Commercial English Gaffes

[DJ Pat]

An advertisment for disc brake pads in Lat Phrao: "Great dise brakes"

On a bottle of Mineral water: "Drinking water keeps you healthful" (an indian / singaporean english speaker up to their tricks methinks???)

A sign in a supermarket: "our staff are very customerly"

Add yours please.....

[dr_Pat_Pong]

An advertisment for disc brake pads in Lat Phrao: "Great dise brakes"

On a bottle of Mineral water: "Drinking water keeps you healthful" (an indian / singaporean english speaker up to their tricks methinks???)

A sign in a supermarket: "our staff are very customerly"

Add yours please.....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

AT CENTRAL DRYCLEANERS ' Drop your trousers here for satisfaction '

[thailien8]

On the outside wall of Watson's store across from Central World Plaza:

Its Here

[Scalawag]

There is a sign on a major intersection in Hat Yai in Thai and underneath it reads "Not stop except when light is green"

For a long time a major sign as you entered Hat Yai International Airport read "Cheeking In"......

[Bull]

Check www.engrish.com...

Bull

[SEAtramp]

Laundry Khoasan Rd Guest house.

Drop your trousers here for best results.

[Kerryd]

Sign in front of the Kabul International Airport (funny name in itself):

"No Porking"

Guess a lot of people were getting it on in the "porking" lot ? Or maybe it was a Muslim thing (no pork products, or porking pork allowed at the airport ?)

The sign was later "confiscated" by ISAF troops (and taken to a place where porking is allowed)

[TizMe]

Sign in front of the Kabul International Airport (funny name in itself):

"No Porking"

Guess a lot of people were getting it on in the "porking" lot ? Or maybe it was a Muslim thing (no pork products, or porking pork allowed at the airport ?)

The sign was later "confiscated" by ISAF troops (and taken to a place where porking is allowed) 

I've got a photo somewhere that I took in Saudi. "NO BARKING"

[MHM]

"Do not open window while sleeping'

an overnight train

Ban Pong - City of the Nice People

makes me smile everytime

[Kerryd]

"Do not make dirty in station"

Sign in Bangkok Train station (at least it was there in '98).

In reference to the fact that the toilets on the train emptied directly onto the tracks, so they didn't want you "making dirty" in the middle of the station !

[DJ Pat]

"Please shoes take them off"

A sign on an internet cafe door in Samui

[lampard10]

Sign in Thong Tarin Hotel car park Surin.

' The managment do not pay when your car is damage'

[mike_l]

"Beware !!! Your head"

On a staircase at an internet cafe at Khao San.

Edited April 1, 2005 by mike_l

[otherstuff1957]

I can't remember the exact sentence, but a TAT brochure will start something like this: "The Thailand Grand Sale is the most popular sale. " I changed it into a complete sentence & the &)(^'s at the TAT changed it back again!

[thailien8]

When the carpark at Nana Hotel was being modernized, their sign read: "Please apologize for the construction."

There is such a wealth of such signs, brochures and advertisements in Thailand with English so poor that it often becomes unintentionally funny. An English teacher with a camera could amuse and instruct his classes by taking snapshots of such signs and using them to show the students examples of Thailish. Often, the English written and "edited" by Thais starts pretty well, but if one reads through to the end, one can see that the quality of English tends to deteriorate markedly and often collapses completely in the last sentence or two. Many expensive, prominent signs contain embarrassing mistakes. It seems that the Thais think they know, or are too concerned with loss of face to ask a native speaker for help.

Take a look at the sign in Siam Square BTS station, just before the exit gate that leads to Bkk. Bank. This sign is intended for tourists, detailing the glories of attractions in Bkk. that can be reached via BTS. Pay special attention to the second half of the English copy on that sign. Read it and weep.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

When the carpark at Nana Hotel was being modernized, their sign read:  "Please apologize for the construction."

There is such a wealth of such signs, brochures and advertisements in Thailand  with English so poor that it often becomes unintentionally funny.  An English teacher with a camera could amuse and instruct his classes by taking snapshots of such signs and using them to show the students examples of Thailish.  Often, the English written and "edited" by Thais starts pretty well, but if one reads through to the end, one can see that the quality of English tends to deteriorate markedly and often collapses completely in the last sentence or two.  Many expensive, prominent signs contain embarrassing mistakes.  It seems that the Thais think they know, or are too concerned with loss of face to ask a native speaker for help.

Take a look at the sign in Siam Square BTS station, just before the exit gate that leads to Bkk. Bank.  This sign is intended for tourists, detailing the glories of attractions in Bkk. that can be reached via BTS.  Pay special attention to the second half of the English copy on that sign.  Read it and weep.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Save me the trip. Post it

[lampard10]

If you want good gaffes,then check out the English sub-titles on DVD's. The classic of all time must be the closing line from the movie 'Troy'

The narrator says 'That was the time of Achilles'

The sub-titles say 'Now is the time for a Guinness'

Check it out.

Also,apparently,the Thai sub-titles are also nothing like the script,which is a perfectly good reason for 'The crazy things Thais say' They read it on films first.

[taxexile]

from a sign on a pier in phuket.

[taxexile]

from somewhere in malaysia.

[dclaryjr]

Some quotes from the website for the resort my house is on:

"If you are looking for the perfectly relax with worth in your life.

Phupimarn resort Farm and Spa is the paradise that you look for.

We wish you come to touch with magical on this paradise that over your imagine by your self."

" Country home stye guesthouse that you can touchable with pure nature."

"Phupimarn resort Farm and Spa nearly the famous place example Kao Yai national park"

[Abandon]

I saw a sign saying "keeps bag here" in a computer store. I told them (nicely) that the sign should read "please deposit your bag here" - as they did not want people taking bags into the store.

Should I have corrected them?? In the UK you would probably appreciate advice, but here... maybe I should have kept quiet.

Anyway, the next week I went back and there was no sign in English - I figure that they are no so worried about Western theives.

P.S. if we all laugh at the Thai's english, they might point out some of the atrocious spelling, grammar and sentence construction of the native speakers posting here.

Edited April 6, 2005 by pandit35

[lampard10]

I saw a sign saying "keeps bag here"  in a computer store. I told them (nicely) that the sign should read "please deposit your bag here" - as they did not want people taking bags into the store.

Should I have corrected them?? In the UK you would probably appreciate advice, but here... maybe I should have kept quiet.

Anyway, the next week I went back and there was no sign in English - I figure that they are no so worried about Western theives.

P.S. if we all laugh at the Thai's english, they might point out some of the atrocious spelling, grammar and sentence construction of the native speakers posting here.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hear,here

[Highwayman]

I think l've seen it mentioned on ThaiVisa elsewhere before, but those full page adverts in The Nation for The Bangkok Tourist Authority. Aimed at an English speaking readership yet almost every single sentence filled with errors and written in a very antiquated manner.

Why publish something like that without having a native speaker at least proof read it? Many people would be happy to do it for free yet for months they persisted with full page adverts that many readers would give up trying to read, even if the information provided might be of interest.

The Bangkok Post has lots of advertising supplements, e.g. some small company making widgets in Nakon Nowhere can inform us of the history of their enterprise in excellent English, so why can't The Bangkok Tourist Authority employ someone to edit their copy?

Lately the message must have got through a little, as the standard of grammar in their adverts has improved considerably. Still not perfect but somewhat more readable. I'm unsure if the current writer is a native English speaker, but it's apparent that it's not the same writer as of a couple of months back.

Edited April 6, 2005 by Highwayman

[dr_Pat_Pong]

I saw a sign saying "keeps bag here"  in a computer store. I told them (nicely) that the sign should read "please deposit your bag here" - as they did not want people taking bags into the store.

Should I have corrected them?? In the UK you would probably appreciate advice, but here... maybe I should have kept quiet.

Anyway, the next week I went back and there was no sign in English - I figure that they are no so worried about Western theives.

P.S. if we all laugh at the Thai's english, they might point out some of the atrocious spelling, grammar and sentence construction of the native speakers posting here.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

ain't that the truth

[taxexile]

i find "thai english" amusing and cute.

so long as the actual meaning of the sentence is conveyed correctly what the h3ll does it matter if the grammar is wrong.

and why should we expect non-english speakers to have perfect english and get all upset when we find mistakes.

[Highwayman]

so long as the actual meaning of the sentence is conveyed correctly what the h3ll does it matter if the grammar is wrong.

and why should we expect non-english speakers to have perfect english and get all upset when we find mistakes.

In the instance l mentioned, then it's pretty important to get the grammar right. Why go to all the time, trouble and expense of producing a full page newspaper advert, yet not go that little bit further to try and ensure that the audience it's aimed at will actually read it all the way through, rather than have their eyes glaze over after trying to read the first couple of paragraphs. It's just money down the drain otherwise.

[taxexile]

i understand what you are saying , but try getting the thais to fork out an extra few baht to finish the (any) job off properly and professionally and you might as well go bang your head on a wall.

[Humphrey Bear]

There is such a wealth of such signs, brochures and advertisements in Thailand  with English so poor that it often becomes unintentionally funny.  An English teacher with a camera could amuse and instruct his classes by taking snapshots ......

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Most of the English teachers I know would probably not notice the mistakes

[lampard10]

There is such a wealth of such signs, brochures and advertisements in Thailand  with English so poor that it often becomes unintentionally funny.  An English teacher with a camera could amuse and instruct his classes by taking snapshots ......

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Most of the English teachers I know would probably not notice the mistakes

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Most of the English teachers I know probably wrote the signs in the first place

[DJ Pat]

Cinema at the emporium: They have paintings of famous actors on the left wall as you walk in past the ticket guys..The guy from Harry Potter is called Daniel "Ladcliffe"

Very sad indeed.