One of the funny aspects of working with non-native English speakers abroad is their command of the English language. Most "knowledge workers" abroad tend to be fluent in written English, both reading and writing (or perhaps I'm exceptionally lucky in my team!); but often, they mentally translate words into the near-identical local-language words that have slightly different meetings. Therefore, I solve this problem by paying attention to these problematic words, and always reminding myself to use synonyms.

Here are two fun examples. First, "excited." It's a very common word for any English speaker -- or at least we Americans, who seem to get excited about everything. But in Spanish, "excited" means the same thing it does in English--but with a very strong sexual connotation. I always say "enthusiastic" instead, or, "I'm really excited about this (in the American sense of the word)."

Secondly, "discuss." In Spanish, it means almost the same thing as in English -- but it implies "argue" or "fight" (unlike in English, where it implies only a normal conversation). I make a point of telling everyone, "let's talk about" an issue, rather than, "let's discuss it."