List of false friends

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Category:False friends

See also: false cognate, false friend, list of words, list of reference tables

False friends, faux amis, or false cognates, are words that may sound similar in two or more languages but in actuality mean different things. Below is a list of false friends, and may prove very useful when learning a new language.

Contents: Top - 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Examples of false friends between English and other languages

[edit] A

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
a (French)	a	(he/she/it) has	un, une
à (French),	a	at, to
à (Portuguese),	a	to/at	um, uma, uns, umas
a (Portuguese),	a	the (feminine singular)	um, uma uns, umas
a (Italian, Spanish)	a	at, to	un, una, uno (Italian only), un' (Italian only)
a (Hungarian)	a	the	egy
a (Polish)	a	and	jakiś
a (Czech)	a	and	nějaký (or without translation)
abbé (French)	abbey	priest or abbot	abbaye
accurato (Italian),	accurate	careful, diligent, thorough (it can also mean accurate meaning precise)	esatto, preciso, giusto, corretto
accuser (French)	accuse	can mean "" (accuser réception = acknowledge receipt), although it means "accuse" in most cases
actual (Romanian, Spanish and Portuguese) atual (Brazilian Portuguese) actueel (Dutch) aktuala (Esperanto) aktuální (Czech) actuel (French) aktueel (Afrikaans) aktuel (Danish) aktuell (German , Norwegian and Swedish) aktualny (Polish) aktuelan (Serbian) attuale (Italian) aktuális (Hungarian)	actual	current/topical/relevant	real, verdadero/a, efectivo (Spanish) echt, werkelijk (Dutch) egte, ware, werklike (Afrikaans) pravé, opravdové (Czech) vrai, véritable, réel, effectif (French) tatsächlich, wirklich (German) reale, vero/a, effettivo (Italian) virkelig, faktisk, reell (Norwegian) rzeczywisty, faktyczny (Polish) real, verdadeiro/a (Portuguese) verklig, faktisk, reell (Swedish)
actualités (French)	actualities	news, current affairs
adepte (French) adept (Romanian) adept (Polish) adepto (Portuguese) adepto (Spanish)	adept (proficient)	follower, fan/admirer, user	experto, hábil (Spanish) expert (French) ekspert (Polish) experiente (Portuguese)
administré (French)	administered	citizen (as seen from an elected official; old-fashioned) user of a public administration (old-fashioned) may also mean "administered"
ado (French)	ado (fuss)	short for adolescent	Fam. foin; Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing = "Beaucoup de bruit pour rien" de Shakespeare; = sans tergiverser
advertência (Portuguese) advertencia (Spanish) avertissement (French) avertisment (Romanian) avvertenza (Italian)	advertisement	warning	anuncio (Spanish) pubblicità (Italian) publicité (French) publicidade, anúncio, propaganda (Portuguese)
affettare (Italian)	to affect	to slice	influire (su)
affluent (French) affluent (Romanian) afluente (Spanish) affluente (Italian)	affluent (wealthy)	tributary (of a river) [opposite of effluent]	rico, adinerado (Spanish) (homme) riche, (société) d'abondance (French) ricco, abbiente, facoltoso (Italian)
After (German)	after	anus	nach
affettare (Italian)	affect	slice	fare effetto su, influenzare, influire
againn (Irish and Scottish Gaelic)	again	at us, we have	aris
agencé (French)	agency	laid out or arranged	agence
àgh/àigh (Scots Gaelic)	high (phonetically)	joy	àrd
ail (French)	ail (sicken)	garlic	What ails you?: Pr. de quoi souffres-tu?; Fig. qu'est-ce qui te prend?
aimer (French)	to aim	to love or to like	viser
air (Malay and Indonesian)	air	water	udara
air (Scots Gaelic)	air	on	adhar, àile, aidhear, iarmailt
aire (French)	air	area (e.g. aire de repos = rest area)	air
aire (Scots Gaelic)	air	attention, care	adhar, aidhear, àile
aisé (French)	easy	well-off (of a person)	facile
alas (Finnish)	alas!	down (direction)	ikävä kyllä, valitettavasti
alas (Latin)	alas!	wings (acc. pl.)	heu!
ale (Finnish)	ale (pronounced [eil])	short for alennus in alennusmyynti "discount sale"	ale-olut [eil olut]
ale (Polish)	ale (pronounced [eil])	but	ale - angielskie piwo
allegare (Italian)	(to) allege	enclose, attach (as in documents)	dichiarare, affermare, asserire
alerte (French)	alert	agile, alert
also (Afrikaans, German) alltså (Swedish) altså (Norwegian)	also	thus	auch (German), ook (Afrikaans) även, också (Swedish) også (Norwegian)
allure (French)	allure (the power to attract)	speed, bearing; allure
alto (French)	alto (singer)	viola, alto (singer)
alto (Italian, Portuguese and Spanish)	alto (singer, which comes from the same root as alto singers have high voices)	high; in Spanish and Portuguese it can also mean "Stop!" (imperative)	contralto (Italian and Spanish)
americano (Spanish)	American (of or relating to the U.S.A.), or americano (a type of coffee)	of or relating to the Americas (North America and South America	estadounidense, norteamericano (literally North American), gringo or yanqui (slang)
Ampel (German)	ample	Traffic light	üppig
ampua (Finnish)	to amputate	to shoot	amputoida
an (Latin)	an	or (whether)	unus, quidem
αν (Greek)	an	if	ένας, μία, ένα
an (Irish or Scottish Gaelic)	an	the
ananas (Dutch, French, Finnish, Italian, Hebrew, Norwegian, Swedish, Polish, Romanian and Serbian) Ananas (German) Ananás (Portuguese and Spanish) ανανάς (Greek)	bananas	pineapple	banaan (Dutch) banaani (Finnish) banane (French) Banane (German) bananah (בננה) (Hebrew) banan (Norwegian, Swedish, Polish) banana (Portuguese, Italian) μπανάνα (Greek)
ancien (French)	ancient	before the noun, usually means "former"	after the noun, usually means "ancient"
anciano (Spanish) anziano (Italian)	ancient	very old, elderly person, can be ascribed to a person without negative connotation	antiguo (Spanish) antico (Italian)
angel (Dutch)	angel, angle	spike	engel
angina (Polish) angine (French)	angina pectoris	tonsillitis (angine tonsillaire), sore throat	dusznica bolesna (Polish) angine de poitrine (French)
ankara (Finnish)	Ankara	strict
ânon (French)	anon (short for anonymous)	baby donkey	anonyme
anón (Spanish)	anon (short for anonymous)	sweetsop	anónimo
anser (Latin)	answer	goose
anta (Portuguese)	ant	tapir	formiga
ānus (Latin)	anus	old woman	anus (the difference is phonetical; namely, the length of the "a")
apologie (French) apologie (Romanian) apología (Spanish) apologia (Italian and Portuguese)	apology	praise, vindication, (this is alsoa less common meaning of the English word "apology," as in Plato's Apology.)	disculpa (Spanish) scusa (Italian) excuse (French) desculpa (Portuguese)
appoint (French)	appoint	(extra) contribution or help	nommer (un fonctionnaire: a civil servant)
apontar (Portuguese) apuntar (Spanish)	appoint	(to) aim; (to) note down; (to) button up; (to) point at	nombrar (for "nominate" meaning) (Spanish) nomear (Portuguese)
arc (French and Romanian)	arc, ark	longbow, arc	arche (French, ark)
arm (Afrikaans, Dutch, German and Norwegian)	arm	poor	arm (Afrikaans, Dutch, Norwegian), Arm (German) (body part) wapen (Afrikaans, Dutch), Waffe (German), våpen (Norwegian) (weapon)
arme (French) arma (Spanish, Italian and Portuguese) armă (Romanian)	arm (body part)	weapon	brazo (Spanish) braccio (Italian) bras (French) braço (Portuguese) braţ (Romanian)
Art (German)	art	kind, sort, species	Kunst
arts (Afrikaans, Dutch)	arts	doctor, physician	kuns (Afrikaans) kunst (Dutch)
Arzt (German)	artist	doctor, physician	Künstler
Ass / As (German), asso (Italian), as (Spanish, Polish, Serbian and French)	ass / as	ace	Esel (donkey), so/als/wie (adverb), Arsch/Hintern/Po (arse) asino (donkey), come (adverb), culo (arse) (Italian) asno (donkey), como (adverb), culo (arse) (Spanish) osioł (donkey), jako że/ponieważ (adverb), dupa/tyłek (arse) (Polish) aussi (as much), âne (donkey), derrière, Pop. cul (arse) (French)
às (Portuguese),	as	the (feminine plural)	como
as (Afrikaans)	ass / as	ash; if	donkie, esel soos (like); want, omdat (because)
as Irish and Scottish Gaelic	ass / as	from, out of	mar (adverb) asal (ass, donkey)
asbestos (Greek)	asbestos	quicklime	αμίαντος
asia (Finnish)	Asia	errand, issue, matter, an abstract "thing"	Aasia
ask (Swedish)	ask	small box; ash (tree)	fråga
aß, ass (German)	ass	ate	Arsch, Hintern
assortie (French)	assorted	matched, matching
assister (French) asistir (Spanish) assistere (Italian) assistir (Portuguese)	assist	attend (means both assist and attend in Italian and Spanish)	aider (French) aiutare (Italian) ayudar (Spanish)
atendi (Esperanto) attendere (Italian) attendre (French)	attend	to wait for; to expect	prizorgi (malsanulon: to a sick person), ĉeesti (spektaklon: a show) (Esperanto) soigner (un malade: to a sick person), assister à (un spectacle: a show) (French)
atender (Spanish)	attend (an event)	to attend to, to serve, to take care of	asistir, presentarse a (Spanish)
atualmente	actually	nowadays	na verdade, realmente
aura (Finnish)	aura	plough	sädekehä (a divine aura, halo)
aura (French)	aura	he/she/it will have	aura

[edit] B

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
baan (Afrikaans, Dutch)	barn	path, lane, course, job (in casual Dutch)	skuur (Afrikaans) schuur (Dutch)
Bad (German) bad (Dutch) bad (Swedish)	bad	bath	schlecht (poor quality), böse (malicious)(German) slecht (poor quality), kwaadaardig (malicious)(Dutch) dålig (poor quality), elak (malicious)(Swedish)
bald (German)	bald	soon	kahlköpfig
bán (Irish) bàn (Scottish Gaelic)	ban	white, fair, fair-haired	bacadh (Scottish Gaelic)
ban (Romanian)	ban	money, coin, small change	interzice
banc (French), bank (Dutch)	bank	bench	banque (French), bank (Dutch) (financial institution) rive (river bank) jour férié (bank holiday)
barn (Swedish and Norwegian) bairn (Scots, and Geordie)	barn	child, children	lada, ladugård (Swedish), låve (Norwegian)
bás (Irish), bàs (Scottish Gaelic)	bass (the fish or the singing voice)	death
bat (Polish)	but (the same pronunciation) (baseball) bat	whip	ale pałka, kij (bejsbolowy)
bàth (Scottish Gaelic)	bath	to drown	amar, amar-ionnlaid
bean (Irish, Scottish Gaelic)	bean	woman, female	pònair (Scottish Gaelic)
beag (Irish, Scottish Gaelic) beg (Manx)	beg or big	little	mór (Irish), mòr (Scottish Gaelic), guidh (to beg) (Scottish Gaelic)
bekommen (German)	become	obtain, receive, get (compare English "come by") (Note: There is a joke to this in German: a German comes into a British restaurant and waits half an hour for his food. Finally, he asks the waiter: "When shall I become a steak?" "I should hope never, sir."	werden
Benzin (German,Danish) benzine (Dutch) benzini (βενζίνη) (Greek) benzyna (Polish) bensin (Swedish)	benzene	petrol, gasoline	Benzol (German) benzeen (Dutch) benzolio (βενζόλιο) (Greek) benzen (Polish) bensen (Swedish)
beraten (German)	berate	advise, discuss	diskutieren, ausschelten
Bett (German)	bet	bed	Wette, Wetteinsatz
big (Dutch)	big	piglet	groot
bilion (Romanian, Serbian, Polish) bilione (Italian) biljon (Swedish) Billion (German) billion (Faroese, French and Norwegian) billón (Spanish)	billion	trillion (10¹² or million million)	miljard (Swedish), milliard (Faroese and Norwegian), Milliarde (German), miliardo (Italian) miliard (Polish)
bilon (Polish)	billion	change (i.e. coins as opposed to bank notes)	miliard
Bimbō (貧乏) (Japanese)	bimbo	poor person	ばか者 (baka mono)
Bimbo (German)	bimbo	nigger	Tussi, Schlampe
bin (Turkish)	bin	thousand
bin (German)	bin	am	Kasten, Abfalleimer
binn (Scots Gaelic)	bin (receptacle)	fine, melodious, dulcet	ciste
bite (French)	to bite or a byte	dick (slang for penis)	mordre (to bite), octet (byte)
bizarro (Spanish)	bizarre	courageous	raro, extraño
blankett (Swedish)	blanket	form (paper to fill in)	filt (Swedish)
blasda/blasta (Scottish Gaelic)	blast	delicious, tasty	gaoitheag, osag, osna (these three referring to wind); blosgadh ("blasting"), milleadh ("destroying")
blesser (French)	(to) bless	(to) injure	bénir
bloc (Spanish) Block (German) blok (Serbian, Polish) block (Swedish) blokk (Norwegian)	block (noun)	e.g. boulder, notepad (not necessarily a false friend)	road block: Sperre, Stau (German) trafikstockning (Swedish) kvarter(Swedish, block of buildings) etc
bob (Welsh)	bob	every
bod (Scots Gaelic)	bod (a slang form of "body")	penis	corp, colann, bodhaig (when used in anatomy)
boleta/o (Spanish)	bullet	admission ticket	Bala
bombos (βόμβος - also vomvos) (Greek)	bomb	buzz, whir	bomba (βόμβα - also vomva
bond (French)	bond	leap, bound	lien
Boot (German) boot (Dutch)	boot	boat	Stiefel laars
bore (Welsh)	bore	morning
brancher (French)	branch	(to) be plugged in, (to) be cool (colloq.)
brand (Swedish, Dutch) Brand (German)	brand	fire (the emergency)	Marke, Warenzeichen (German) merk, waarmerk (Dutch) (varu)märke (Swedish)
bras (French)	bra(ssiere)s	arm (the body part)	soutien-gorge; soutien; Fam. sousou
bra (Swedish and Norwegian)	bra(ssiere)s	good, well	BH, behå (Swedish and Norwegian)
brat (брат) (Russian, Serbian,Ukrainian) brat (Polish)	brat	brother	bachor (Polish)
brat (Scottish Gaelic)	brat	garment/covering(Scottish Gaelic)	droch isean, peasan (Scottish Gaelic)
brav (German) braaf (Dutch) bravo/a (Italian)	brave	well-behaved	mutig (German) dapper, moedig (Dutch) coraggioso (Italian)
bride (French)	bride	bridle, reins	fiancée
brief (Dutch, Brief German)	brief	letter (mail)	kurz (German) kort (Dutch)
breit (German)	bright	broad	hell
broek (Afrikaans)	brook	trousers, pants, underwear	spruit
brood (Afrikaans)	brood	bread	broiesel (of chicks etc)
broom (Afrikaans, Dutch)	broom	bromine	besem (Afrikaans) bezem (Dutch)
brushing (French)	to brush	a blow-dry (hairdresser's)	brosser
brutaal (Dutch)	brutal	bold	gewelddadig
bulle (French)	bull	bubble	taureau
Bulle (German)	bull	cop (Bulle in German means "bull", but also [sl.] cop, policeman)	Stier/Bulle
bulle (Swedish)	bull	bun (pastry)	tjur
bump (Welsh)	bump	five (mutated form)
bunt (German)	bunt	colorful
but /pron. boot/ (Polish)	but	shoe, boot	ale
być /pron. bitch/ (Polish)	bitch	to be
byta ut x [mot y] (Swedish)	substitute x [for y]	substitute [y] for x	byta ut [y] mot x

[edit] C

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
cake (French)	cake	fruitcake, quickbread	gâteau
caldo (Italian)	cold	warm, hot	freddo (Italian)
caldo (Spanish, Portuguese)	cold	soup, broth	frío (Spanish), frio (Portuguese)
calla (Scots Gaelic)	call	domestic (of an animal)	gairm, glaodh
calzón / calzones (Spanish), calzone / calzoni (Italian), caleçon (French)	calzone	underwear (of course calzone comes from Italian, but in that language the main use of the word is for underwear)
camera (Italian)	camera	(bed)room	macchina fotografica, fotocamera
campo (Spanish) and (Italian)	camp	field, country(side)	campamento(Spanish) campeggio (Italian)
can (Spanish)	can	dog	lata (noun), poder (verb)
canes (Latin)	canes	dogs	bacula
canto (Latin, Italian and Spanish)	canto	I sing; in Spanish, can also mean pebble, edge, or piece
car (French)	car	bus or coach; for, because	voiture
car (Romanian)	car	I carry
car (Polish)	car	tsar	samochód, auto
carácter (Spanish, European Portuguese) caráter (Brazilian Portuguese) carattere (Italian) caractère (French)	character	temperament; can also mean "character" in the typographic meaning
carpeta (Spanish)	carpet	folder, also doily	alfombra, alfombrilla
casserole (French)	casserole	saucepan	cocotte en terre
casino (Italian)	casino	brothel	casinò
casualmente (Spanish, Italian and Portuguese)	casually	fortuitously	despreocupadamente, con aire de indiferencia (Spanish) con nonchalance, in modo disinvolto (Italian)
casualidad (Spanish) casualità (Italian)	casualty	fortuituousness, chance	víctima, muerto, herido, baja, pérdida (Spanish) vittima, morto, ferito, infortunato, perdita (Italian)
cat (Indonesian)	cat	paint
caution (French) cauzione (Italian)	caution	deposit, bail	attenzione, cautela (Italian)
centre (Lojban)	centre	centimetre	(cuk)midju
celer (Latin)	celery	swift, fast	apium
chair (French)	chair	flesh	chaise
champ (French)	champ	field	champion; mâchonner
champignon (Dutch, French), champiñón (Spanish)	champion	mushroom or champignon	kampioen (Dutch) champion (French) campeon (Spanish)
chance (French)	chance	luck	hasard
chat (French)	chat (conversation)	cat	bavarder
chef (French) chefe (Portuguese) Chef (German) szef (Polish) šef (Serbian) Chef (Swedish) sjef (Norwegian)	chef	boss or chief (in French, occasionally means "cook" or "head cook")	kokk (Norwegian), Küchenchef/Chefkoch (German), cuisinier (French), Kock (Swedish), szef kuchni (Polish)
chips (British Engl.)	chips (American Engl.)	french fries (Am. Engl.)	crisps (Br. Engl.)
chute (Portuguese)	chute	kick, shot
cínico (Spanish)	cynical	shameless liar	desconfiado
clod (Welsh)	clod	praise
cognato (Italian) cuñado (Spanish)	cognate	brother-in-law	cognado (Spanish)
coin (French)	coin	corner	pièce de monnaie
coin (Scottish Gaelic)	coin	dogs
collège (French)	college	secondary school (UK), junior high school (USA)	lycée (UK), université (UK & USA) See: Secondary education in France Education in France
come (Italian)	come	how, like	venire
come (Spanish)	come	(he/she) eats	venir
comes (Latin)	comes	companion	venit
compare (Italian)	compare	godfather, sponsor; friend, mate; accomplice	paragonare, comparare
comprensivo (Spanish), compreensivo (Portuguese)	comprehensive	understanding	extenso, exhaustivo
compromiso (Spanish) compromisso (Portuguese)	compromise	commitment
concorrenza (Italian) concorrência (Portuguese)	concurrence	competition (in the commercial sense)	coincidenza, concomittanza
confetti (Italian)	confetti (actually a case of pseudo-italianism rather than a false friend)	sugar-coated almonds traditionally given at weddings, baptisms, etc.	coriandoli
confezione (Italian)	confection	packaging; pack	dolciume
conscience (French)	conscience	consciousness, awareness	conscience morale
consistant French)	consistent	constisting in (present participle), dense, complete (adjective).	constant
constipado (Spanish) and Portuguese	constipated	someone who has a cold	estreñido (in Spanish) com prisão de ventre (in Portuguese)
contesto (Italian)	contest	context	gara, concorso, competizione (as a noun)
contesto (Spanish)	contest	I answer	concurso, competición (as a noun)
contrôler (French)	control	monitor, inspect	commander
conviction (French)	conviction	set, strong belief (never in the sense of "Criminal conviction")	condamnation
corne (French) corno (Italian, Portuguese) cuerno (Spanish)	corn	horn, also Brazilian Portuguese for a man who has been cheated on by his wife/girlfriend	maïs (French) blé d'inde (Québec) mais, granturco (grain) (Italian) maíz (grain) (Spanish) milho (Portuguese)
couffin (French)	coffin	baby basket	cercueil
crayon (French)<;br /> creion (Romanian)	crayon	pencil	crayon de cire (French)
criatura (Spanish)	creature (meaning an animal in an affectionate sense)	newborn baby, infant, OR something imaginary to be afraid of	animalito (Spanish
culte (French) kult (Polish) culto (Spanish, Portuguese)	cult	worship (as in lieu de culte = house of worship). In Spanish and Portuguese it can also mean "educated".	secte (French)<br /Seita (Portuguese)
cul (French) culo (Spanish and Italian)	cool	arse	frais/fraîche (French) fresco (Spanish and Italian)
cùrsa (Scottish Gaelic)	curse	course, direction	mallaich (to curse), mallachd.
curve (Lojban)	curve	pure	kruvi

[edit] D

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
dag (דג) (Hebrew)	dog	fish	kelev (כלב‎)
dag (Afrikaans, Dutch, Norwegian and Swedish)	dog	day	hond (Afrikaans, Dutch), hund (Norwegian and Swedish)
damit (German)	damn it	with it, so that	verdammt
dam (дам) (Russian) dam (Polish)	dam	I will give	дамба tama, grobla
dash (дашь) (Russian) dasz (Polish)	dash	you will give	(punctuation) тире (punctuation) pauza
data (дата) (Russian) data (Polish) data (Portuguese)	data	date	dannyye (данные) (Russian) dane (Polish) dados (Portuguese)
decepción (Spanish) decepção (Portuguese)	deception	disappointment	engaño (Spanish), engano (Portuguese)
décevoir (French)	to deceive	to disappoint	tromper, abuser
décolletage (French)	décolletage	1. lowering of the neckline (the action, not the result) 2. Agric. cutting the leaves of cultivated roots 3. Tech. producing several identical parts (screws, bolts, etc.) one after another from a single metallic bar on a lathe	décolleté
deliberar (Spanish, Portuguese)	(to) deliver	(to) think deeply before acting (May be a true cognate of "(to) deliberate"	despachar
delusione (Italian)	delusion	disappointment	illusione
demandar (Spanish)	to demand	to sue	exigir
demander (French) domandare (Italian)	to demand	to ask or request	exiger (French) esigere (Italian)
derogatorio (Spanish)	derogatory	something that repeals	despectivo
desfilar (Spanish)	to defile	to parade	profanar
desservir (French)	to deserve (a gift; a compliment; an honour)	to do (s.o.) a disservice; to clean (the table); to lead into (a station); to minister to (a parish)	mériter
dessin (French)	design	drawing
deutsch (German) duits (Dutch)	Dutch	German	niederländisch; holländisch (German) Nederlands (Dutch)
dewiza (Polish)	devise	motto	obmyślać; wynaleźć
die (German)	(to) die	the [feminine and plural article; example: die Ehefrau (the wife), die Häuser (the houses)]	sterben
dick (German)	dick (slang for the penis or a detective) also short for Richard, e.g. in idiom "every Tom, Dick and Harry"	fat (adjective only), thick	Schwanz
diverse (Dutch, German, Norwegian and Swedish)	diverse	various	mångsidig (Swedish) forskjellige, mangfoldige, ulike (Norwegian) vielfältig (German) verscheidene (Dutch)
diversión (Spanish)	diversion	amusement	distracción
diverso (Italian)	diverse	different	svariato
divisa (Italian)	devise	uniform (as in distinctive clothing)	ideare; inventare; escogitare
do (Irish, Scottish Gaelic)	do	to	deanamh
do (Polish) do (до) (Russian)	do	to, into; till, until; up to	robić delat' (делать)
dog (Swedish)	dog	died (verb)	hund (Swedish)
dom (Afrikaans, Dutch)	dome	stupid	koepel
Dom (German) dom (Dutch) Duomo (Italian)	dome	cathedral	Kuppel (German) koepel (Dutch) cupola (Italian)
dom (Irish, Scottish Gaelic)	dome	to me	cruinneacháin
dom (Serbian, Polish) dom (дом) (Russian)	dome	home	kopuła (Polish) kupol (купол) (Russian)
dom (Norwegian)	dome	judgement	kuppel
drinkki (Finnish)	drink	mixed alcoholic drink	juoma (noun), juoda (verb)
dungo (Esperanto)	dung	employment	(horse) dung: ĉevalfekaĵo
douche (Dutch, French) dusch (Swedish) dusj (Norwegian) Dusche (German)	douche	shower (bath)	Spülung (German)
drei (German)	dry	three	trocken (adj.), trocknen (v. intr./tr.)
d(a)rum (German)	drum	therefore	Trommel

[edit] E

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
each (Scottish Gaelic)	each	horse	gach
editor (Romanian), éditeur (French)	editor	publisher	redactor (Romanian), rédacteur (French)
eekhoorn (Dutch)	acorn (phonetic false friend)	squirrel	eikel
egg (Swedish and Norwegian)	egg	edge of a cutting tool, such as knife edge	ägg (egg also means egg (as in hen and egg) in Norwegian)
ego (Latin)	ego	I
egregio (Italian)	egregious	distinguished	flagrante
eike (Afrikaans), eiken (Dutch)	acre (phonetic false friend)	oaks	akker
Eileiter (German)	highlighter (phonetic false friend)	Fallopian tube	Marker
eis (Dutch)	ice	demand	ijs
eis (Dutch)	ace (phonetic false friend)	demand	aas (one-spot card), ace (single-stroke tennis point)
elch (German) elg (Norwegian) älg(Swedish)	elk (US)	moose (US)	Rothirsch (German) hjort (Norwegian) kronhjort(Swedish)
eleven (Spanish)	eleven	elevate! (imperative)	once
eleven (Hungarian)	eleven	the living	tizenegy
elev, eleven (Norwegian) élève (French)	eleven	pupil or student	elleve onze
elf (German, Dutch)	elf	eleven	Elfen (German, elf Dutch)
empirer (French)	empire	to become worse	empire
angajat (Romanian) engagerad (Swedish)	engaged	considered or involved in something in Swedish; involved or employed in Romanian
émail (French) Email (German)	email, e-mail	enamel; Herald. colour (not or or argent* which are "metals")*	courriel, e-mail, courrier électronique, mél E-Mail, electronische Post
embarazada (Spanish)	embarrassed	pregnant	avergonzado/a
intitolare (Italian)	entitle	(to) title, call, give a name	dare diritto a
engin (French)	engine	any sort of moving plant or mechanism - usually large	moteur
enjoyar (Spanish)	enjoy	(to) adorn with jewels	disfrutar
entrée (French)	entrée (US), main dish	entrance, entry, first course; entrée (Brit.)	plat de résistance; plat principal
equanimità (Italian)	equanimity	impartiality	equilibrio, serenità
equivocare (Italian)	equivocate	misunderstand	raggirare (verbalmente)
eras (Latin)	eras	you were	saecula
esquela (Spanish)	scale	note	balanza
estate (Italian)	estate	summer	proprietà (land); patrimonio (inheritance)
etichetă (Romanian) etichetta (Italian) etiket (Dutch) Etiketa (Serbian) Etikett (German) etikett (Norwegian) etiqueta (Spanish, Portuguese) étiquette (French) etiketti (Finnish)	etiquette	label (can also mean etiquette in Finnish, French, Romanian, Portuguese, Spanish or Serbian, but is mostly used as label)	etiquette (Dutch) etikette, skikk og bruk (Norwegian)
eventual (Romanian) eventualmente (Spanish and Italian) eventueel (Dutch) eventuell (German, Norwegian and Swedish) éventuellement (French) ewentualnie (Polish) eventualno (Croatian)	eventually	maybe, perhaps, possibly	uiteindelijk (Dutch) schließlich (German) finalement finally; ultérieurement at some later time (French) ostatecznie, wreszcie (Polish) zadnje, konačno, na kraju (Croatian), etterhvert (Norwegian)
esile (Italian)	exile	slender, thin; weak	esilio (the state); esule, esiliato (the person)
europé (Swedish)	Europe	European person	Europa
éxito (Spanish)	exit	success	salida

[edit] F

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
fabbrica (Italian) fabrică (Romanian) fábrica (Spanish) fabriek (Dutch, Afrikaans) Fabrik (German) fabrik (Swedish) fabrikk (Norwegian) fabrika (Serbian) fabryka (Polish) fabrique (French)	fabric	factory (compare 'fabricate') Possible origin due to large Victorian factories producing woven fabric.	stoffa, tessuto (Italian) tela, tejido (Spanish) stof, materiaal (Dutch) materiaal (Afrikaans) Gewebe, Stoff (German) tyg (Swedish) stoff, tøy (Norwegian) tissu (French) tkanina (Polish)
facet (Polish)	facet	man (informal)	aspekt; faseta
facilidad (Spanish) facilité (French) facilità (Italian)	facility	ease	instalación (Spanish) facilities: aménagements; installations; équipements; (transport f.) moyens de transport; (shopping f.) magasins, boutiques; Euph. can I use the f. puis-je utiliser les lavabos? (French)
vak (Afrikaans) fack (Swedish)	fuck	topic or subject (Afrikaans) deposit box, slot, or short for "fackförening": trade union/labour union (Swedish)	vok knulla (verb), fan (swear word)
faces (Latin)	face(s)	torches	facies
fad (Irish)	fad	length	teidhe
fagotto (Italian) fagot (Dutch, Polish, Spanish) fagott (Hungarian, Norwegian) Fagott (German) fagotti (Finnish)	faggot	bassoon	Schwuchtel (vulg., off.) (German) flikker (Dutch) pedał (off.) Polish maricón (Spanish) frocio (Italian) hintti (Finnish) (vulg., off.) homse (vulg., off.) (Norwegian)
Fahrt (German) vaart (Dutch, Afrikaans) fart (Swedish), (Norwegian) fart (Polish) fart (Catalan)	fart	journey; speed; trip, excursion, voyage (German) similar, but only used for ships, also canal (Dutch) speed (Swedish), (Norwegian) luck (Polish) tired, satiated (Catalan)	Furz (noun), furzen (v. intr.) (German) wind, windje, scheet (vulg.), ruft (vulg.) (Dutch) poep (Afrikaans) fis, prutt, fjärt (nouns, add -a to make them verbs) (Swedish) fis, promp, fjert (nouns, add -e to make them verbs) (Norwegian) pierdnąć (Polish) pet (Catalan)
farmer (Hungarian)	farmer	jeans	gazda, földműves, paraszt (also pejorative), speaking of US also farmer.
fáil (Irish)	fail	to get	bris, teip
fail (Irish)	fail	hiccup	bris, teip
fáinne (Irish), fàinne (Scottish Gaelic)	fanny	ring
Falle (German)	fall	trap	Herbst, e.g. Untergang
familiär (German)	familiar	familial	bekannt, vertraut
familiar (Spanish)	familiar	relative, kin	conocido, familiar
familiya (фамилия) (Russian)	family	surname	semya (семья)
fan (Swedish) faen (Norwegian)	fan	satan (swear word)	fläkt (Swedish) vifte (e.g. electric fan) (Norwegian)
fantasia (φαντασία) (Greek)	fantasy	imagination; conceit	fantasiosi (φαντασίωση)
far (French)	far	a kind of dessert from Brittany	loin, éloigné
far (Romanian and Catalan)	far	lighthouse	lluny (Catalan)
far (Swedish and Norwegian)	far	father	lång(t) (Swedish), lang(t) (Norwegian)
farmaki (φαρμάκι) (Greek)	pharmacy	poison	farmakio (φαρμακείο)
farsi (φαρσί) (Greek)	Farsi	fluently	Persika (Περσικά)
fast (German)	fast	nearly, almost	schnell
fast (Swedish and Norwegian)	fast	firm, steady (compare "steadfast")	snabb (Swedish) hurtig, rask, kvikk (Norwegian)
faster (Swedish)	faster	paternal aunt	snabbare, fortare (Swedish)
fastidioso (Spanish and Italian)	fastidious	irritating, annoying, vexing; tedious, irksome, tiresome	exigente, meticuloso, pedante, quisquilloso (Spanish) esigente, meticoloso, incontentabile, meticoloso; schizzinoso, schifiltoso Italian)
fat (Swedish and Norwegian)	fat	(dinner) plate	fet, fett (both)
fat (發) (Cantonese)	fat	to exhibit; to distribute; prosperity (used in conjunction with 財, as in gong hei fat choi)
fattoria (Italian)	factory	farm	fabbrica
fax (Latin)	fax	torch
fear (Irish, Scottish Gaelic)	fear	man	eagal
feit (Afrikaans, Dutch)	fête	fact	fees, feesdag Afrikaans) feest, feestdag (Dutch)
femelle (French)	female	means female, but only when speaking about animal	for human, use femme
ferret (Latin)	ferret	would bring
figure (French)	figure	face	taille
file (French)	file	line; queue (in computing)	fichier (in computing) lime (tool)
file (Dutch)	file	tailback	bestand (in computing) vijl (tool)
file (Dutch)	feel (can be a phonetic false friend)	traffic congestion	voelen (verb)
fin (French, Spanish)	fin	end	(aquatic) nageoire (French) aleta (Spanish)
final (Romanian)	finally (as in "at last")	at the end (as in "finish")
fir (Irish, Scottish Gaelic)	fir	men	giúis
flint (Swedish)	flint	bald head	flinta
flor (Spanish)	floor	flower	piso
Ik fok (Dutch)	I fuck	I breed (animals)	Ik neuk
footing (Spanish)	footing	jogging	equilibrio
for (Esperanto)	for	away	por
for (Latin)	for	I speak	pro, nam, enim
foresto (Esperanto)	forest	absence	arbaro
fort (French) forte (Italian)	fort	strong (but can also mean fort)
four (French) φούρνος (fournos) (Greek)	four, furnace	oven	quatre (French) tessera (τέσσερα) (Greek)
full (Swedish and Norwegian)	full	drunk, inebriated	mätt (Swedish) mett, full, oppfylt (Norwegian)
Fuchs (German)	fucks	fox
fur (Latin)	fur	thief	pellis

[edit] G

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
gàirdean (Scottish Gaelic)	garden	arm	gàradh
gala (γάλα) (Greek)	gala	milk	yiorti (γιορτή)
galla (Scottish Gaelic)	gala	bitch	(latha)-sollain
gaol (Scottish Gaelic)	ghoul, gaol (jail)	love (usually more intimate)	prìosan (Scottish Gaelic)
garder (French)	guard	to keep, e.g., gardez froid=keep cool [of food, etc.]
gave (Dutch)	gave	gift (special talent), giftedness	gaf (imperfect singular), gaven (imperfect plural)
gaza (γάζα) (Greek)	Gaza	gauze	Gaza (Γάζα)
Geld (German)	geld	money	kastrieren
geloof (Dutch)	glove	belief, religion	handschoen (Dutch) (literally: hand-shoe)
génial (French)	genial	genius (as an adjective)	réconfortant
Gift (German) gif (Dutch)	gift	poison	geschenk (Dutch) Geschenk (German)
gift (Swedish and Norwegian)	gift	married, poison	gåva, present (Swedish) gave, presang (Norwegian)
glace (French)	glass	ice, icecream, or mirror	verre
glass (Swedish)	glass	icecream	glas
Glut (German)	glut	heat; glow; embers	Überschuss
glut (Polish)	glut	snot	przesycenie
go (Japanese) (go)	to go	five; Japanese board game	iku
go (Irish)	to go	to, also used to form adverb form adjective - e.g: maith - good, go maith - well	téigh
go (Polish)	to go	him	iść
god (Swedish and Norwegian)	god	good	gud
gracioso (Spanish)	gracious	funny; cute	gentil, amable
grabar (Spanish)	grab	record, save (computing)	agarrar
Graf (German) граф (Russian)	graph	count (nobleman)	Graph, Graf граф
gráin (Irish), gràin (Scots Gaelic)	grain, gran (short form of "granny")	hate, loathing	gráinne (Irish), gràinne (Scots Gaelic)
gramma (γράμμα) (Greek)	gram	letter; also education	grammario (γραμμάριο)
grape(French)	grape	cluster	raisin
gregario (Spanish)	gregarious	faithfully follows the ideas of others because of lack of own ideas.	sociable
greippi (Finnish)	grape	grapefruit	viinirypäle
grej (Swedish) greie (Norwegian)	grey	thing (slang)	grå (Swedish and Norwegian)
grei (Norwegian)	grey	straight, clear, plain, good	grå
grey (Spanish)	grey	flock of sheep, pastor's flock	gris
gren (Swedish and Norwegian)	green	branch	grön (Swedish) grønn (Norwegian)
grinn (Scottish Gaelic)	grin	fine, charming, elegant	braois, càir, drèin (although used in the context of "grimace")
grippe (French) Grippe (German) gripa / gripe (Spanish) gripe (Portuguese)	grip (hold) or gripe (complaint)	influenza	Griff, Halt (German)
groin (French)	groin	snout
grosería (Spanish)	grocery	profanity, bad word	compra, adquisición
gueule (French)	gull (phonetic false friend)	jaws, mouth (of an animal)	goéland, mouette
gun (棍) (Chinese) (gùn) gun (Scottish Gaelic) gùn (Scottish Gaelic)	gun	an ancient weapon (Chinese) without (Scottish Gaelic) gown	qiāng (Traditional: 槍, Simplified: 枪) gunna (Scottish Gaelic)
Gymnasium (German) gymnasium (Dutch) gymnasium or gymnasieskola (Swedish) gimnaziu (Romanian)	gym(nasium)	high(er) school, grammar school (see Secondary education)	Turnhalle (German) gymzaal (in a school), sportschool (commercial venture) (Dutch) sporthall, idrottshall, gymnastiksal (Swedish)
Gummi	gummi	rubber, eraser
gut (German)	gut	good	Darm (intestines), Bauch (belly)

[edit] H

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
haai (Afrikaans, Dutch) hai (Finnish and Norwegian) Hai (German) haj (Swedish)	high; hi!	shark	hoog; hoi/hallo! (Dutch) korkea; hei! (Finnish) hoch; hallo! (German) høy; hei! (Norwegian) hög; hej! (Swedish)
hai (はい) (Japanese)	high; hi!	yes	takai; yaa
haïr (French)	hair	to hate	cheveux
half (German)	half	helped	halb (adv.), Hälfte (noun)
handel (Dutch Handel (German) handel (Swedish)	handle	commerce, trade	greep (Dutch) Griff (German) handtag (Swedish)
handled (Swedish)	handled	wrist	hanterat
Handy (German)	handy	mobile phone, cell phone ("Handy" is not really German, it is artificial (pseudo-English) from English and German "hand", but most Germans think that the word is English). It's a pseudo-anglicism.	nützlich
Haß (German)	has	hatred	hat
hat (German)	hat	(he/she/it) has	Hut
hat (Hungarian)	hat	six	kalap
hat (Norwegian/Swedish)	hat	hate, hatred	hatt
haul (Welsh)	haul	sun
he (Finnish)	he	they (plural of he/she)	hän
he (היא) (Hebrew)	he	she	hu (הוא)
hell (German)	hell	bright	Hölle
hell (Norwegian)	hell	luck	helvete
helmet (Finnish)	helmet	pearls	kypärä
hemp (Afrikaans)	hemp	shirt	dagga
hen (Welsh)	hen	old
her (German)	her	ago, away	sie, ihr
herb (German)	herb	harsh	Kraut, Marihuana
herein (German)	herein	in(wards)	hierin
Herr (German, Swedish)	her, hair	Mr.	sie, Haar(e) (german) hon, hår (swedish)
hi (Latin)	hi!	these	salve
hielo (Spanish)	yellow	ice	amarillo
hiiri (Finnish)	hire	mouse	palkata
hindî (Tagalog)	Hindi	no
hintti (Finnish)	hint	gay, fairy, fag	vinkki
his (Latin)	his	to/for/by/with/from these	eius
hit (Swedish and Norwegian)	hit	to here	slå
Hochschule (German högskolaSwedish)	high school	college/university	Gymnasium (German) gymnasium(Swedish) (not exactly the same)
home (Finnish)	home (pronounced IPA /houm/, confusable in spelling only — Finnish word pronounced like IPA /home/ (hoh-meh)	mold	koti
home (Galician)	home	man	casa
horno (Spanish)	horn	oven	cuerno
Hose (German)	hose	(pair of) trousers	Schlauch
ospitale (Italian)	hospital	hospitable, gracious	ospedale
host (Czech)	host	guest	hostitel (-ka, f.)
host (Swedish and Norwegian)	host	cough	värd (Swedish), vert (Norwegian)
hot (Swedish)	hot	threat	het, hett
hu (הוא)(Hebrew)	who	he	mi (מי)
Hut (German)	hut	hat	Hütte, Baracke
huta (Polish)	hut	steel works	chata, chatka, domek
hyypiö (Finnish))	hippy	creep (person)

[edit] I

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
i (Latin)	I	go! (imperative, singular)	ego
i (Italian)	I	the (m. pl.)	io
i (Irish, Swedish and Norwegian)	I	in	mé (Irish) jag (Swedish) jeg (Norwegian)
i (Polish,Ukrainian) i (и) (Russian)	I	and	ja ya (я) (Russian)
i (Scots Gaelic)	I	she, her	mi
idiosincrasia (Italian)	idiosyncrasy	strong aversion	tratto caratteriale; eccentricità
Igel (German)	eagle	hedgehog	Adler
igel (Swedish) igle (Norwegian)	eagle	leech	örn (Swedish) ørn (Norwegian)
ignorar (Spanish)	ignore	It is not known whether ~ .
incidente (Italian)	incident	accident, crash (car wreck)	episodio, vicenda
inhabité (French)	inhabited	uninhabited	habité
into (Finnish)	into	eagerness	the illative case -(h)Vn (e.g. talo·on or maa·han)
introducir (Spanish)	introduce	introduce (sexual context)	presentar
ire (Latin)	ire	to go	ira
irons (French)	irons	we will go	fers (à repasser)
is (Norwegian)	is	ice cream, ice	er
is (Latin)	is	you go; he, it	est
is (Swedish)	is	ice	är
is (Hungarian)	is	also	van (although usually omitted)
Island (Norwegian, Swedish and German) Ísland (Icelandic) Islande (French) Islanda (Italian, Romanian) Islandia (Spanish, Polish) Ysland (Afrikaans) IJsland (Dutch)	island	Iceland	ö (Swedish) øy (Norwegian) Insel (German) ey/eyja/-ey (Icelandic) île (French) isola (Italian) insulă (Romanian) isla (Spanish) wyspa (Polish) eiland (Afrikaans) and (Dutch)
issue (French)	issue (of a magazine)	point of discussion, exit	numéro
it (Latin)	it	he/she/it goes	id

[edit] J

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
jest (Polish)	jest	is	żart, kpina; pośmiewisko
joli (French)	jolly	nice, cute	jovial, gai
journée (French)	journey	day, daytime	voyage
juntta (Finnish)	junta [hunta]	pile driver, ramming machine	sotilasjuntta
juu (Finnish)	you [juu]	yeah	sinä (singular), te (plural or polite)

[edit] K

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
kabinet (кабинет) (Russian)	cabinet	office
kamppi (Finnish)	camp	tripping up Kamppi (district in Helsinki)	leiri
kanin (Swedish)	canine	rabbit (noun)	hund (noun), hund-, hundaktig (adjective) (Swedish)
kanto (Finnish)	canto	treestump
Kapitel (German) kapittel (Afrikaans, Dutch) kapitel (Swedish)	capital	chapter	Hauptstadt (German) hoofdletter, kapitaal, hoofdstad (Dutch) huvudstad (Swedish) hoofsom, kapitaal, kapiteel, hoofstad (Afrikaans)
kau (German)	cow (phonetic false friend)	chew	Kuh
Kaution (German)	caution	deposit, bail	Vorsicht
kedr (Кедр) (Russian)	cedar	Pine, cedar
ken (Finnish)	ken (Scottish dialect)	who (archaic)	tietää, tuntea
ki (קיא) (Hebrew)	key	vomit	Maphte'aχ
kid (Swedish)	kid (baby goat, child)	fawn	unge
killa (Swedish) kile (Norwegian)	kill, killer	tickle, scratch	döda/mörda, mördare (Swedish) drepe, drapsmann (Norwegian)
killinki (Finnish)	killing	farthing, coin (cf. "shilling")	tappo, tappaminen
kind (Dutch) Kind (German)	kind	child	aardig (Dutch) (some kind of:) Art, Sorte; (to be kind:) freundlich (German)
kind (Swedish)	kind	cheek	slag, sort, typ (noun) vänlig (adjective)
king (Estonian)	king	shoe
kin (Dutch) Kinn (German)	kin	chin	Verwandschaft (German)
kinn (Norwegian)	kin	cheek	slekt
kis (Afrikaans) kist (Dutch)	kiss	box, chest, coffin	soen, kus (Afrikaans) zoen, kus (Dutch)
kis (Hungarian)	kiss	small	csók
kissa (Finnish)	kiss	cat	suudella (verb), suudelma (noun)
kiss (Swedish)	kiss	urine	kyss
kit (Hungarian)	kit	whom	csomag
knot (Polish)	knot	wick	węzeł
koi (Finnish)	coy /koi/	moth; dawn	kaino
konsekwent (Afrikaans) consequent (Dutch) konsequent (German)	consequent	consistent	gevolglik, logies (Afrikaans)
kontrollieren (German) controleren (Dutch) kontrollera (Swedish) kontrollere (Norwegian)	control (verb)	check (verb), examine (verb)	steuern (German) styra (Swedish)
korn (Swedish)	corn	barley	majs
Korn (German)	corn	grain, ceral	Mais
kot (Polish) kot (кот) (Russian)	cot	cat	łóżeczko (Polish)
kraai (Afrikaans, Dutch)	cry (phonetic false friend)	crow	roep, skreeu, huil (Afrikaans) roep, schreeuw, huil (Dutch)
Kraft (German) kraft (Swedish and Norwegian)	craft	power, strength	hantverk, skrå, fartyg Fertigkeit, Handwerk, Fahrzeug (German)
kreatur (Swedish)	creature	cattle	varelse, djur
krawat (Polish) Krawatte (German)	cravat	tie	apaszka (Polish)
krayion (κραγιόν) (Greek)	crayon	lipstick	crayioni (κραγιόνι)
Kritik (German, Swedish)	critic	criticism, review	Kritiker (German, Swedish)
kroon (Afrikaans, Dutch)	croon	crown	neurie
kropp (Swedish, Norwegian)	crop	body, mathematical field	gröda (Swedish)
kut (Dutch, vulgar)	cut	cunt	snijden (verb), snee (noun)
kult (Norwegian, German)	cult	(to be) cool	sekt (kult also means cult in Norwegian) Sekte (Kult also means cult in German)
kurwa (Polish)	curve	whore; fuck (as interjection) WARNING: this word is regarded as one of the most offensive in Polish language	krzywa; zakręt
kuula, koolaus (Finnish)	cool [kuul], cooling	kuula: bullet; (of granules) pellet, ball koolaus: studwork (in construction)
känni (Finnish)	canny /käni/	(the experience of) drunkenness	kiero, taitava
kyk (Afrikaans)	cake (phonetic false friend)	look	koek

[edit] L

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
làb (Scots Gaelic)	lab (short form of laboratory)	mud, labor, dirt, mire, swamp	seòmar-obrach, obairlann, deuchainnlann
lac (French, Romanian)	lack	lake	manque (French) fără (Romanian)
lack (Swedish), lak (Dutch), lakk (Norwegian), lakka (Finnish)	lack	lacquer	gebrek (Dutch) sakna (Swedish) mangle (Norwegian)
lakki (Finnish)	lack	hat, cap (the clothing accessory)	puute, -ttomuus/-ttömyys
lammas (Finnish)	Lammas	sheep
laos (λαός) (Greek)	Laos	the people, the citizenry	Laos (Λάος)
lappu (Finnish) Lapp (numerous languages)	lap	slip, tag, label, patch ("Lapp" or is also a politically incorrect xenonym for the Sámi, suggesting they are bums in patched clothes.)	syli
Last (German) last (Swedish, Norwegian and Dutch) lasti (Finnish)	last	load, burden	letzter /-e /-es (German) sist(e) (Swedish and Norwegian) laatst(e) (Dutch) viimeinen, viimeise- (Finnish)
leeu (Afrikaans) leeuw (Dutch)	lieu	lion	in pleks van (Afrikaans) in plaats van (Dutch) (lit. "In place of")
Lieder (German)	leader (phonetic false friend)	songs	Leiter
leg (Swedish and Norwegian)	leg	ID, identification papers (short for "legitimation")	ben
lemoen (Afrikaans)	lemon	orange	suurlemoen (Afrikaans)
limoen (Dutch)	lemon	lime	citroen (Dutch)
lente (Afrikaans, Dutch)	Lent	Spring	vastyd (Afrikaans), Vasten, Vastentijd (Dutch)
lepel (Afrikaans, Dutch)	lapel	spoon	kraagpunt, lapel (Afrikaans) revers (Dutch)
levy (Finnish)	levee	disk, disc (particularly, phonogram)
liar (Spanish) lier (French)	liar to lie	to tie/bind	mentiroso mentir (false), coucher (horizontal)
librería (Spanish) libreria (Italian) librairie (French) (Portuguese)	library	bookstore	biblioteca (Spanish, Italian and Portuguese) bibliothèque (French)
lid (Spanish)	lid	lawsuit	tapa
lied (Dutch) Lied (German)	lied	song	loog ((Dutch)) log, hat gelogen (German)
Leiter (German)	lighter (phonetic false friend)	leader, conductor; ladder	Feuerzeug; leichter
lime (French)	lime	file (the tool)	citron vert (fruit), chaux (mineral)
Limo (German)	limo	soft drink, lemonade	limousine
limon (French)	lemon	alluvium	citron
limonadi (Finnish)	lemonade	general term for sweet, flavoured and carbonated soft drink	sitruunalimonadi (carbonated) (lit. lemon limonadi)
limpa (Swedish)	limp	loaf (bread), carton of cigarette packages	halt, halta
limppa (Finnish)	limp	short for "limonadi", lemonade	rampa
limppi (Finnish)	limp	lump	rampa
links (Dutch, German)	links	left (direction, opposite of right)	verbindingen (Dutch) Verbindungen (German)
List (German) list (Swedish, Norwegian and Dutch)	list	cunning, artfulness, ruse	Liste (German), lijst (Dutch), lista (Swedish), liste (Norwegian)
list (лист) (Russian) list (Polish) list (лист) (Ukrainian)	list	leaf leaf, letter letter (written message)	spisok (спи́сок) spis
lyk (Afrikaans) lijk (Dutch)	lake (phonetic false friend)	corpse	meer
listiä (Finnish)	to list	bump off, (of insects) kill	listata
lokki (Finnish)	lock	seagull	lukko
log (German)	log	lied	Baumstamm
logos (λόγος) (Greek)	logo	reason, word	logotypo (λογότυπο)
loop (Afrikaans, Dutch)	loop	walk	lissie, hingsel, kykgat (Afrikaans)
luis (Afrikaans, Dutch)	lace (phonetic false friend)	louse	veter, rygband, kant, boorsel
lukki (Finnish)	luck	spider	onni
luid (Scots Gaelic)	lewd	a slut (vulgar)	draosda, collaidh, baoiseach
lujuria (Spanish) lussuria (Italian) luxure (French)	luxury	lust	lujo (Spanish) lusso (Italian)
lul (Dutch, vulgar)	lull	penis	windstilte, periode van rust
Lump (German)	lump	blackguard	Klumpen
lump (Swedish)	lump	discarded fabric, slang for mandatory military service	klump
lunatique (French)	lunatic	capricious, mercurial	fou, dément
Lust (German) lust (Swedish)	lust	wish, intent	(sexuelle) Begier, (sexuelle) Begierde, (sexuelle) Lust

[edit] M

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
ma (מה) (Hebrew)	ma (mother)	what?	ima (‎אמא)
ma (Italian) μα (Greek)	ma (mother)	but	mana (μάνα) (Greek)
ma (Polish)	ma (mother)	(he, she, it) has	mama
ma (Irish, Scots Gaelic)	ma (short form of "mama", a pet form of "mother")	if	mamaí, mam (Irish); mamaidh, màmag, mam (Scots Gaelic)
maa (Finnish)	ma (mother)	earth, ground, land, country	äiti
macchina (Italian)	machine	car	macchina
made (Dutch)	made	maggot	gemaakt
made (Finnish)	made	burbot	teki, tehnyt (subject); tehtiin, tehty (object)
magasin (French, Swedish) magazzino (Italian) magazin (магазин) (Russian) magazijn (Dutch) μαγαζί (Greek)	magazine	store, shop; also warehouse in Italian storehouse in Dutch and Swedish	magazine, revue (French) tidskrift (Swedish) rivista (Italian) zhurnal (журнал) (Russian) tijdschrift (Dutch) περιοδικό (Greek)
magot (French),	maggot	Barbary macaque, treasure	asticot
maidín (Irish), madainn (Scots Gaelic)	maiden	morning	maighdeann (Irish, Scots Gaelic), rìbhinn (Scots Gaelic)
mai (مّي) (Arabic)	my (/mai/)	water
mai (Italian)	my (/mai/)	never	il mio, la mia
main (French)	main	hand	principal
maine (Finnish)	Maine	reputation
male (Italian)	male	evil (n.), bad, wicked, evil (adj.)	maschio (n.); maschile (adj.)
mama (Georgian)	mother	father
man (German)	man	one (impersonal subject pronoun)	Mann
mano (Spanish)	man	hand	hombre
Männer (German)	manner	men	Weise, Art
manner (Finnish)	manner	continent	tapa (noun)
mansione (Italian)	mansion	task	magione, casa signorile, palazzo
maratho (μάραθο) (Greek)	marathon	fennel	marathonios (μαραθώνιος)
marca (Spanish) marka (Polish)	mark	brand	mancha, huella (Spanish) znak (Polish)
mare (Italian, French and Romanian)	mare	sea (Italian and Romanian), pond (French)	giumenta, cavalla (Italian) jument (French) iapă (Romanian)
mark (Afrikaans, Norwegian)	mark	market (Afrikaans), worm (Norwegian)	merk, teken, stempel (Afrikaans), merke, tegn (Norwegian)
Marmelade (German)	marmalade	jam	Orangenmarmelade
marmite (French)	Marmite	large covered cooking pot
marron (French)	maroon	brown (as an adjective), sweet chestnut (as a noun)	bordeaux
máscara (Spanish)	mascara	mask	rimel
math (Scottish Gaelic) maith (Irish)	math	good, well	eòlas-àireamh (Scottish Gaelic)
Maß or Mass (German)	mass	measure or beer stein, stein	Masse (quantity of matter); Messe (Catholic cult)
mate (Spanish)	mate	traditional infusion made from yerba (herbs)
mayim (מים) (Hebrew)	mime	water	Mime act- Pantomima (פנטומימה); Mime artist- Pantomima'i (פנטומימאי)
me (Finnish and Estonian)	me /mii/	we	minua, minut (Finnish)
me (麼) (Mandarin)	me (phonetic false friend: may)	interrogative marker	我
me (Sumerian)	me (phonetic false friend: may)	(divine) aura
media (Spanish)	media	half, middle, medium, average; sock	medio
mena (Swedish), meinen (German), mene (Norwegian)	mean	have an opinion	betyda (Swedish), bedeuten (German), bety, mene (Norwegian)
meni (Finnish)	many (phonetic false cognate)	went	monta
merci (French)	mercy	thank you	grâce; in some frozen expressions merci
meri (Finnish and Estonian)	merry	sea
métro (μέτρο) (Greek)	metro (transport, subway)	meter, meterstick, bar; also restraint, moderation; also step (rarely)	metró (μετρό) (itself not to be confused with μετρώ, the corresponding verb of μέτρο)
mi (מי) (Hebrew)	me	who?	Varies according to preposition. To me - li (לי); Towards me - Elai (אלי); For me- Bishvili (בשבילי); And me - Ve'ani (ואני); In me - Bi (בי); On me - Alai (עלי); With me - Iti (איתי); By me - Leyadi (לידי); From me - Mi'meni (ממני); and others
mi (Hungarian)	me	what?	én
míle Irish language, mìle Scottish Gaelic mille (Italian and French) Mille (German (slang)) mil (Spanish)	million, mile	thousand; also "mile" in French, in Scottish Gaelic and in Irish
mille (Finnish)	mill	to what, to which	mylly
mire (Scots Gaelic)	mire	joy, delight, ecstasy	clàbar, eabar, làb, poll
mis (Finnish)	miss	colloquial form of "where?"	neiti (young woman); kaivata (wish to come back); mennä ohi (not hit)
misère (French)	A)misery B)miser	poverty	A)malheur B)avare
miséricorde (French) misericordia (Italian and Spanish)	misery	mercy, forgiveness	malheur (French) infelicità, tormento, sofferenza, pena; indigenza, povertà (Italian desdicha, aflicción, sufrimiento, pena; estrechez, pobreza (Spanish)
Mist (German)	mist	manure, droppings	Nebel
miting (Serbian)	meeting	political demonstration	sastanak
modder (Dutch)	mother (phonetic false friend)	mud	moeder, ma, mam, mams
Mode (German) mode (Swedish, Dutch) moda (Spanish and Italian) moda (Polish)	mode	fashion, haute couture	(Art und) Weise, Modus (German) modus, manier, wijze (Dutch) sätt, vis, läge (Swedish) tryb, sposób (Polish)
molestar (Spanish)	molest	bother, disturb	acosar sexualmente
moneda (Spanish) moneta (Italian) moneta (Polish) monnaie (French)	money	currency; also "coin" in Spanish and Italian, and "change" (returned from a purchase) in French coin (Polish)	dinero (Spanish) soldi, denaro (Italian) pieniądze (Polish) argent (French)
monster (Dutch language)	monster	sample	monster
mór (Irish) mòr (Scottish Gaelic)	more	big, great	tuilleadh, bàrrachd (Scottish Gaelic)
mòran (Scottish Gaelic)	moron	much, many	neach lag-inntinneach
morbido (Italian)	morbid	soft, delicate	morboso, malsano
moroso (Spanish) moroso (Italian)	morose	in arrears; (noun, fam., N. Italy) boyfriend, fiancé	cupo, imbronciato, scontroso (Italian) hosco, taciturno, intratable (Spanish)
Mörder (German), morder (Norwegian)	murder	murderer	Mord (German), mord (Norwegian)
most (мост) (Russian)	most	bridge	больше [всего]
multiplicatsiya (мультипликация) (Russian)	multiplication	animation	umnozheniye (умножение)
mut (Finnish)	mutt	colloquial for "me" (telic)	mopsi (polite); rakki, piski (rude)
Mut (German)	mutt	courage
my (Polish)	my	we	mój

[edit] N

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
nacke ((Swedish)	neck	back of the neck	hals
nai (ναι) (Greek) no (Czech, Polish)	nay, no	yes	όχι (Greek) ne (Czech) nie (Polish)
nai + partitive object (Finnish) nai + accusative object (Finnish)	nay	fuck marry	ei
nain + partitive object (Finnish) nain + accusative object (Finnish)	nine /nain/	I fuck I marry	yhdeksän
nais- (Finnish)	nice	woman, female (used at the start of compound words)	kiltti (behaving nicely), kiva, siisti (general positive)
natie (Dutch)	Nazi	nation	nazi
nauru (Finnish)	Nauru	laughter
nein (German)	nine (phonetic false cognate)	no	neun
nett (German)	net	nice, friendly, jolly	Netz
no (Finnish)	no /nou/	uh, well	ei
no (но) (Russian)	no	but, however	nyet (нет)
no (Irish, Scots Gaelic)	no	or	There are not direct equivalents of "yes" or "no" in Gaelic; usually, the positive ("is", "will do", etc.) and negative ("is not", "will no do", etc.) forms of the verb are used instead.
noleggio (Italian)	knowledge	hire, rental	conoscenza
Not (German)	not	need (noun)	nicht
noticias (Spanish)	notices	news	anuncios
Novelle (German) novell (Swedish) novelle (Norwegian) novella (Italian) novela (Spanish) novelli (Finnish) nouvelle (French) nowela (Polish)	novel	short story, novella (in French also news, news item)	Roman (German) roman (Swedish and Norwegian) romaani (Finnish) roman (French) powieść (Polish)

[edit] O

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
oder (German)	odor	or	Geruch
of (Dutch)	of/off	or	uit
officina (Italian)	office	workshop	ufficio
ohayo (Japanese)	Ohio	good morning	Ohio
ombrelle (French)	umbrella	sunshade	parapluie
on (Polish, Serbian) on (он) (Russian)	on	he	na (Polish, Serbian) na (на) (Russian)
on (Finnish)	on	is	-lla, -llä
on (French)	on	we, nondescript subject (cf. passive "one")	sur
once (Spanish)	once	eleven	una vez
one (Polish)	one	they (f.)	jeden
open (Finnish)	open	colloquial form of "of the teacher"	auki (adverb), avoin (adjective), avata (verb)
or (French)	or	gold, now (introducing second proposition of a syllogism)	ou
ordynarny (Polish)	ordinary	rude	zwykły, pospolity
ospitale (Italian)	hospital	hospitable	ospedale
ostrica (Italian)	ostrich	oyster	struzzo
ours (French)	ours	a bear	le(s) nôtre(s)

[edit] P

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
paa (Finnish)	pa (father)	Colloquial for "put" (literal) or "have sex" (slang)	isä (literal) or isi (childish)
pace (Italian)	pace	peace	passo, andatura
pain (French)	pain	bread	douleur
paini (Finnish)	pain	pressure; wrestling; weight	kipu
pan (Spanish), (Japanese)	pan	bread	sartén (kitchen cookware) (Spanish), Furaipan (Japanese)
pan (Polish, Ukrainian (пан))	pan	sir, mister	patelnia (Polish)
papa (Spanish)	Papa (slang) (father)	potato (in American and Spanish from southern Spain)	Papá (Spanish)
parente (Italian) pariente (Spanish) parente (Portuguese)	parent	relative, member of kin	genitore (Italian) padre (Spanish) pai(s) (Portuguese)
pasta (Polish, Greek (πάστα))	pasta	paste, spread	zimarika (Greek (τα ζυμαρικά)) makaron (Polish)
pasta (Portuguese)	pasta	briefcase, folder	massa
pasuuna (Finnish)	bassoon	trombone	fagotti
pateettinen (Finnish)	pathetic	high-flown (i.e. full of pathos)	säälittävä
patetic (Romanian) pathétique (French)	pathetic	emotional (in French, can also mean pathetic)
patetyczny (Polish)	pathetic	solemn, sombre	żałosny, godny pogardy
pathetisch (German)	pathetic	solemn, lofty	erbärmlich
pavimento (Italian)	pavement	floor
pellet (Latin)	pellet	will drive
pen (Welsh)	pen	head
pennen (German)	pen	slang for "to sleep"
peperoni (Italian)	pepperoni (actually a case of pseudo-italianism rather than a false friend)	bell peppers / sweet peppers	salamino
perse (Finnish)	per se (Latinism)	arse, ass	sinänsä
pétulant (French)	petulant	playful
penzion (Czech)	pension	guesthouse, bed and breakfast hotel	důchod
phon (Italian)	phone	hair dryer	telefono
phrase (French)	phrase	sentence	expression
piano (πιάνω) (Greek)	piano	to take; to start; to catch	πιάνο
pie (Spanish)	pie	foot	empanada
pie (French)	pie	Magpie	tarte
pies (Polish)	pies	dog
pii (Finnish)	π	silicon the element, also archaic "tooth"
pijl (Dutch)	pile	arrow	stapel, hoop
pilli (Finnish)	pill	drinking straw	pilleri
pilsneri (Finnish)	pilsner	low-alcohol beer
pimppi (Finnish)	pimp	childish world for "female genitalia"	parittaja, sutenööri
pingouin (French)	penguin	auk	manchot
pis- (Slavonic languages)	piss	root (linguistics) for "write"
pit (Scots Gaelic)	pit	the vulva, and can be used as an explitive	poll, sloc, poll, toll
pocket(bok) (Swedish)	pocket	paperback	ficka (Swedish)
poke (Finnish)	poke /pouk/	slang for "bouncer, doorman" also, a contraction of "pornografia"	tökätä, tökkiä
poligon (Polish)	polygon	military area	wielokąt
polisie (Afrikaans)	policy	police	beleid, polis
polizia (Italian) policía (Spanish)	policy	police	polizza (Italian) póliza, política (Spanish)
poll (Scots Gaelic)	(voting) poll	mud, mire, pit, bog, dirt	ainm-chlàr
pollution (Swedish)	pollution	nocturnal emission	förorening
pom (Romanian)	Pommie, Pom	Fruit bearing tree
pomm (Estonian) pommi (Finnish)	Pommie, Pom	bomb
pomme (French)	Pommie, Pom (see Alternate words for British)	apple
Pony (German)	ponytail	fringe	Pferdeschwanz
possum (Latin)	possum	I can
pourchasser (French)	to purchase	to hunt about, to chase about	acheter (to buy), acquérir (to acquire)
pragmatikos (πραγματικός) (Greek)	pragmatic	real, actual	pragmatistikos (πραγματιστικός)
pregnant (Romanian, Swedish, Dutch) prägnant (German)	pregnant	short but informative; remarkable, prominent	gravid (Swedish), schwanger (German), zwanger (Dutch)
preservativo (Spanish, Portuguese and Italian) prezervativ (Romanian) Präservativ (German) prezerwatywa (Polish) préservatif (French) (1)	preservative	condom; also "preservative" in Spanish	conservante (Spanish and Italian), Konservierungsmittel (German)
pretendere (Italian) pretender (Spanish,Portuguese)	pretend	aspire to, expect; (to) court (Spanish, Portuguese) / demand, require, claim (Italian)	fingir, aparentar (Spanish) fingere di essere, far finta di (Italian)
prick (Swedish) prikk (Norwegian)	prick	dot, period	kuk, balle (vulgar Swedish), kuk, pikk (vulgar Norwegian)
privet (Russian) привет	private	greeting
propaganda (Spanish) Portuguese	propaganda	advertising
prospecto (Spanish) prospetto (Italian) prospect (Romanian) Prospekt (German)	prospect	brochure, leaflet, prospectus	posibilidad, perspectiva (Spanish) Perspektive (German)
prospekt (Swedish and Norwegian)	prospect	prospectus, document or brochure detailing an offer (usually from a travel agent)	förväntning, utsikt, möjlighet (Swedish)
prospekt (проспект) (Russian, Ukrainian)	prospect	avenue
proces (Romanian) proces (Polish) process (Swedish) prosess (Norwegian) Prozess (German)	process	trial (at court) / (in Swedish, Norwegian and German mainly used to denote process but also means trial)	bearbeta, behandla, handlägga (Swedish) bearbeiten (German)
prune (French)	prune	plum	pruneau
pub (French)	pub (public house)	short for publicité (advertisement)	bar
pump (Welsh)	pump (spelling) pimp (pronunciation)	five
punkki (Finnish)	punk	acarus (the tick)	roisto "thug", pikkurikollinen "minor offender"
pure (Italian)	pure	however	pulito
pus (Finnish), puss (Swedish)	pus	onomatopoeia for a kiss	visva (Finnish), var (Swedish)
pussi (Finnish)	pussy	bag	for the genitals: emätin (biological), vittu (derogatory); for pussy cats: (kissi)mirri
puu (Finnish)	poo (phonetic false friend)	tree, wood	kakka (childish), paska (rude)
puzzle (French, Italian, Polish, Romanian) Puzzle (German) puzle (Esperanto)	puzzle	jigsaw puzzle	casse-tête (French) Geduldsspiel (German) rompicapo (Italian)

[edit] Q

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
quince (Spanish)	quince	fifteen	membrillo
quicar (Portuguese)	to kick	to bounce	chutar

[edit] R

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
raftis (ράφτης) (Greek)	raft	tailor	schedia (σχεδία)
raisin (French)	raisin	grape	raisin sec
rang (French, Afrikaans) Rang (German)	range	rank	Reichweite, Auswahl, ... (German)
rankki, rankka (Finnish)	rank	rankki: distiller's grain; (in paper manufacturing) spent wash rankka: hard (on something)	arvo
rapa (Finnish)	rape	dirt	raiskata
rapa (Latin)	rape	rutabaga
rapé (French)	raped	gratted	violée
rapa (Swedish) rape (Norwegian)	rape	burp	våldta (Swedish), voldta (Norwegian)
rat (Afrikaans)	rat	gear	rot
Rat (German) Rathaus	rat rat house	advice; council; councilor (U.S.), councillor (Br.) town hall	Ratte Rattenhaus
rat (Serbian)	rat	war	pacov
ratti (Finnish) ratt (Norwegian)	ratty	steering wheel	rottamainen (Finnish)
realizar (Spanish)	realize	carry out	darse cuenta
réal (Irish)	real	star	fíor
real (Spanish)	real	royal	real, verdadero/a
realtà (Italian)	realty	reality	beni immobili
red, redt (Dutch)	red	save, saves (both verb)	rood
red (Spanish)	red	net	rojo
rein (French)	rein	kidney	bride
rein ((Dutch)) (German)	rein	pure, clean	teugel ((Dutch)) Zügel (German)
renta (Spanish)	rent	profit	arrienda
resorte (Spanish) ressort (French)	resort (noun)	spring (as in coiled elastic device); can also be means, as in "means to an end" (Sp.), pep (Fr.: Fig.)	recurso; sitio de vacaciones station (station de ski, station de sports d'hiver = ski resort)
Rest (German) rest (Dutch, Norwegian and Swedish) reste (French) reshta (решта) (Ukrainian) reszta (Polish) resto (Spanish and Italian)	rest	remainder (cf. "The rest is silence")	Pause (German) vila (Swedish) wypoczynek (Polish) rust (Dutch)
rest (Estonian)	rest	crate, grid
restar (Spanish)	(to) rest	to subtract, deduct	descansar, reposar
rester (French) restare (Italian)	(to) rest	to stay; to remain	riposare (Italian)
resumen (Spanish) résumé (French)	resume	summary	reanudar (Spanish)
rice (Old English)	rice	kingdom	great
rij (Dutch)	ray (phonetic false friend)	queue (noun)	straal
rijp (Dutch)	rape (phonetic false friend)	mature, ready (for something), hoar frost	verkrachten (verb), verkrachting (noun)
riporto (Italian)	report	hair combed over a bald spot	rapporto (n.)
riski (Finnish)	risky	(of persons) strong
rok (Afrikaans)	rock	dress (clothing)	rots, klip
rok (Dutch) Rock (German)	rock	skirt (clothing)	rots (Dutch) Fels, Stein (German)
rok (Polish)	rock	year	skała
roman (Dutch, French, Norwegian, Romanian, Serbian and Swedish) Roman (German) romaani (Finnish) roman (роман) (Russian)	Roman	novel	romersk, romer/romerinne (male/female roman) (Norwegian) roomalainen (Finnish) Romeins (Roman empire), Romaans (Roman languages or architecture) (Dutch) Römer (person), römisch (adjective) (German)
romans (романс) (Russian)	romance	romantic song	roman
romi (ρώμη) (Greek)	Rome	robustness	Romi (Ρώμη)
romp (Afrikaans)	romp	skirt (clothing)	baljaar, jakker
room (Afrikaans, Dutch)	room	cream	kamer
rot (Afrikaans)	rot	rat	vrot (noun and verb), ontbind (verb)
rot (Catalan)	rot	burping	podrir (verb)
rún (Irish) rùn (Scottish Gaelic)	run, rune	secret, beloved	ruith (to run), rann (rune) (Scottish Gaelic)

[edit] S

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
sad (Polish)	sad	orchard	smutny
sad (сад) (Russian)	sad	garden
saikou (Japanese)	psycho	the best
sake (Japanese)	sake	Japanese rice wine	tame
sale (French)	sale	dirty	vente
sale (Italian)	sale	salt	vendita
sale (Estonian)	sale	slender
sale (Spanish)	sale	goes out	venta
Sale (Finnish)	sale	nickname for Sauli	alennusmyynti, ale
sale (Polish)	sale	rooms	sprzedaż
salivit (Latin)	salivate	he/she/it jumped
salon (French, Polish)	salon	living room	salon (French, Polish)
salto (σάλτο) (Greek)	salt	leap (noun)	alati (αλάτι)
salvaje (Spanish)	salvage	savage, wild	recuperar, salvar (v.)
salve (Latin)	salve	hello	linimentum
same (Polish)	same	(they (non-virile)): alone, themselves	taki sam
sang (French)	sang	blood	chantait
sanoma (Finnish)	son of a... (phonetic false friend)	message	...n penikka
santa (Lojban)	Santa Claus	umbrella
scannare (Italian)	scan	to skin	fare scansione, scannerizzare / esaminare attentamente (as in examine minutely)
scarpa (Italian)	scarf	shoe	sciarpa
schema (σχήμα) (Greek)	scheme	shape; format; figure	schedio (σχέδιο)
schinken (German)	chicken	ham	Huhn
scolaro (Italian)	scholar	schoolboy	studioso, persona colta
scope (Italian)	scope	brooms	scopo, obiettivo (aim); gamma, raggio, estensione (range)
sechs (German) sex (Swedish) seks (Norwegian) sex (Latin)	sex	six	sex (Swedish and Norwegian) Sex (German) sexus (Latin)
secte (French) Sekte (German) secta (Spanish) sekta (Serbian)	sect	cult, sect
see (Estonian)	see	this, that
See (German)	see	See (m.): lake; See (f): sea	sehen (v.)
sei (Finnish)	say	black cod	sanoa
Seide (German)	side	silk	Seite
Seite (German)	site	page
-seksi, as a suffix (Finnish)	sexy	The suffix -nen in translative, e.g. Räikkönen -> Räikköseksi	seksikäs
Sekt (German)	sect	champagne, sparkling wine
Sensation (German)	sensation	blowoff, scorcher
sensibel (German) sensibile (Italian) sensible (French and Spanish)	sensible	sensitive	sensato, razonable (Spanish)
sentence (French)	sentence (Gramm.)	1. verdict (also Fr. "verdict") 2. precept, maxim (also Fr. précepte, maxime)	phrase
sentimiento (Spanish)	sentiment	feeling (physical)
shé (舌) (Mandarin)	she	tongue	tā (她)
side (Finnish)	side [said]	bandage, bond, tie, blindfold	puoli
Sie (German)	see	you (formal), she, they	sehen (v.)
siin (spoken Finnish) siin (Estonian)	seen	there (also means "here" in Estonian)	Finnish: nähnyt (subject), nähty (object)
silli(Finnish)	silly	herring	typerä
Sinn (German)	sin	sense, mind, meaning, acceptance, aesthesia, signification, tenor, appreciation	Sünde
sin (Irish, Scottish Gaelic)	sin	that (referring to something closer in proximity)	cionta, peacadh (Scottish Gaelic)
sin (Serbian) syn (сын) (Russian)	sin	son	grekh (грех) (Russian)
sin (Spanish)	sin	without	pecado
sin (Swedish and Norwegian)	sin	"one's own", genitive reflexive pronoun	synd (both languages)
sin (spoken Finnish)	sin	short for sinne, "into there"	synti
since (Lojban)	since	snake	ba lo nu (after), ki'u lo nu (because)
sissi (Finnish)	sissy	soldier on a special mission; guerrilla	raukkis
sit (spoken Finnish)	sit	then	istua
sky (Norwegian)	sky	cloud	himmel
slang (Afrikaans, Dutch)	slang	snake	straattaal, slang (Dutch)
slang (Dutch, Swedish), slange (Norwegian)	slang	hose (in Norwegian it also means snake)	slang(språk), slang(ord) (Swedish)
sled (след) (Russian)	sled	footprint, trail	sani (сани)
Slip (German) slip (Italian)	slip (clothing)	knickers, panties (It's a pseudo-anglicism.)	sottoveste (clothing) (Italian)
slot (Danish, Dutch) slott (Swedish) slott (Norwegian)	slot	castle
slot (Dutch)	slot	lock	gleuf, sleuf
slut (Swedish) slutt (Norwegian)	slut	end, finish	slampa (Swedish) slut (Norwegian)
smal ((Dutch)) schmal (German)	small	narrow	klein (both languages)
Smoking (German) smoking (Dutch, Portuguese, French, Italian, Norwegian, Polish and Swedish) esmoquín (Spanish) σμόκιν (Greek)	smoking	dinner jacket (Br.), tuxedo (U.S.); but not smoking jacket (another case of pseudo-anglicism)	rauchen, räuchern (German) fumando (Spanish, Italian) en fumant (French) palenie (Polish) rökning (Swedish) roken (Dutch) κάπνισμα (Greek)
Sodomie (German) sodomi (Norwegian)	sodomy	bestiality	Analverkehr (German)
soet (Afrikaans)	soot	sweet	roet
sok (Polish) sok (сок) (Russian)	sock	juice	skarpetka nosok (носок)
son (Afrikaans)	son	sun	seun
son (Spanish)	son	(they) are; song	hijo
son (French)	son	sound; bran; his/her (masculine thing possessed)	fils
son (сон) (Russian)	son	sleep	syn (сын)
sopa (Spanish)	soap	soup	jabón
sopa (Mexican Spanish)	soup	sopa seca ("dry soup"), a rice or pasta dish served as a side dish or first course; soup (less common)	caldo, sopa aguada ("wet soup")
sou (Japanese)	so	in that way	sou
soy (Spanish)	soya soybean	(I) am	soya, soja
spiti (σπίτι) (Greek)	spit	home	ftino (φτύνω - to spit); ftima (φτίμα - spit (noun)); souvla (σούβλα - for roasting)
square (French)	square	public open space in towns	carré
stage (French)	stage	internship	étage, scène
star (Dutch) starr (German)	star	rigid	ster (Dutch) Stern (German)
Star (German)	star	starling	Stern
stare (Italian)	stare	to be	sguardo fisso (noun), osservare (verb)
stare (Polish)	stare	old (girls or things)	spojrzenie
stark (German and Swedish)	stark	strong	bar, naken (Swedish nackt (German)
stanza (Italian)	stanza	room	strofa
stem (Afrikaans, Dutch)	stem	voice	stam, steel stingel (Afrikaans)/stengel (Dutch)
step (Chumash)	step	flea
stor (Swedish, and Norwegian)	store	big, large	affär, butik (Swedish) forretning, butikk (Norwegian)
stout (Dutch)	stout	naughty	stout
strafen (German)	strafe	punish
sum (Latin)	sum	I am	summa
sun (spoken Finnish)	sun /san/	your	aurinko
superbo (Italian) superbus (Latin)	superb	proud, haughty, arrogant, overbearing	ottimo, maestoso, stupendo, splendido (but also superbo--it's a partial false friend)
supplier (French)	to supply	to beg, to beseech	fournir; être fournisseur de
surgeon (French)	surgeon	basal shoot, sucker	chirurgien
sveti, sweti (several Slavic languages, e.g.:) święty (Polish) sveti (свети) (Bulgarian)	sweaty	Saint	spocony (Polish)
simpatic (Romanian) simpatico (Italian) simpático (Spanish and Portuguese) sympathique (French) sympathisch (German) sympatyczny (Polish) sympatisk (Swedish and Norwegian)	sympathetic	likeable, friendly	medfølende (Norwegian) compasivo, comprensivo (Spanish) współczujący (Polish) sympatisk (Swedish - half false friend)

[edit] T

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
tablette (French)	tablet	(rectanglar) block of a solid material, such as chocolate; specifically means lozange (phamaceutical preparation)	comprimé
Tag (German) tag (Swedish)	tag	German: day Swedish: take!	Etikett, fangen (the game) (German) lapp, kull/tafatt (the game) (Swedish)
tame (Japanese)	tame	sake
tikki, täkki, takki, tukki (Finnish)	tick [tik], tack [täk], tuck [tak]	stitch, quilt, jacket, log, respectively	tick: punkki (the Ixodidae or Argasidae insect); tack: nupi; tuck: pienennysleikkaus (in plastic surgery)
taimi (Finnish?)	time /taim/	sapling	aika
talon (Finnish)	talon	of the house	raatelukynsi
talon (Polish)	talon	coupon, voucher	pazur, szpon
talli (Finnish)	tally (n.)	garage, stable	luku (n.)
tanner (Finnish)	tanner	ground	nahkuri
tar (Swedish, Norwegian)	tar	takes	tjära, beck (Swedish), tjære (Norwegian)
tarra (Finnish)	tar	sticker	terva
táxi (τάξη) (Greek)	taxi	class (grade), classroom	taxí (ταξί)
tekniikka (Finnish)	technique ([tek'niik])	usually "technology" as a discipline	(työ)tekniikka, tekotapa
teippi (Finnish)	tape	adhesive tape	nauha
teknologi (Swedish)	technology	technology as a discipline	teknik
teli (Finnish)	telly /teli/	floe, bogie	telkkari
tempo (Portuguese)	tempo (flow)	weather, time	rapidez, fluidez
tempto (Latin)	to tempt	to try, to attempt
ten (Spanish)	ten	take! (imperative tense)	diez
ten (Polish)	ten	this	dziesięć
tie, tai (Finnish)	tie [tai]	tie "road", tai "or"	sitoa, solmia (verb); solmio (cravat)
Tier (German)	tier	animal
tiili (Finnish?)	teal /tiil/	brick	tavi
to (Polish) to (Serbian)	to (in writing)	this, that	do (Polish)
tóin (Irish), tòin (Scots Gaelic)	ton, tonne (a measure of weight)	arse	tonna (Irish), tunna (Scots Gaelic)
toll (Scots Gaelic)	toll	hole, cavity, (to) drill, (to) bore	càin, cìs
toll (German)	toll	great, cool (colloquial)	Abgabe
topikos (τοπικός) (Greek)	topical	local	epikairos (επίκαιρος)
travel (Norwegian)	travel	busy	reise
traversa (τραβέρσα) (Greek)	traverse	crossbar	perasma (πέρασμα - (noun))
travesti (τραβεστί) (Greek)	travesty	transvestite	diakomodisi (διακωμώδηση)
tri (Welsh) tri (три) (Russian)	tree	three	colfen derevo (дерево)
triviale (Italian)	trivial	vulgar, offensive, coarse	banale, ovvio
trombone (French)	trombone	trombone, or paperclip
trépasser (French)	trespass	to die	dépasser
truc (French)	truck	stuff	camion
truculent (French)	truculent	colorful, energetic	féroce, cruel
true (Norwegian)	true	threaten, menace	sann, ekte, rett
tu (Polish) tu (Serbian)	to (in pronunciation)	there
tu (French, Scots Gaelic, Italian) tú (Irish, Spanish) thu (Scots Gaelic)	to, two	you (singular, familiar)	deux (French), dos (Spanish), due (Italian) dá (Irish), dhà, dà (Scots Gaelic)
tuin (Afrikaans, Dutch)	town	garden	dorp
toi (spoken Finnish; "tuo" in standard language)	toy [toi]	that	leikkikalu, lelu
t'oi (台) (Hakka)	toy	tower

[edit] U

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
último (Spanish, Portuguese)	ultimate	final, last, previous	máximo, absoluto
Unterstand (German)	(to) understand	shelter; dugout; bunker	verstehen

[edit] V

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
van (Afrikaans)	van	surname	afleweringsvoertuig, paneelwa
van (Dutch)	van	of (cf. University of Harvard)	busje
van (Spanish)	van	they go	furgoneta
van (Hungarian)	van	is	furgon
vann (Norwegian)	van	water	van, varebil
vazo (βάζω) (Greek)	vase	to put; to set	βάζο
ventilateur (French), Ventilator (German)	(medical) ventilator	fan	insufflateur (French) Beatmungsgerät (German)
veri (Finnish)	very	blood	hyvin
versatile (French)	versatile	capricious	polyvalent, complet
vet (Dutch, Afrikaans)	vet(erinarian)	fat	dierenarts (Dutch), veearts (Afrikaans)
vi (Serbian)	we (in reading)	you
via (Latin)	via	road, street, way	per
via (βία) (Greek)	via	force, violence	meso (μέσω)
viina (Finnish), viin (Estonian)	wine	liquor	viini (Finnish), vein (Estonian)
villa (Finnish)	villa	wool	huvila
villa (Swedish)	villa	detached house, (villa)	romersk villa (Roman villa), (lyx)villa (modern villa) (Swedish)
vink (Swedish, Norwegian) vinkki (Finnish)	wink	hint, wave (salutation)	blink (noun), blinka (verb) (Swedish), blunk (noun), blunke (verb) (Norwegian)
vink (Dutch, Afrikaans)	wink	finch (bird)	knipogen (verb, Dutch), knipoog (noun, Dutch; noun and verb Afrikaans)
volta (βόλτα) (Greek)	Volta, volt	stroll, ride	volt (βολτ)
vrist (Swedish)	wrist	ankle	handled

[edit] W

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
wanken (German)	(to) wank	to sway; to succumb; to stagger (esp. drunkenly)	wichsen
wanna (Polish) Wanne (German)	contraction of "want to"	bath (tub)	chcieć (Polish) will (German)
war (German)	war	was	Krieg
was (Afrikaans)	was	laundry; to wash	was
was (Dutch)	was	laundry	was
was (German)	was	what	war
was Polish	was	Genitive of wy (you in plural)	m był; f była; n było
Webseite (German)	web site	web page	Internet-Auftritt, Internet-Präsenz (actually Website, Web-Seite and Homepage are usually used synonym in German)
weinen (German)	(to) whine	to cry	jammern
wer (German)	where	who	wo
Welt (German)	welt	world	Striemen
wet (Afrikaans, Dutch)	wet	law	nat
Wette (German)	wet	bet	naß
weit (German)	white	wide	weiß
will (German) vill (Swedish) vil (Norwegian) wil (Dutch)	will (law), will (vb.)	I/he/she/it wants, want, wants (Swedish)	German: Testament (last will and testament); Wille (having the will to do sth.); ich werde, du wirst, er wird, wir werden, ihr werdet, sie werden (auxiliary of the future tense). ; Swedish: ett testamente (last will and testament); ska(ll) (auxiliary of the future tense). Norwegian: testamente (last will and testament); skal (auxiliary of the future tense). Dutch: testament (last will and testament); wil, wilskracht (having the will to do sth.); zal, zullen (auxiliary of the future tense).
wimper (Afrikaans, Dutch) Wimper (German)	wimper	eyelash
winkel (Afrikaans, Dutch)	winkle	shop
Winkel (German)	winkle	angle
winken (German)	wink	to wave	zwinkern
wo (German)	who, woe	where	wer; Sorge
wǒmen (我們) (Mandarin)	women	we	nǚrén (女人)
worst (Dutch) Wurst (German)	worst	sausage	ergst schlechtest(e\|en\|er\|es) (German)

[edit] X

[edit] Y

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
yeia (γεια) and yia (για) (Greek)	yeah	hello/goodbye and for	nai (ναι)
yelo (γελώ) (Greek)	yellow	to deceive; to let down; to laugh at	kitrinos (κίτρινος)
yǒu (有) (Mandarin)	you	to have	nǐ (你)

[edit] Z

Non-English word	Which resembles English	But actually means	For an equivalent of the English word use
zesti (ζέστη) (Greek)	zesty	warm (feminine)

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Category: English words of foreign origin