Lesson: How English words evolve in other languages
Last time we discussed false friends, words that look the same or similar to words in other languages, but have different meanings. Related to false friends are pseudo-anglicisms. These are English words other languages adopt, but use in ways English speakers would likely misunderstand.
Here is a list of some interesting pseudo-anglicisms:
| pseudo-anglicism | foreign definition |
| autostop (Greek) | hitchhiking |
| baskets (French / Romanian) | sneakers |
| beautyfarm (German / Italian) | spa |
| college (Finnish) | sweater |
| desk (Japanese) | title for office worker |
| dressman (German) | male model |
| face control (Russian) | checking if a person looks appropriate (a common practice in Russian night clubs) |
| funeralmaster (German) | undertaker |
| gadgets (Italian) | goodies |
| gimmick (Filipino) | a night out with friends |
| golf (Italian) | sweater |
| handphone (Korean) | cell phone |
| handy (German) | cell phone |
| junk (Dutch) | drug addict (In English it would be “junkie”) |
| magnetron (Dutch) | microwave oven (sounds more like a superhero name to me) |
| mansion (Japanese) | condominium apartments |
| pocket (Dutch) | paperback book |
| relooking (French) | makeover |
| shampooing (French) | shampoo |
| slang (Filipino) | a strong foreign accent |
| skin scuba (Korean) | scuba diving |
| smart (Japanese) | skinny |
| speaker / speakerine (French) | Announcer (radio, TV, railway) |
| style (Vietnamese) | Appearing teenage, playful, modern |
| talkmaster (German) | talk show host |
| topfit (Dutch / German) | physically fit |
| twen (German) | a person in his/her twenties |
Some of these I really love. Wouldn’t it sound good to say, “I won’t be back until tonight, honey. I’m going to the beautyfarm,” or, “I’ll get you your stupid food in a minute. Let me throw it in the MAGNETRON!!!”
It’s amazing how much of American culture we have exported. (Though it’s frightening to think how many people in foreign countries may know who Snooki is. On behalf of America, sorry about that one.)
For your enjoyment, here is a list of more pseudo-anglicisms.
Grammar Party 
The Dutch use of magnetron makes sense. Merriam-Webster defines the word as ‘a vacuum tube in which the flow of electrons is controlled by an applied magnetic field to generate power at microwave frequencies’ (italics mine).
LikeLike
I’d like to thank you for the efforts you have put in writing this
site. I’m hoping to check out the same high-grade content from you in the
future as well. In fact, your creative writing abilities has encouraged me to get my own website now 😉
LikeLike