NIGHT BUS·Games·Lost in Translation

Lost in
Translation.

100 foreign idioms from 50+ languages. Real meaning vs. absurd. Vote A or B. Wrong = take a dare. Learn languages while you lose your dignity.

Players
2-12
Round Time
2 MIN
Vibe
CULTURED
Setup
ZERO

Real foreign words. Absurd fake meanings. Choose carefully.

100 phrases from 50+ languages — Italian, Korean, Yiddish, Tibetan, Hawaiian, Inuit, Welsh, Bengali, even Easter Island Rapa Nui. Each comes with two possible meanings. One is real. One is a punchline. Pick wisely.

01 — REAL LANGUAGES

Every phrase is a real word.

Saudade. Hyggeligt. Ikigai. These aren't made up — they're real concepts in real languages. The "wrong" answers are absurd inventions for laughs.

02 — 50+ LANGUAGES

From Mandarin to Maori.

European, Asian, African, Pacific, Indigenous languages all represented respectfully. Each round teaches you something genuinely beautiful or surprising about a culture.

03 — 50/50 ANSWERS

The correct answer randomizes each game.

Sometimes A is right. Sometimes B is. Each play, the order shuffles so you can't game it. You actually have to read.

SPONSORED · NB-AD
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Test your linguistic luck.

100 phrases in the deck. Here are 4 examples. Correct answer highlighted in green.

NB·08 · 01
▸ ITALIAN
"In bocca al lupo!"
Good luck!
I'm being eaten by a wolf
Literally "in the mouth of the wolf" — the Italian way to say "good luck". Reply: "crepi il lupo" (may the wolf die).
NB·08 · 02
▸ KOREAN
"Han (한)"
Collective historical sorrow / unresolved grief
Korean for "one more shot please"
Untranslatable Korean concept rooted in their history. Carried in the soul, expressed in art and music.
NB·08 · 03
▸ INUIT
"Iktsuarpok"
The anticipation of waiting for someone to arrive
A polar bear's morning yoga routine
Inuit word for that restless waiting feeling — keep checking outside even though you know they're not here yet. Deeply relatable.
NB·08 · 04
▸ JAPANESE
"Komorebi (木漏れ日)"
Sunlight filtering through leaves
A grandma named Komori
Literally "sunlight that leaks through trees". A poetic word for a real visual phenomenon.

Read. Vote. Drink. Learn.

01

Read the phrase

Phone shows a foreign idiom + 2 possible meanings (A and B).

02

Group decides

Debate which is real. Each player picks A or B in their head.

03

3-2-1 reveal

Tap REVEAL ON 3. Everyone shouts their answer. Wrong = take a dare. Right = you sound cultured.

Try one of these next.

Sound smart. Sound silly.

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