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Entry tags:
cross-cultural vocabulary
Had my first language fail today.
I walked into the hotel reception, and informed them that "the plug in the bathroom basin is stuck".
I have a fairly extensive knowledge of American English, and the ways in which it differs from mine. That being the case, in the last three weeks I have modified my vocabulary to fit my audience, as needed. For instance, "she's wrecked" (referring to my sobbing daughter) got quickly changed to "she's exhausted".
I have also changed my accent a couple of times, for greater clarity. (My daughter's name has an A in it - and apparently spelling "A" in Australian sounds like "I" in Canadian. I drawled out an appropriately accented A for the bewildered museum worker.)
In this case, though, I had no idea of what I was doing wrong. It took us several minutes before I realised that the receptionist thought I meant the toilet was clogged, and was able to clarify (with gestures) that the sink's plug was stuck in place.
I walked into the hotel reception, and informed them that "the plug in the bathroom basin is stuck".
I have a fairly extensive knowledge of American English, and the ways in which it differs from mine. That being the case, in the last three weeks I have modified my vocabulary to fit my audience, as needed. For instance, "she's wrecked" (referring to my sobbing daughter) got quickly changed to "she's exhausted".
I have also changed my accent a couple of times, for greater clarity. (My daughter's name has an A in it - and apparently spelling "A" in Australian sounds like "I" in Canadian. I drawled out an appropriately accented A for the bewildered museum worker.)
In this case, though, I had no idea of what I was doing wrong. It took us several minutes before I realised that the receptionist thought I meant the toilet was clogged, and was able to clarify (with gestures) that the sink's plug was stuck in place.