Our contest – winner for sending in the first story

babel — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 14:30:46 +0000

It looks like our first contest has got off to a fine start. In case you didn’t catch it last time, to participate in the contest you need to share on the blog an embarrassing or funny story about a misunderstanding in English. We already have some fantastic entries, and Eric, for being the first person to send a story, has won 4 Telephone Coaching sessions. We liked his story so much we thought we’d share it here in this month’s newsletter:

20 years ago in a pizza restaurant in downtown London, a waitress served me a cold pizza.

With my best English, I asked her (intending to have the pizza warmed-up):

Could you please eat it?

She was stunned … especially since she didn’t realize that for me HEAT and EAT had the same pronunciation!

She ignored me of course and rather ashamed and disappointed I finished my cold pizza.

Hopefully this will inspire you to send your own story in. Remember, the best story will receive a 6-month subscription to The English Works Club – and the contest ends May 31st, so hurry up!

Babelcom’s First Contest

babel — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 14:59:56 +0000

In June 2007 a Polish airliner carrying 89 passengers nearly collided with another aeroplane over Heathrow Airport because the captain and the crew had problems communicating in English. The pilots had configured their navigational systems incorrectly and they had to rely on coordinates given to them by the English air traffic controllers. They could hardly understand what was being said, and several times they “turned the aeroplane in the opposite direction given by controllers” – causing an oncoming aeroplane to have to change course in order to avoid a catastrophic mid-air collision.

Like it or not, English has become the de facto language for many industries, including the aviation industry. The story above illustrates the importance of clear English communication in today’s world.

Thankfully, English miscommunication doesn’t always lead to fatal air accidents. In day-to-day affairs, however, it can lead to some embarrassing or funny situations. Check out the video we posted above to see an example of a truly disastrous instance of misunderstanding.

Do you have an embarrassing or funny experience to share about misunderstandings in English? Post it below and you could win one of the following prizes:

The first person to send a story will receive 4 Telephone Coaching sessions.

The best story will receive a 6 month subscription to The English Works Club.

The contest ends May 31st, so hurry up!

BABELBLOG » Contest

Our contest – winner for sending in the first story

Babelcom’s First Contest