oftheherd1
Senior Master
HA! try Mandarin
Mandarin
My favorite, which messes up many Chinese speakers when they speak English (they have a habit of using he and she interchangeably)
Tā: 他 (He) and 她 (she)
And then there are these
yóuyú: 由于 (“because of; due to”) and 鱿鱼 (“squid”)
chénmò: 沉默 (“silent; taciturn”) and 沉没 (“to sink”)
jìyì: 记忆 (“remember”) and 技艺 (“skill; art”)
jiāodài: 交代 or 交待 (“to hand over; to explain; to make clear; et al”) and 胶带 (“tape”)
yuányīn: 原因 (“cause; origin; reason”) and 元音 (“vowel”)
bēijù: 悲剧 (“tragedy”) and 杯具 (“cups; tragedy, as a euphemism”)
wángguó: 王国 (“kingdom”) and 亡国 (“country/kingdom heading for destruction or that has vanished”)
quánlì: 权利 (“power; right; privilege”) and 权力 (“power; authority”)
yìyì: 意义 (“sense; meaning; significance”) and 异议 (“objection; dissent”), plus 意译 (“meaning-based translation”)
mílù: 迷路 (“to get lost”) and 麋鹿 (“Père David’s deer; milu”)
bǐshì: 鄙视 (“despise; disdain; look down upon”) and 笔试 (“written examination”)
lìzi(zǐ): 例子 (“example”) and 粒子 (“grain; particle”)
shǒushì: 手势 (“gesture; signal”) and 首饰 (“jewellery”), plus 守势 (“defensive position”)
gōngshì: 公式 (“formula”) and 攻势 (“military offensive”)
xiāngjiāo: 香蕉 (“banana”) and 相交 (“to cross over; to intersect; to make friends”)
xíngli(lǐ): 行李 (“luggage”) and 行礼 (“to salute”)
lìhai(hài): 厉害 (“ferocious; awesome; et al”) and 利害 (“pros and cons”)
dǔzhù: 堵住 (“to block up”) and 赌注 (“stake (in a gamble)”)
qǐngkè: 请客 (“to entertain guests”) and 顷刻 (“instantly”)
zhìfú: 制服 (“to subdue; to check; uniform; et al”) and 制伏 (“to overpower; to control; et al”)
pípa: 枇杷 (“loquat”) and 琵琶 (“pipa, the Chinese lute”)
róngyì: 容易 (“easy”) and 溶液 (“solution, in chemistry” – this homophone exists in Taiwan only, in mainland China it is pronounced róngyè)
shèngshì: 盛世 (“prosperous period”) and 盛事 (“grand occasion”)
bàofù: 报复 (“revenge”) and 抱负 (“aspiration; ambition”)
jùbiàn: 巨变 (“massive changes”) and 剧变 (“fast change”)
xīnsuān: 心酸 (“sad”) and 辛酸 (“spicy and sour” – can also be used as a metaphor for sadness)
pǐnwèi: 品味 (“to sample; to taste”) and 品位 (“rank; grade; aesthetic taste”)
zhēnchá: 侦查 (“to detect; to investigate”) and 侦察 (“to investigate a crime; to scout; et al”)
guǎnzhì: 管制 (“to control; to supervise”) and 管治 (“to govern”)
yǐnqíng: 隐情 (“facts one wishes to keep secret; ulterior motive”) and 引擎 (“engine”)
guòdù: 过度 (“excessive”) and 过渡 (“to cross over; et al”)
mùdì: 目的 (“goal”) and 墓地 (“graveyard; burial ground; cemetery”)
And don't get me started on words that sound the same to the typical western ear but are vastly different based on tone.
Horse > 马 Mǎ
Hemp > 麻 Má
Scold > 骂 Mà
You can add two more in Vietnamese; ma - ghost, ma - mother.
I think I told the story before about when I was in Vietnam, I met an attractive but slightly overweight young lady who was very personable, and interested in speaking Vietnamese with me since so few GIs did. We had talked for a bit switching back and forth when she said something and I replied affirmatively in English, "Yes M'am." She became very angry.
I asked her why and she said "You know what you said!" I told her I did but why was she angry. That went back and forth a couple of times and she let me know I wasn't so skinny either (which I wasn't, but I didn't understand what that had to do with our conversation). Anyway, our conversations were over. I walked away puzzled. I had to wait to get back to my room and consult my largest cross dictionary to find out that m'am with the (unintentional) tone I had used, meant among other things, fat. If she is still alive and remembers me and that conversation, I am sure she considers me the worst Ugly American."
Believe me, in tonal languages, tones are very important, and in Vietnamese, vowels too (up to 4 vowel diphthongs). I found it difficult to mispronounce a Vietnamese word. You either said another word or gibberish. The latter being preferable.
