False Friends - Taschen Guide by Stephanie Shellabear Page A

may feel when they hear mistakes made by (other) non-native speakers. These signs will help you to see how critical the use of a false friend can be, and it will hopefully help you to recognize which things you need to pay particular attention to:
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small error; it can cause some confusion,
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more critical; potential for big misunderstandings,
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don't say this: it may cause shock or embarrassment!
    Applying for a job
    There is no denying it: English is everywhere. If you are searching for a new job, it is likely that you will see under the list of requirements for the position: gute (or perhaps hervorragende, maybe verhandlungssichere) Englischkenntnisse. What sort of things should you be aware of when you apply?
    Example 1: letter of application containing false friends
    Dear Sir/Madam
    I am applying for the job of photograph which you advertised in the Daily Times on Friday 3 September 2010.
    Enclosed is my CV. You will see that I started to study to become an advocate, but I discovered a love of cameras and decided to become an undertaker instead and started up my own photo studio …
What needs improving?
The German word is Fotograf and the English for this is ‚photographer‘ . This applicant has just described himself as a photo. ↓
An advocate is someone who supports, for example, an idea, e.g. ‚he is a strong advocate of renewable energy‘. It is not the same as Advokat, which in English is ‚lawyer‘ or ‚attorney‘ . ↓ ↓
If only the English for Unternehmer were undertaker – life would be so easy! An undertaker is, as already mentioned, Bestatter, and the word the applicant should have used is ‚entrepreneur‘ or ‚business owner‘ . ↓ ↓ ↓
    Example 2: letter of application with some false friends
    Dear Sir/Madam
    I have been following the developments of your company for a while now with great interest. It is my wish to work for a globally successful company and so I am sending you my CV in case you actually have a vacancy for someone with my qualifications.
    I was an executive assistant in the direction of a medium-sized German company for three years and am a very engaged team worker. My former chief was very satisfied with me and I am enclosing the reference that he wrote …
What needs correcting?
The German adverb aktuell and the English ‚actually‘ are very similar but they mean different things. Aktuell translates as ‚currently‘ . The English adverb ‚actually‘ means eigentlich . ↓
The applicant says she worked ‚in the direction‘, which means in der Richtung … What she should have writtenwas, for example, ‚in the office of the board of directors‘ or ‚at head office‘ . ↓ ↓
Last but not least we have the classic false friend Chef. Although there are titles such as ‚Chief Accountant‘ (Hauptbuchhalter) and ‚Chief of Staff‘ (Generalstabschef), ‚chief‘ also means Indianerhäuptling ! The correct translation for mein Chef is ‚my boss‘ or ‚my manager‘ . ↓
    Example 3
    Dear Ms Terry
    With regard to your announcement in the Good Thinking magazine on 15th January I would like to apply for the job of Sales Assistant.
    I enclose my CV which shows that I have worked in the sales resorts of several companies. I read about your fusion with Alex plc and I am sure that a fresh and competent face in your sales department will bring your company many benefits …
What's not right?
Announcement. Annonce is so similar to this. However, ‚announcement‘ means Ankündigung. The correct thing to say in the case above is ‚ advertisement‘ . ↓
We speak of ‚holiday resorts‘ in English (Ferien- / Urlaubsort) but not of sales resorts or personnel resorts. The right word for this is ‚department‘ . ↓↓
The applicant mentions a ‚fusion‘ of Alex plc and the company she is writing to. Does she know that she has usedthe translation of Verschmelzung? The word that describes the joining together of two companies is ‚ merger ‘.