false friend

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false friend

A phrase, word, or letter that sounds or looks similar to one in another language or dialect but has a significantly different meaning. I used the word "embarazada" to tell my Spanish friend I was embarrassed, not knowing that it was a false friend and actually means "pregnant"—now I'm even more embarrassed!

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Eliza	i-LIE-zə (English), e-LEE-zah (Polish)	English, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian)
Tihomir	-	Croatian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Macedonian
Talaat	-	Arabic
Silvanus	sil-VAY-nəs (English)	Roman Mythology, Ancient Roman, Biblical, Biblical Latin
BoŻYdar	baw-ZHI-dahr	Polish
Elihu	i-LIE-hyoo (English), ee-LIE-hyoo (English)	Biblical, Biblical Hebrew, English (Archaic)