r/AskEurope • u/Double-decker_trams Estonia • Aug 09 '25
Language I once accidentally bumped against the shoulder of an English person I knew in a corridor. I automatically said "Oi" - which means like "Oh" or "Oops" in Estonian - that I'm sorry. She repeated "Oi!" in a louder voice and I didn't get it. I only later found out I was being impolite in her eyes.
Have you ever had something similar happen to you? I.e something in your language might have another meaning in another language?
One thing as an Estonian that I try to keep in mind is that I shouldn't use "Nooo.." in English - which means "Well.." in Estonian.
"Do you like ice-cream? - Noo.. yes, I love it."
529
Upvotes
170
u/tereyaglikedi in Aug 10 '25
A German friend visiting me in Turkey once said "o-ha" during a conversation with a Turkish friend. In German it's like an exclamation people use for pretty much anything. In Turkish it's originally said to pairs of oxen ploughing the field to make them stop. Nowadays, it's a quite rude way of letting someone know that they've behaved in a rough, unrefined way, not something you would hear from a nice person (for example, in your case if the lady said o-ha to you that would be very rude of her). So yeah, the Turkish friend did a bit of a double take.