Chinese teacher translates bad Chinese tattoos, and people are cracking up
"I don't know, I don't speak Chinese" is actually a pretty good one.

For some reason, "coffin man" showed up twice.
Ever since getting Chinese characters as tattoos became a mainstream trend in America in the late 80s and early 90s (and really taking off in the 2000s) there have been stories of people thinking they got profound mantras like “serenity” and “courage” permanently etched into their skin only to realize they actually got gibberish…or worse.
And somehow, these tattoo snafus never fail to be amusing. Recently, a woman named Jessie, who teaches Chinese online, had viewers cracking up as she translated “Westerner’s Chinese tattoos” that could not have possibly meant what the tattoo owners thought.
In one video, which quickly racked up over three million views, Jessie pointed out tats that said some almost inspiring phrases like “star, laugh, love,” "captain my destiny,” and “cancer” (as in the disease, not the astrology sign), as well as straight up nonsense like “cockroach,” “low quality coal,” “pee,” “more failure,” and “coffin man”…which somehow appeared twice?
@jessiez888 Westerners’ Chinese tattoos be like #funny #chinese #tattoo ♬ original sound - Chinese with Jessie
However, folks were in agreement that the “I don’t know I don’t speak Chinese” and “check you" with the image of a bowl of soup tattoos were actually successes.
It was also pretty hilarious that, at least in the examples used in this video, women were either far luckier, or did their research, and actually came out with tattoos like “beauty strength love.”
In a follow-up video, which already has nearly 750,000 views, things seems to take an even more deranged turn, with tattoos that translated to “Oedipus Complex,” “groundhog’s true color revealed,” “dog fly to the sky dragon of,” and “kitchen paper towel,” among others.
@jessiez888 Westerners’ Chinese tattoos be like #funny #chinese #tattoo ♬ original sound - Chinese with Jessie
“The Oedipus complex one is diabolical," one viewer wrote. On the other hand, a different viewer commented, “ok but groundhog's true color revealed slaps.”
Does this make for a warning against cultural appropriation? Perhaps. But as some viewers noted, the hilarious aftermath of language barriers goes both ways. You can definitely go to places in China and Japan and see failed attempts at English phrases on t-shirts, snacks, storefronts, etc.
@k.fel English really do be a weird language tho #fyp #english #asian #foryou #fashion #tiktokfashion #language ♬ Coffee Music - Cafe Music BGM channel
Now, if you're someone who has one of those unfortunate tattoos, keeping it a secret might not be as easy as you think. According to Babbel, it is the most spoken language in the world, with approximately 1.3 billion people who speak it as their first language. So, there’s a good chance someone might have seen your “chicken soup” tattoos and is secretly snickering behind your back.
But hey, life is short and we all need something to “star, laugh, love” about. So, if a silly nonsense tattoos floats your boat, go for it. But if you do care, Jessi recommends confirming with a native speaker. Oh, and considering the font apparently goes a long way.






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Resurfaced video of French skier's groin incident has people giving the announcer a gold medal
"The boys took a beating on that one."
Downhill skiing is a sport rife with injuries, but not usually this kind.
A good commentator can make all the difference when watching sports, even when an event goes smoothly. But it's when something goes wrong that great announcers rise to the top. There's no better example of a great announcer in a surprise moment than when French skier Yannick Bertrand took a gate to the groin in a 2007 super-G race.
Competitive skiers fly down runs at incredible speeds, often exceeding 60 mph. Hitting something hard at that speed would definitely hurt, but hitting something hard with a particularly sensitive part of your body would be excruciating. So when Bertrand slammed right into a gate family-jewels-first, his high-pitched scream was unsurprising. What was surprising was the perfect commentary that immediately followed.
This is a clip you really just have to see and hear to fully appreciate:
- YouTube youtu.be
It's unclear who the announcer is, even after multiple Google inquiries, which is unfortunate because that gentleman deserves a medal. The commentary gets better with each repeated viewing, with highlights like:
"The gate the groin for Yannick Bertrand, and you could hear it. And if you're a man, you could feel it."
"Oh, the Frenchman. Oh-ho, monsieurrrrrr."
"The boys took a beating on that one."
"That guy needs a hug."
"Those are the moments that change your life if you're a man, I tell you what."
"When you crash through a gate, when you do it at high rate of speed, it's gonna hurt and it's going to leave a mark in most cases. And in this particular case, not the area where you want to leave a mark."
Imagine watching a man take a hit to the privates at 60 mph and having to make impromptu commentary straddling the line between professionalism and acknowledging the universal reality of what just happened. There are certain things you can't say on network television that you might feel compelled to say. There's a visceral element to this scenario that could easily be taken too far in the commentary, and the inherent humor element could be seen as insensitive and offensive if not handled just right.
The announcer nailed it. 10/10. No notes.
The clip frequently resurfaces during the Winter Olympic Games, though the incident didn't happen during an Olympic event. Yannick Bertrand was competing at the FIS World Cup super-G race in Kvitfjell, Norway in 2007, when the unfortunate accident occurred. Bertrand had competed at the Turin Olympics the year before, however, coming in 24th in the downhill and super-G events.
As painful as the gate to the groin clearly as, Bertrand did not appear to suffer any damage that kept him from the sport. In fact, he continued competing in international downhill and super-G races until 2014.
According to a 2018 study, Alpine skiing is a notoriously dangerous sport with a reported injury rate of 36.7 per 100 World Cup athletes per season. Of course, it's the knees and not the coin purse that are the most common casualty of ski racing, which we saw clearly in U.S. skier Lindsey Vonn's harrowing experiences at the 2026 Olympics. Vonn was competing with a torn ACL and ended up being helicoptered off of the mountain after an ugly crash that did additional damage to her legs, requiring multiple surgeries (though what caused the crash was reportedly unrelated to her ACL tear). Still, she says she has no regrets.
As Bertrand's return to the slopes shows, the risk of injury doesn't stop those who live for the thrill of victory, even when the agony of defeat hits them right in the rocks.