Words are often taken from other languages and imported into your own, sometimes with funny results. In Mexico, I’ve been told that it’s become increasing common to say “vacunar la carpeta.” Now to English speakers, you might not be surprised by this, thinking it simply means to “vacuum the carpet” and that is indeed what the speaker is normally intending. However, the words “vacunar” and “carpeta” already exist in Spanish with different meanings. So, the next time you hear someone say they are going to “vacunar la carpeta”, you might want to ask them exactly how they intend to “vaccinate the folder.”
Languages and cultural differences explored