Claim: A practical joker landed tourists in trouble by publishing a Japanese-to-English phrase book with incorrect definitions for every phrase.
Status: False.
Example: [Collected on the Internet, 2003]
Bogus Dictionary Lands Tourists In Trouble! A practical joker has stirred up trouble by publishing a Japanese-to-English phrase book with incorrect definitions for every phrase! Now thousands of Japanese tourists who've painstakingly studied the bogus dictionary in preparation for trips to America are arriving on our shores only to encounter blank stares, hysterical laughter or even brutal beatings as soon as they open their mouths. "The man who compiled this dictionary clearly went out of his way to wreak havoc," says "For instance, when the Japanese think they're asking 'Can you direct me to the rest room?' the book actually has them saying, 'Excuse me, may I caress your buttocks?' [Click here to read the rest of this article] |
Origins: Holy smokes! Monty Python's "Hungarian Phrase Book" sketch come to
life?
Sadly, no. All one need know about the article quoted above is that it originated with the
Last updated: 21 March 2007
Sources: