I know for instance, between Japanese & Mandarin there are a few words that are written the same despite them being pronounced differently along with having different meanings altogether:
| Word | Japanese Definition | Mandarin Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 手紙 | Letter (mail) | Toilet Paper |
| 先生 | Teacher | Mister (Mr.) |
| 天井 | Ceiling | Atrium |
| 説話 | Folktale | To Speak |
| 新聞 | Newspaper | News (media) |
| 約束 | Promise | Constrain |
| 文句 | Complain | Phrase |
| 怪我 | Injury | Blame me |
| 白鳥 | Swan | White Bird |
| 皮肉 | Irony | Skin & Flesh |
| 王妃 | Queen | Princess |
| 中古 | Used Product | Medieval Times |
| 氷箱 | Ice Box | Refrigerator |
| 手袋 | Gloves | Handbag |
| 邪魔 | Hinderance | Devil |
| 湯 | Hot Water | Soup |
| 猪 | Boar | Pig |
| 腕 | Arm | Wrist |
| 走 | Run | Walk |
| 棚 | Shelf | Shed |
| 首 | Neck | Head |
| 床 | Floor | Bed |
| 吃 | Scold | To Eat |
| 机 | Desk (Furniture) | Machinery |
| 娘 | Daughter | Mother |
In hindsight: if you are bilingual, do you know any false friends between two languages (i.e. English & French) or (i.e. Spanish & Portuguese) that are spelled the same but have different definitions across both languages?
Greek: Ναι (ne) means yes. Greeks often move their head up and down to say yes.
Bulgarian: Не (ne) means no. Bulgarians often move their head up and down to say no.
So if someone says ne and moves their head up and down it could be a Greek saying yes or a Bulgarian saying no. In reality the movements are not the same but it would probably be confusing to an outsider.
Is this why diplomacy in the Balkan region is a long history?