A rather weak sign

American Milk Toast

X American Milk Toast

Tim says:

This isn’t exactly a mistake, but this is a poor choice for the name of a business, because of the other meaning of “milk toast”.

Or, actually, “milquetoast”. In the 1920s, there was a comic strip called “The Timid Soul”, featuring the character Caspar Milquetoast. He was, as the title suggests, a timid (臆病) and wimpy (弱気) person. The character was very popular, and “milquetoast” became a common expression to mean someone who is timid and wimpy. It’s still commonly used, although the comic strip character is not well known anymore.

So calling a restaurant this name makes it sound rather wimpy. Also, Americans seldom eat milk toast these days! This shop actually sells French toast — although that makes the “correction” sound rather self-contradictory! Is it American, or French?!

O American French Toast

周囲にある英語を見て、果たしてそれが正しい英語なのだろうかと感じる英語はありますか?「あの英語は絶対に間違っている」という英語の表記はありますか?看板の写真を撮って、Machigai.comに送りましょう!とんでもない英語だったら、このコーナーで出します!

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