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		<title>When you&#8217;re black, you&#8217;re in the red</title>
		<link>https://copyeditor.se/when-youre-black-youre-in-the-red/</link>
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		<pubDate>Thu, 30 Apr 2026 05:00:04 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[English]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[idioms]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[language]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vocabulary]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[black]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[english]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[false friends]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[in the red]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[red]]></category>
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					<description><![CDATA[<p>The same word in two languages may have different meanings, as we have seen. Here is another example: Black is Swedish slang meaning broke, without money. In English, to be in the black means just the opposite, profitable, having money in the bank. The English expression in the red means that you are in debt [&#8230;]</p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://copyeditor.se/when-youre-black-youre-in-the-red/">When you&#8217;re black, you&#8217;re in the red</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://copyeditor.se">copyeditor.se</a>.</p>
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<p>The same word in two languages may have different meanings, <a href="https://copyeditor.se/same-but-different/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">as we have seen</a>. Here is another example:</p>



<p><strong>Black</strong> is Swedish slang meaning <em>broke, without money</em>. In English, <strong>to be in the black</strong> means just the opposite, <em>profitable, having money in the bank</em>.</p>



<p>The English expression <strong>in the red</strong> means that you are<em> in debt or that you are losing money</em>. The idiom comes from bookkeeping, where losses were recorded in red ink.</p>



<p>So, <strong>to be black</strong> in Swedish is the same as <strong>being in the red</strong> in English.</p>



<p>You can read about many other such false friends<a href="https://copyeditor.se/books-on-the-english-language/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> in my book</a>.</p>



<p>And if you want to learn more about English idioms, you will find some <a href="https://copyeditor.se/be-careful-when-you-use-idioms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a> and <a href="https://copyeditor.se/are-you-pulling-my-leg-some-more-english-idioms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>. Some idioms are unique to English, while others are identical in English and Swedish.</p>



<p></p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://copyeditor.se/when-youre-black-youre-in-the-red/">When you&#8217;re black, you&#8217;re in the red</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://copyeditor.se">copyeditor.se</a>.</p>
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