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 Johannes rated 18 months ago - From the page: "Q. What are common Engrish mistakes?
A. Regarding the Japanese use of English, common mistakes are most often attributed to the vast differences in their phonetic and grammatical structures as well as how the languages are used.
The most common mistakes due to phonetic dif...
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14 Reviews
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- emcema rated 4 months ago
- From the page: "What is Engrish: The Engrish FAQ"
- ryanscott rated 16 months ago
- i love when things aren't translated right
- sexualizingsanta rated 9 months ago
- From the page: "Q. Why do the Japanese try to use so much English if they can't do it right?
A. Most of the Engrish found on Engrish.com is not an attempt to communicate - English is used as a design element in Japanese products and advertising to give them a modern look and feel (or just to "look cool"). There is often no attempt to try to get it right, nor do the vast majority of the Japanese population (= consumers) ever attempt to read the English design element in question (the girl wearing the "Spread Beaver" shirt for example, had no idea what it said until a foreigner pointed it out to her). There is therefore less emphasis on spell checking and grammatical accuracy (note: the same can be said for the addition of Japanese or Chinese characters to hats, shirts and tattoos found in the US or Europe).
Quite often it is easier to come up with English names than Japanese for a particular product. New products are brought to the marketplace in Japan more than anywhere else in the world and Japanese words and slogans quickly get used up. Japanese graphic designers will often tell you that English is widespread because the Japanese writing script (or scripts) limits their creativity - there are only so many ways to display their language, and only so many different types of fonts to use.
That said, in most instances Japanese companies do get it right and quite often consult a native English speaker for corrections."
- Johannes rated 18 months ago
- From the page: "Q. What are common Engrish mistakes?
A. Regarding the Japanese use of English, common mistakes are most often attributed to the vast differences in their phonetic and grammatical structures as well as how the languages are used.
The most common mistakes due to phonetic differences are as follows:
1. The inability to differentiate between "R" and "L" (the Japanese "R" being closer to the Spanish "R" with a trill sound); samples found within Engrish.com include "Eric Crapton"and the word "Engrish" itself. Other famous examples include the misuse of the word "erection" (instead of "election").
2. The pronunciation "shi" (or "shee") vs. "see". Common mistakes found are variations on "shit" vs. "sit" - there have been a number of reported sightings of "baby-shitter" in place of "baby-sitter", and you can find one instance of "shituation" in place of "situation" within Engrish.com.
3. Lack of â€oeth” or â€oev” sounds in Japanese - "th" is often replaced with an "s" sound, while "b" is most often substituted for "v".
4. The Japanese inability to pronounce various vowel sounds found in the English language. The Japanese language contains only 5 basic vowel sounds: "a" as in "ah", "i" as in "eee", "u" pronounced like "ooo", "e" pronounced like "eh", and "o" pronounced like "oh". Such confusion in vowel sounds can lead to examples like "fack you!" in place of "f*ck you", etc.
Grammatical mistakes vary but there are a few common errors that English teachers in Japan see on a daily basis:
1. Using a noun as a verb with "Let's" as in: "Let's beer" or "Let's Kiosk"
2. Redundant wording such as: "Let's play with me!"
3. Dispense with connecting words. Example: "I feel Coke"
You must be thoroughly bored by now.... no more examples"
- ruscara rated 23 months ago
- I hope it's OK to laugh (because it is very funny!). English as written in Japan.
- MNGophers3 rated 32 months ago
- Ow, that translation hurts! Hundreds of funny examples of English mis-translations in Japan.
- hodjie rated 33 months ago
- bean hear manny thymes
- o-0-l3racl-0-o rated 36 months ago
- i've seen this site b4....great, hell yeah.
- luke1114 rated 37 months ago
- They don't teach this stuff in public school, too bad. It would make school so much more fun and informative!
- pasta-pesto rated 27 months ago
- Still makes me laugh. A site dedicated to bad English from East Asia (China and Japan mostly). If you've ever visted a supermarket in foreign climes and laughed at the names of their snacks/products, then this site is for you.
Please look at the "signs and posters" section you will not regret it. It makes me cry with laughter.
One of my favourites is a sign from an English teaching school promising "Engrish for boys and girls". Fantastic.
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