Common false friends to avoid and examples
French Fluency: Avoid These Grammar Errors: Common false friends to avoid and examples
Common false friends are words in different languages that look or sound similar but have different meanings, often leading to misunderstandings. Here are examples of false friends, primarily between English and German, and tips to avoid them:
Examples of Common False Friends
| English Word | False Friend in German | Actual English Meaning | German Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| become | bekommen | to become | to get |
| gift | Gift | present/gift | poison |
| chef | Chef | cook | boss |
| fabric | Fabrik | fabric/material | factory |
| fast | fast | quick/rapid | almost |
| gymnasium | Gymnasium | gym | secondary school |
| hazard | Hazard | danger | waste |
| large | Large | big/large | embarrassing |
| actual | aktuell | real/actual | current |
| pretend | pretenden | to make believe | to intend |
Tips to Avoid False Friends
- Awareness: Recognize that similar words in different languages may not share meanings.
- Research: Study lists of false friends specific to the target language.
- Context: Always consider the sentence context.
- Dictionaries: Use reliable dictionaries to check meanings.
- Practice: Engage in reading and listening exercises in the target language.
- Learning Idioms: False friends can appear in idioms; learn the whole expressions.
- Professional Guidance: Attend language courses for correction and practice.
These false friends often come from historically similar words that diverged in meaning. For example, German “Gift” means poison, whereas English “gift” means a present. Such words cause amusing or embarrassing misunderstandings but can be mastered with awareness and study. 1, 4, 5