Come again?

Learning another language is not easy. How anyone can be a translator be multilingual is beyond me- it just blows my mind. Although I am usually the one making the mistakes and sounding silly, the tables are turned in English Club! So I thought I’d write about some of the funnies.
Talking with some students, one was saying that he liked old movies like with Audrey Hepburn, and I said that I did too. Then Eldar said we had a common tongue. Everyone looked at him inquisitively because it was a little hard to understand him, then when we understood, we kinda laughed about the phrase “common tongue”.

In grammar class we were talking about plurals- the words much, many etc. While they were practicing using these words, Azamat was telling about a time when he saw many policemen on the street, and how he had never “seen such a much policemen before”. Such a much ! Oh we laughed. It’s ok to laugh with each other in English Club, it’s a good atmosphere. So now, when we want to tell about a lot of something, we say our new English phrase “suchamuch”.

When speaking English, it’s all normal for me, it’s my native language and I don’t know all the words in the Russian language, so sometimes I come across the situation when I say something in English and everyone goes into shock. Loud gasps, followed by smirks, and giggles, and then the question “what did you say?” Then I repeat my English word, and again the shock, but then they say in Russian, that is a bad word- don’t say that. Usually people do not tell me what the word means in Russian, sometimes they hint to it or say a lesser evil word. So, seasick, pennies, pedestrian, are some of the words ok in English but sound like bad Russian words. Though there is the reverse to that too, and at first you feel uneasy saying this word because it doesn’t sound so pleasant by your own language.

Then there are the music learners. Who come to class with the new words and phrases they heard from the English songs on the radio. Oh boy! I try to let them know, so that they know what it is, it is important to know the things you are listening to and singing along with. Maybe they will choose to listen to a different song if they realize what that one is about. But it can be rather uneasy, they ask and then they see me get kinda embarrassed at trying to explain, and trying to tactfully explain. Though sometimes, I just say- it’s not good, not a good word, not a good phrase.

Then there are always the questions that catch you off guard- like, how do you spell ukulele (which I did have to look up)? What does the word Mississippi mean? Is it French? What is a superpod? And sometimes…if it is completely nothing I’ve ever heard before, I usually say “It must be British English.” That has become my favorite excuse.

Learning and teaching definitely keeps life interesting and funny!