Sep 14, 2018

Consequences of Confusing Signs


Mistranslation can sometimes be catastrophic, but other time can be amusing. This store, which is in Gaithersburg, Maryland, has a funny and confusing banner. In caps, it says "Engine House Hobbies," but the second line says "A Releasing Your Creativity Application." What does it mean? It may need a professional translator to explain what the last line means. I am not sure if the owner is an English speaker. I speculated that it was translated from one of foreign languages. 

On August 10, Katherine and Joe who became dear friends to me this summer took me to the Montgomery Country Agricultural Fare. On our way to the fare, we were in the car when we passed by this store. Everyone of us read it's sign but no one got it. For a second, I doubted my intelligence, so I hesitantly asked Katherine and Joe if they understood the sign. They both said, they read it at least three times, but still confused. We laughed but confusingly, because we didn't understand what it means and start brainstorming some hypothetical meanings.

Today, I went through some photos to delete from my phone when I saw this photo and I thought wait a minute, I have to blog about it . I just googled the place and founded it on Google map. You can also try locating the address on the map, but you don't have to. Here is a direct link to street view of the shop on google map. If you find the meaning behind this sign, please don't hesitate to share your findings at the comment section.

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