There are many examples in the English language of words which in the English of the Americas mean something while in the English of England mean something completely different. As an example of this we might refer to the American expression "to be knocked up" which is a slang form of saying that a woman is pregnant yet in England this same expression means be awakened.
Of course sometimes confusing these expressions or their meaning in the country one is in can lead to comic situations as when American soldiers in Britain during World War II would go up to British women and ask if they cared "to shag". The shag being a dance at the time however the words "to shag" in Britain had and still have another meaning which concern a completely different kind of dance. This being the sort of dance which is sometimes also referred to as sexual intercourse. One might also wonder if perhaps this misunderstanding might have been the reason why so many women in Britain at the time become impregnated by American soldiers.
Like English, Spanish also has many different expressions which in one Spanish speaking country mean one thing while in another they mean something completely different. This as my sister would once find out while talking to her Spanish husband's friends from Madrid. The confusion which was created was over a game which is played in South America which is called "la polla" which translated in to English would be the chicken. This a game in which one buys a card and then has to choose correctly the scores of the football games for the upcoming weekend.
Spain naturally being a football nation also has this game but they call it "la quinela". Regarding "la polla" this apart from meaning chicken, is also a term used in slang to indicate the male sexual organ with the expression to play "la polla" being what some males might do in an act that is commonly known as masturbation. Therefore with this in mind one could imagine the surprise felt by my sister's husband's male friend when my sister asked them if they played "la polla".
Of course it can also be the case that a word which in one language has one meaning in a different one has another completely different meaning. This again was what my daughter's Italian godfather experienced on his trip to Japan. It being there while at a table drinking sake that he said "cin cin". This as is often the case in Italian before consuming an alcoholic beverage however unlike in Italy my friend's comment were met with shock; as all turned to my friend not understand what he had said.
It was then that fortunately an Italian speaking Japanese man explained to all present that "cin" was a word which is said in Italy when drinking. This making them understand not only what but why my friend had said what he had yet it was then that my friend was told that the word "cin" in Japanese was a slang word for the sexual male organ. All of which added a touch of humor to the evening yet it did hold a moment of some embarrassment at the start.
In conclusion we can say that it is always a good idea to know the meaning of words before we use them. If we can of course for sometimes we may be forced to go to a country and though we are using words which in our language have no negative meaning; they may have a completely different one in another language which at times may even offend. Therefore we should hope to both have a person who speaks our language and that those who hear will be understanding and only take a laugh instead of insult from what was stated with no ill intention.
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