A proud vegetarian wanted to express their lifestyle choice in Chinese. The machine translation turned them into a human salad.
The Story
"I'm a proud vegetarian. My tattoo says I'm literally made of vegetables."
Vegetarianism is a lifestyle choice many people are proud of. So proud, in fact, that some want it permanently tattooed in Chinese characters. What could go wrong?
With Google Translate: everything.
Someone wanted "I am a vegetarian" and got:
我是由蔬菜做的
(wǒ shì yóu shūcài zuò de) = "I am made from vegetables"
The Linguistic Breakdown
- 我是 (wǒ shì) = I am
- 由...做的 (yóu...zuò de) = Made from...
- 蔬菜 (shūcài) = Vegetables
The sentence structure is grammatically correct – for describing what something is made of. Like saying "This table is made of wood." Not for describing dietary choices.
What They Actually Wanted
To say "I am a vegetarian" in Chinese:
- 我是素食者 (wǒ shì sù shí zhě) = I am a vegetarian
- 我吃素 (wǒ chī sù) = I eat vegetarian (more casual)
Why Machine Translation Fails
Google Translate and other machine translators:
- Don't understand context
- Can't distinguish between similar grammatical structures
- Prioritize word-for-word translation over meaning
- Miss cultural and idiomatic expressions
Key Takeaways
- Never use machine translation for permanent tattoos
- Grammar structure matters as much as vocabulary
- Have a native speaker check your translation