Spanish curva means “curve”, “turn”, or something bent or crooked. Polish kurwa, pronounced very similar, means “whore”. Erasmus students in either country have a blast with this fun fact.
But what is fascinating is that curva comes from Latin curvus, from PIE *(s)krengh- “to bend”. And kurwa comes from Proto-Slavic *kury, already “whore”, but ultimately from PIE *kowr-. So they have absolutely no relation.
Originally published in The blind mouse.