Foreigners who are on their first ever visit to Malaysia, can be very shocked when listening to what people say in the local coffee houses and restaurants in Malaysia. With all the different languages spoken in Malaysia, I can't tell you how many times I've had a good laugh watching how my foreign relatives have reacted to some of the words spoken in this country.
A good example is when my uncles from Australia was here to visit and we were in a local Chinese restaurant, my father, and almost every other customer, was calling the auntie who owns the establishment 'Aso!' which means 'auntie' in Cantonese. After my father had ordered the dishes, my uncle leaned slowly towards my father and asked "Why the hell do you keep calling that woman an 'asshole'?!". I overheard that and I laughed out loud along with my father and explained properly to him.
Another instance is with yet another foreign relative, from London, in yet another Chinese restaurant. After ordering chinese tea for the family, the waitress asked (in cantonese) "Oi Shuit moh?" (Do you want ice). Now, of course, my relative (who knows a bit of cantonese) quickly asked us after the waitress left "Did she ask if we want shit?!". The fact that he asked that with a complete british accent only made it funnier. In the very same dinner and my dad ordered 'Fu Kin chou' which is a type of noodle, and of course my relative, with his foreign ears, thought it sounded a lot like 'Fu**ing Chou'. XD
In the end, miscommunication and misconception goes hand in hand when it comes to communicating with people with different languages. Its notable that this happens so much that theres even a website dedicated to showing funny sounding foreign words and unintentionally funny mistranslated signs called www.engrish.com.
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