.
Bruce Mardle 1 month ago (edited)
I once read that "f*** your mother" is a common expression of surprise in Russian. Apparently there's a joke: 2 Russians are discussing the foreign holiday 1 of them has just had. "The food was amazing, f*** your mother, and the clothes: f*** your mother! The architecture was... f*** your mother!" The other Russian replies "what beautiful memories you have!"
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