"Can't pay" = A toast!

Two tourists from the west were visiting China. They were having dinner at a Chinese restaurant where a wedding banquet was taking place in the same hall.

In keeping with Chinese tradition, the newlyweds were going from table to table to toast their guests. At each table, everyone would stand up, raise their glasses to the happy couple, and everyone would say, "干杯！" (pronounced "gan bei")

The western tourists were watching with curiosity as they knew no Mandarin. As the toasting continued, they began to get rather agitated.

As the couple finished toasting the last table of guests, the tourists went up to the couple and said, "If you can't pay, let us know. We will pay the bill for you!"

干杯 (gan bei) in Mandarin literally means "empty glass" or "bottoms up" in English. Since these tourists knew no Mandarin, they thought the newlyweds were telling each table of guests "can't pay!" Both phrases sound similar.

To those who know Mandarin, this story is a classic case of miscommunication. Similar sounding words and phrases in different languages can have vastly different meanings. The moral of the story is: do not assume anything. Ask for clarification.

Happy cross-cultural communication!