世界各地搞笑錯誤英譯
A sign posted in Germany's Black Forest: It is strictly forbidden on our black forest camping side that people of different sex, for instance, men and women, live together in one tent unless they are married with each other for that purpose.
註釋：告示的意思是禁止未婚的人在同一個帳篷裏過夜。但是念起來，讓人覺得是：在黑森林露營的人們，要想睡在一個帳篷裏，就得爲了這個目的先結婚："unless they are married with each other for that purpose．"
In all advertisement by a Hong Kong dentist: Teeth extracted by the latest methodists.
註釋："methodist"是基督教中的"衛理公會"派。廣告中似乎把這個詞"the latest methodists"沿用成了"最新技術人員"的意思，因爲"method"有"方法"的意思。
In a Rome laundry: Ladies: leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time.
註釋：羅馬一家洗衣店的告示念起來好像是讓太太們把衣服都脫在店裏(Ladies，leave your clothes here)，然後下午去玩個痛快。
In a Czechoslovakian tourist agency: Take one of your horse-driven city tour and we guarantee no miscarriages.
註釋：捷克一家旅行社告示的原意是保證遊客對騎馬遊城的效果滿意。"carriage"有"馬車"的意思。但是"miscarriage"卻是"流產"。"guarantee no miscarriages"就有"保證您不會流產"的意思。
Advertisement for donkey rides in Thailand: Would you like to ride on your own ass?
註釋：泰國一幅廣告原意是每位遊客都可以有自己的毛驢，不用跟別人共騎。但是"ass"一詞，原意爲"毛驢"，但在現代英語俚語中，是指"屁股"；"would you like to ride on your own ass"就成了"您想騎坐在您自己的屁股上嗎?"
In the window of a Swedish furrier: Fur coats made for ladies from their own skin．
註釋："所指"(reference)在語言學的語片分析中(discourse analysis)是一個很重要的概念。瑞典一家裘皮衣店櫥窗告示中的"their own skin"原指"裘皮商的自產皮革"。可是該告示中的人稱代詞"their"，由於句子結構上的錯誤，所指就成了"ladies"。全句的意思就是：本店的女裝裘皮大衣，是用太太們自己的皮所製成的。
On the box of a clockwork toy made in Hong Kong: Guarantee to work throughout its useful life.
註釋：如果鐘錶有"有用的一生"(useful life)，那麼可能也會有"無用的一生"。
Detour sign in a Kyushi, Japan stop: Drive sideways.
註釋："Detour"："繞道而行"是公路修建場地常見的告示。該句用了"drive sideways"去表達"detour"的意思。然而，"drive sideways"對說英語的人來說，有"向一邊開(車)"的意思。車只能向前或向後開，怎麼能"向一邊開"?
In a Swiss mountain inn: Special today - no ice cream.
註釋："本店今日的特別事項是：沒有冰激凌供應。""壞事"聽起來像是件"好事"。
In a Copenhagen airline ticket office: We take your bags and send them in all directions.
註釋：哥本哈根一家機票票房的告示原意是想告訴乘客，他們去到哪裏，行李就會運到哪裏。但書寫文字給人們的意思卻是：我們拿走你的行李，然後送到四面八方去。
In a Norwegian cocktail lounge: Ladies are requested not to have children in the bar．
註釋："to have children"是"生孩子"的意思。挪威一雞尾酒廊的告示文字看起來是要求"太太們不要在酒吧裏生孩子"(not to have children in the bar)，令人感到十分荒唐。"不要帶孩子上酒吧"應該是"not to bring children to the bar"或者"not to leave children in the bar"。
At a Budapest Zoo: Please do not feed the animals. If you have any suitable food, give it to the guard on duty.
註釋：布達佩斯一家動物園的告示給人的印象是：適合餵動物的食物，請餵給值班人員。
In an Acapulco hotel: The manager has personally passed all the water served here.
註釋："pass water"是"撒尿"的意思。按文字的意思，在這一家墨西哥的店裏, 所飲用的水，都是經理親自"撒"的。"經理檢驗通過"應該用"check"："the manager has personally checked all the water served here"。
In a Tokyo shop: Our nylons cost more than common, but you'll find they are best in the long run.
註釋："In the long run"有"長遠來說"的意思。可是當談到尼龍襪子時，"run"指的是尼龍襪子被鉤破抽絲的地方。
From a Japanese information booklet about using a hotel air conditioner: Cools and Heats: If you want just condition of warm in your room, please control yourself.
註釋："自行調節"室內空調溫度，可以是"adjust the temperature by yourself"。"control yourself''是"控制你自己、節制你自己"的意思，日本出的一本關於旅店空調使用說明書中的原文就會被理解爲：如果室內只需暖氣，那就得節制你自己。
From the brochure of a car rental firm in Tokyo: When passenger of foot heave in sight, tootle the horn. Trumpet him melodiously at first, but if he still obstacles your passage then tootle him with vigor.
註釋：東京一家小汽車出租公司的小冊子中一項內容的本意似乎是：看見行人時，輕輕按下喇叭。先小聲按喇叭，如行人仍然阻礙你的車道，再大聲按喇叭。"passenger of foot"(行人)應爲"pedestrian"；"heave in sight"可以是"is in sight"。汽車上的喇叭，可以是"horn"，但跟"trumpet"(樂隊裏的小號)是兩回事。"Tootle"、"trumpet melodiously"等詞只能用在樂器上，不能用於汽車的喇叭。
All this global gabble is best summarized by two signs in a Majorcan shop entrance: "English well talking"and"Here speeching American".
註釋：在馬約卡(地中海西部西班牙的一個大島嶼)一家店裏兩個招牌上的英文，原意是"能說標準英語"及"我們能說美式英語"，無論是拼法、語法還是詞的用法上，都因受當地語言習慣的影響，使說英語的遊客難以明白其意思。因而成了"譯林迷途"主題中最能說明問題的例子。
