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35 Times People Came Across Such Hilarious English Language Mishaps, They Had To Take A Pic
Engrish is a term used to describe funny and often unintentional misuse of the English language, and there's a website of the same name that has been running since 1999, sharing examples of such instances.
Whether we're talking about restaurant signs, Amazon ads, or product labels, turns out, there's no shortage of texts that were introduced to the public without running them through a proofreader first.
But before we continue, it's important to note that Engrish is not trying to mock or criticize non-native speakers but rather to appreciate the humor that unexpectedly arises in everyday life. So, without further ado, let's do just that!
More info: Engrish.com | Facebook | Instagram
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Thank Goodness I’m Stuck In The Past
marianne eliza 1 year ago
And the sad, tragic thing is that young people will not listen when you try to tell them. They know better, they think.
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Comedy Clumbers 1 year ago
The past year was horrendous for us, so (un)screw YOU sign, I'm sprinting to 2024!!
RELATED:
#2
Not Much To Do Here
Cougar Allen 1 year ago
Only if you can do it without sitting down. It's discrimination!
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TiNaBoNiNa 1 year ago
No, it means it you can't sneak up on people and drug them. The figure is sneaking around.
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Lost Penny 1 year ago
The figure in the Do Not Drug sign confuses me. What is that person doing? How exactly do they Do Drug? Or does it mean this is some post-Drug activity? So many questions...
SleepSycho 1 year ago
Not sure but go downtown and u will see exactly that
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𝕊𝕙𝕪 𝔻𝕣𝕒𝕘𝕠n (they/them) 1 year ago
same :( we can battle together!! outside the shop!!
Load More Replies...English belongs to the Germanic languages branch of the Indo-European language family.
It is one of the most popular languages in the world, with approximately 1.5 billion speakers, the mother tongue of more than 350 million people, and the most widely taught foreign language.
#3
Don’t Believe It? C4 Yourself
Michael Largey 1 year ago
The more conscientious restaurants do read the Emergency Room reports carefully.
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Sam Lin 1 year ago
The character "炸" means both ＂explode＂and ＂deep fry＂，so the characters here acually mean ＂crispy deep-fried intestine＂.
PFD 1 year ago
I love these bad translations but I love knowing the why even more, so thank you
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Derek Bauer 1 year ago
No thanks. I need to eat something that will explode my small intestine.
#4
I’m Betting It’s Not A Bible
TotallyNOTAFox 1 year ago (edited)
Both wear red, live in extreme environments and work all around the world - honest mistake to get confused there
Michael Largey 1 year ago
And it's both their jobs to know who's been naughty and who's been nuce
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Fakeslimshady 1 year ago
Wasn't there a movie where Santa is actually Satan but he lost a bet to an Angel and was forced to bring presents and joy?
#5
Sometimes We Wish You Were Someone Else
Malek Basata 1 year ago
It says in arabic: We are working for you. WHERE DID THE SORRY COME FROM
SleepSycho 1 year ago
Mistakenly used to be polite? Like usted in Spanish or something?
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To someone who is well versed in the language, the mistakes in these pictures might seem absurd, but despite its prevalence, English is quite hard to learn.
"The most difficulty arises when people ... don’t have the advantage of sharing many borrowed words or grammatical patterns," "Sean Sutherland, senior lecturer in English language and linguistics at the University of Westminster, United Kingom, said.
"This will include speakers of Arabic, Urdu, and Bengali"
#6
You Can’t Handle It
two-sided llama 1 year ago (edited)
Just like the great philosopher Lizzo says "Truth Hurts, needed something more exciting"
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David 1 year ago
I am curious about the linguistics of this one. Can anyone read the Chinese? For many of these you can understand what they were trying to say but for this one I don't get the transition from falling rock to 'truth'.
Sassy D 1 year ago
小心落石 from the picture means "be careful of falling rocks." My only guess is that "truth" got in from the idiomatic phrase 水落石出 "as the water recedes, the rocks appear," which means "the truth will come to light." (Notice the corresponding 落石 symbols.) I'm thinking along the lines of grabbing something incorrectly from a dictionary, but I could be wrong.
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Michael Largey 1 year ago
"Truth is the most valuable thing we have. Let us economize it." - Mark Twain
#7
So... This Isn't Sushi
Astro 1 year ago
Hey you guys wanna come over for a backyard flesh burning party later? There’ll be potato salad!
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BrownTabby 1 year ago
焼肉 is actually Japanese barbecue, so this is basically a reverse Ariana Grande situation.
Roan The Demon Kitty 1 year ago
and "日式" does mean "Japanese style" what's happened is they've used translations for" 焼" and "肉" separately, as they can mean "burning" and "flesh" when used separately, but mean barbecue when put together. It's a common type of mistake when translating Japanese kanji. xP
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Roan The Demon Kitty 1 year ago
technically, the translation isn't incorrect if you were to read "焼" and "肉" as separate characters/words as opposed to them paired together as the word "barbecue"
#8
Make It Look Like An Accident
#9
It Kills 666% Of The Germs!
Comedy Clumbers 1 year ago
Thank you for IDing it as a tip jar! I was worrying about it being some item to purchase with even worse weird translations!! Like wrapping ribbon on a spool, brim of a ballcap, .... I feel so much better now, THANK YOU.
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In his own experience, the most common complaint learners make about English is that the spelling of words often has little or nothing to do with their pronunciation.
"It’s easy enough to teach someone how to write the letter 'a', for example, but then they must be taught that its pronunciation changes in words like hat, hate, and father. In oak, it isn’t pronounced at all," the linguist explained.
"Compare this to the simplicity of Spanish, a language in which an 'a' and other vowels rarely change pronunciation from word to word."
#10
No Ham, No Fourl
over it already 1 year ago
My brain started singing 🎶 oh, Black Betty, smork alam 🎶
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Chewie Baron 1 year ago
From now on, this is how I’ll be saying this word. It’s not smoke, it’s smork!
#11
Damn Kids
Nikole 1 year ago
Some salty person who made being a parent their entire personality is downvoting these comments… fixed what I could.
Weim Central 1 year ago
Thank you. Too bad it made them lose their sense of humor!
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#12
I Feel I Can Trust Light Gary
Laughing Orc (he / him / orc) 1 year ago (edited)
Both Garys seem very serious, irrespective of their hat colours!
Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My! 1 year ago
In prison, our casual clothes were shorts, tees, and sweats from commissary. They were all grey. Sometimes the prison would get light grey, sometimes dark. Whichever wasn't available on commissary was a very hot item, and sold for far more than the original price. To look cool, the women would iron their swears.
Ozymandias73 1 year ago
Gary the Gray and Gary the White. Both of which a Hobbit would follow.
Chewie Baron 1 year ago
When he was a child, Prince William would call the late Queen, Gary. He wasn’t able to pronounce granny correctly so to all the grandchildren, she was Gary!
#13
Resist. It Is Not Sorry
BrownTabby 1 year ago (edited)
This is likely to be Japanese. “Please cooperate” (literal translation) is a stock phrase in cases like this, and they often use speech marks for emphasis.
lonely miso 1 year ago
Be quiet in the early hours of the morning? From the company? Sorry to inconvenience you?
Furthermore, English keeps adopting new words from other languages (350, to be exact, according to David Crystal's book 'English as a Global Language').
With so many sources behind its evolution, English is malleable, or as Robert Burchfield, calls it in 'The English Language', "a fleet of juggernaut trucks that goes on regardless."
No form of linguistic engineering and no amount of linguistic legislation will prevent the myriads of change that lie ahead, he said, and people whose texts ended up on 'Engrish' would probably agree.
#14
Swearing At The Water Does Help
Kathy Lonergan 1 year ago
Ok, getting past the crazy hyphenating, I have no clue what they’re trying to convey here. Usually it’s easy to figure it out even with the poor translation but WTF?
Sue Denham 1 year ago
I feel like this was translated on the translator's last day of dissatisfied employment.
#15
Employee Complaints Are Down
BrownTabby 1 year ago (edited)
Ah, the many meanings of “kakeru” and the many reasons to PAY A TRANSLATOR
#16
Now I Can’t Seem To Think Of Anything Else
#17
Waves Begin At 9 Am
Laughing Orc (he / him / orc) 1 year ago
Good news, I hate when they have to close an entire ocean for renovation.
Margaret H 1 year ago
The trouble with remodelling the ocean is worrying about where you'll put the whales while you scrub the ocean bottom.
#18
Which Came First... The Driver Or The Fee?
MirohLoome (he/she/they) 1 year ago
you seem to have forgotten to pay your parking fee
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#19
It’s A Long Story
#20
Show Me Someone Who Can
The Original Bruno 1 year ago (edited)
Oh looooord, I can't chayayayayayayaynge! Won't you fly-y-y-y freey-eey--eey-eey biiiird! (9,280 notes later...)
Comedy Clumbers 1 year ago
I'm not sorry about it, BE PROUDLY YOU! Unless you're an @sshõle, a racist, a bigot, a judgyface, or any combination of the above. Grow character or keep all that to yourself
#21
Keep Baking, Kids
#22
Now I Am [furious]
![Now I Am [furious]](https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/funny-failed-english-pics-6-658bf004d0825__700.jpg "Now I Am [furious]")
marianne eliza 1 year ago
Why do so many people have digestive problems with Taco Bell? Never bothers me. In fact the regular crunchy taco is my go to hangover food. The grease settles my stomach.
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Stacy Jones 1 year ago
There was a restaurant in our town that for years had on their big sign out front, "TEMPORALLY CLOSED." I was very much looking forward to them reopening so I could ask about their adventures in the TARDIS, but unfortunately they never returned and the building became an Arby's. 😓
#23
Because A Whole Child Would Be Insane
#24
Careful Injuries Are No Accident
#25
Spanked Tender
A B C the Third 1 year ago
ÁSS. BP, it's ÁSS. If you don't fúcking dare to write out the punchline, don't tell the joke.
#26
If You’re Alive, Thank A Sign
Trinity Han 1 year ago
Speaking as someone who understands Chinese, it actually says "be careful".
HelluvaHedgehogAlien 1 year ago
I agree with the Chinese sign but not the translation. No it is not quite so nice to live, but maybe it’s just today.
Load More Replies... #27
You Won’t Like The Paper, Either
#28
And Yet We Keep Selling Them
Stacy Jones 1 year ago
So it's a toe-knife? The technical term for the toe-knife is POS? Did Frank name it? Is CEO Bath a division of Wolf Cola?
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Alex Boyd 1 year ago
I'm guessing they were going for something like, "personal care items for important, well-paid people" and juuust missed "executive toiletries.". The other thing has got to have an interesting story behind it, though. I'm picturing their English translation guy having occasion to try the product, and being dissatisfied with its quality.
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#29
I Swear There’s A Towel
Alex Boyd 1 year ago
Yeah, the only one I can't figure out is whether it's "towels not provided" or "don't take your towel into the water "
Load More Replies... EJN 1 year ago
At a hot spring, you get a towel to use to clean yourself up at the taps where there are often handheld showers too and buckets and soap, etc.. AFTER cleaning up, you go to the hot spring bath/pool and either leave your towel on the edge just outside the pool or put it on your head like lots of men do. Think of it as a big bath and don't do all of those other things noted above. The big bath is NOT FOR CLEANING UP. It is for relaxation.
#30
This Will Go Well With My Naivety Scene
#31
Batman Will Be Sad That He Went Legit
Undercover 1 year ago
The pure existence of penguins makes every day nicer, even without drugs 🥰🐧
WindySwede 1 year ago
ant yet some conspiracy theorists nutters says they don't exists... 🤨🙈
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María Hermida 1 year ago
Sometimes Japanese shops choose a name because they like the sound of it. I remember seeing a bakery called "pumpkin poo"... A lot of people think it's stupid, but it isn't more stupid than getting a tattoo in a language you can't understand, and getting it translated by a random a*****e.
Ozymandias73 1 year ago
Anyone else notice the pandas front and center? Trying to blend in as moles perhaps.
#32
Then Open The Door To Turn The Knob
Lady Gypsy Rain 1 year ago
Yoda…. This is precisely why we told you NOT to make signs
Load More Replies... Barbara Turner 1 year ago
To toilet flush, a button push you must. Get your Yoda speech right.
The Original Bruno 1 year ago
Anyone else notice that ironically, they even installed the button upside-down.
pineapple87 1 year ago
Maybe the button opens a secret portal, but you only get to push it once you've flushed.
#33
Shart Will Do In A Pinch
A B C the Third 1 year ago (edited)
Shít. Shít shít shít. BP, get your fúcking censoring straight, stop censoring the punchlines of your own fúcking jokes. /edit: lol, some special snowflake reported this comment and got my account banned from commenting. ABC the Fourth, here we come.
WindySwede 1 year ago
but porn is ok to write, but not p a w n? They just bow to the sponsor money..
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Bill Swallow 1 year ago
... What do you think the odds are that this was supposed to read 'This' instead of 'S#!t'?
Javelina Poppers 1 year ago
At least you don't have to check your shoes when you step in something, you already know what it is,
#34
Your Moist Lies Won’t Work Here
#35
He’s A 9, But A 10 With Soup
BrownTabby 1 year ago
The vowel drop overcorrection! In Japanese every consonant except “n” has to have a vowel after it, so there are a lot of loan words where a vowel has been added on the end. So when Japanese people learn English they have to learn to drop the vowel in a lot of those words, and sometimes they drop a vowel that was legit. I am still not OK after hearing a Jpop song where they wanted to say “thank you” in a bunch of languages and they knew that the French word is pronounced “merushi boku” in Japanese so they sang “merci bock”.
Lunakadi 1 year ago
Soooo….what was it supposed to say? Assorted mena? Assorted mene? Assorted meni? Assorted meno? Assorted menu? Holy shít! I had to full on type all that out before I realized. 🤯
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#36
Yeah, I'll Just Take A Soda
BrownTabby 1 year ago
Aw, they’re all grown up (Buono was a teenage bubble gum pop group in the late 2000s and early 2010s.)
Michael Largey 1 year ago
Don't worry. Gangster hitman Philip 'Philly' Buono isn't going to shoot anyone anymore , having died in 2006.
Ozymandias73 1 year ago
I'm going out on a limb to say not the best ad campaign? I would not eat handy pizza.
TotallyNOTAFox 1 year ago (edited)
It doesn't say that you get shot with a gun
Load More Replies... #37
See The Flames? Didn't Think So
#38
Nobody Expects!
BrownTabby 1 year ago
In Japanese, “please expect” means like “you’ll like what’s coming”. Sounds like they’re closed for renovation or there’s construction that will be annoying in the short term and they’re saying the thing they’re doing will be worth it.
#39
Grandma Is Getting Suspicious About Our Family Portrait
TiNaBoNiNa 1 year ago
Not a mistranslation: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/04/30/japans-rent-a-family-industry
#40
How Am I Going To Eat?
EmiTheEpic 1 year ago
“Chew with your mouth closed! Nobody wants to see or hear you eating” is probably what it means
#41
As Long As It Is Past-Your-Eyes... . (Found In South Africa)
Laughing Orc (he / him / orc) 1 year ago (edited)
Is a low fart spread that thing you do when you don't want to make a noise so you try to spread your buttcheeks to minimise the sound? Or is that just me? 🤔
#42
Your Vehicle Will Be Toad
QUINN SANE 1 year ago
The Learning Academy needs to learn the difference between your and you’re.
Ami Tokuda 1 year ago
I don't think this is a translation by a non-native English speaker - this is an original by an uneducated native speaker
Michael Largey 1 year ago
Don't worry. Just have a fair maiden kiss it, and it will instantly turn back to normal.
#43
Choose Wisely On Erection Day!
Laughing Orc (he / him / orc) 1 year ago
The positioning of that X suggests that someone knew what they were doing here...
Nano Iders 1 year ago
I don't know why someone got offended by your comment, but take an upvote to offset it.
Load More Replies... #44
This Body Isn’t Just Going To Injure Itself
María Hermida 1 year ago
In Spain, when somebody falls down, many people ask "have you fallen down?", instead of "are you ok?". They are trying to be helpful, but it sound absolutely ridiculous. Of course I've fallen down, I'm not here on the floor for pleasure!
Lexekon 1 year ago
Now I miss my youth, when I used to be on the floor for pleasure so very often... well, watching TV at least....
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#45
Octopus Is Welcome
TiNaBoNiNa 1 year ago
What about my ES Squid? Does it apply to all cephalopods?
Load More Replies... George Costanza 1 year ago (edited)
This one has come up before but it isn't a mistake. In Hong Kong you use prepaid debit cards called Octopus Cards to pay for pretty much everything - bus, subway, convenience stores, etc.
Michael Largey 1 year ago
And the greeting committee is composed of four employees assigned to shake hands with it when it arrives.
#46
Thank You For Pleasuring Me
HelluvaHedgehogAlien 1 year ago
Apart from the first sentence, this is probably the best translation on this post.
#47
Be Sure To Visit Some Place!
Awesome At Being Autistic 1 year ago
Perfectly understandable, I've used the "because of reasons" excuse myself.
#48
And You Gonna Be Sorry
Teutonic Disaster 1 year ago
Maybe they were rickrolled once and stuck with them.
Load More Replies... #49
Tell Me Your Pharmacist Doesn’t Respect You Without Telling Me
María Hermida 1 year ago
Japanese and Chinese people find it extremely difficult to hear the difference between "r" and "l". It's such an obvious difference for us, but they can't hear it.
María Hermida 1 year ago
I'm not trying to be offensive, it's a fact. I can't hear the difference between some sounds in Chinese. I couldn't pronounce them right even if my life depended on it!
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#50
Right Click For Toilet Paper
#51
I Swear, If You Animal One More Time
#52
Will He Ever Catch That Moose?
The Original Bruno 1 year ago (edited)
Did OP make a mistake? "Mousse" makes much more sense in this joke than "moose."
#53
That Grass Don’t Replant Itself But You Can Always Have Another Kid
TotallyNOTAFox 1 year ago
The caption is not wrong, humans are a regrowable ressource after all!
#54
It’s The Secret Spices!
#55
People Are Lining Up For Drowning Accidents!
#56
Diuretic Coke
#57
No Daughter Of Mine Is Wearing Sparkphss On Her Prodnetions!
Scott 1 year ago
Oh freddled gruntbuggly, / Thy micturitions are to me, / As plurdled gabbleblotchits, / On a lurgid bee....
Load More Replies... Mike Rodrick 1 year ago (edited)
They say that English is the most difficult to learn. I'm not so sure.
#58
We Paid The Bill
#59
Definitely Not Smart Food
HelluvaHedgehogAlien 1 year ago
Egg TART. Switch a letter, ruin a phrase. Maybe Egg Mart works too.
#60
Remember, Breathe Mouth
#62
Openope
Vivian McBride 1 year ago
Reminds me of that old Mervyn's ad with a woman outside the closed store, anxiously waiting for it to open. She would say,"Open, open, open, open..."
#63
Ca't We Talk This Over?
The Original Bruno 1 year ago
Huh. Literally the only comment on the previous post was calling for Vogon poetry.
Load More Replies... #64
They Have Quite A Student Body
#65
Or Just Poach Me Into Orbit
Ashley Merrill 1 year ago
So there's an amazing food truck in northern Utah called "Fry Me to the Moon." The donuts are excellent.
Rob(erta) Roy (They/Them) 1 year ago
I've gotten some of them!!! They're so good
Load More Replies... #66
Paper Does That To Me
BrownTabby 1 year ago (edited)
This isn’t totally different from what the actual Japanese text says in this kind of ad. The “won’t you ~” thing is a stock phrase - for example, where English advertising might say “buy my festering turd of a record”, Japanese advertising tends to say “won’t you buy my festering turd of a record?”
Teutonic Disaster 1 year ago
Seems about right with regard to their respective cultures that the Japanese company is asking you nicely to buy their product while the American one is downright demanding it.
Load More Replies... The Original Bruno 1 year ago
This is perfectly correct, except for the lack of some optional but helpful punctuation.
Cammy Mack 1 year ago
Reminds me of the Tom Green bit "Why don't you have anything to drink? Choose one, making you better feeling."
#67
Happy Smorked Turkey Day!
#68
*cough* Giant Hornet
VonBlade 1 year ago
I'd love to know which words you're including, because it's not a Haiku if you start at The King, or Congratulation, or Japanese.
Load More Replies... #69
Brevity Is The Soul Of Greeting
#70
Christmas Text Is Made
#71
Nothing Stimulates Like The Apocalypse
BrownTabby 1 year ago
I don’t know what they’re going for here, but “stimulate your five senses” is a stock phrase in Japanese advertising. It means there’s more to the experience than just looking at stuff.
#72
Cholesterol Is A Gateway Drug
#74
You Know, Cheese And Stuff
#75
Do Not Hide If You Don’t Want A Hiding
#76
It's Sad Because Porky Was In Recovery
#77
No Safety. Smoking First
#78
What Else Would You Do After Entering?
#79
Let’s Tame Activity
Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My! 1 year ago
What if there aren't any nearby?
Load More Replies... #80
What Happened To Sugar And Spice?
Rafis Poulio 1 year ago
Trailers for sale or rent, rooms to let 50 cents. No phone, no pool, no pets. I ain't got no cigarettes. Ah but two hours of pushing broom buys an eight by twelve four bit room. I'm a man of means by no means. King of the road.
Add New Image
What do you think ?
Carol Eaves 1 year ago
I have such respect for anyone who tries to communicate in another language. Most people I know would mock these (they warm my heart) but could they write down any word in Japanese? Or Korean? Or French even? Bravo for the genuine humour and good efforts of all of these
Joseph Maza 1 year ago
Many of the Japanese instances are meant for the Japanese and not English speakers. So, they don't got through much, if any, editing. They're a sort of "decoration". English in Japanese songs? Same.
Load More Replies... Ima Manimal 1 year ago
One of the best I’ve heard was an ISP using woody the woodpecker as a mascot. Their slogan was “touch Woody, the Internet p****r.”
Tracy Wallick 1 year ago
My favorite has to be a Japanese store that thought "f*ckin" was slang for 'really good', resulting in.... 8fj05hletr301.jpg 
marianne eliza 1 year ago
Considering how easy it would be to send your proposed translation to anyone in the world who speaks that language, these are really sad.
Carol Eaves 1 year ago
I have such respect for anyone who tries to communicate in another language. Most people I know would mock these (they warm my heart) but could they write down any word in Japanese? Or Korean? Or French even? Bravo for the genuine humour and good efforts of all of these
Joseph Maza 1 year ago
Many of the Japanese instances are meant for the Japanese and not English speakers. So, they don't got through much, if any, editing. They're a sort of "decoration". English in Japanese songs? Same.
Load More Replies... Ima Manimal 1 year ago
One of the best I’ve heard was an ISP using woody the woodpecker as a mascot. Their slogan was “touch Woody, the Internet p****r.”
Tracy Wallick 1 year ago
My favorite has to be a Japanese store that thought "f*ckin" was slang for 'really good', resulting in.... 8fj05hletr301.jpg
marianne eliza 1 year ago
Considering how easy it would be to send your proposed translation to anyone in the world who speaks that language, these are really sad.
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