This essay is a study of literature based on theories that explain cultural differences that may lead to misconceptions in communication. All people communicate, but how we communicate is cultural. With this essay we want to describe how culture and communication is related, and we also want to point out the fact that people communicate differently in different cultures. Above all, we want to explain cultural differences that may lead to misconceptions in communication. As a field of research intercultural communication, with focus on understanding and handling intercultural situations, is only a few decades old. It is necessary to make oneself acquainted with other cultures in order to be able to communicate with people from other cultures in the best possible way. If we do not succeed in our attempts to communicate the result can easily be misconceptions. The selection of literature was done within the fields of culture, communication, interculture and intercultural communication. We have mainly focused on theories by the researcher Geert Hofstede to illustrate how different aspects of cultures can lead to misconceptions in communication. He ascribes some culture dimensions that exist in all cultures, but in different grades. Every dimension has a scale from one extreme to another. A country can be anywhere on this scale. By grading these dimensions you can calculate how one culture differs from another. The differences are often what cause misconceptions in communication between individuals from different cultures. The dimensions by Hofstede are based on universal resemblances, for example equality. Hofstede describes how different countries handle inequality in society. In some countries the opinion is that inequality have to exist in society, while in other countries equality is more or less taken for granted. This is what Hofstede refers to as differences in power distance. When we discuss intercultural communication, we have chosen to focus on communication that is spoken. We write about the signification of gestures but we hardly mention intonation and facial expressions. Things like symbols and what different colours signify in different cultures, for example, have not been treated at all. In some cases the cultural differences become obstacles that make it impossible for the receiver to decode the message in the way it was intended by the sender. If we can acquire an increasing consciousness then these obstacles will be diminished. We can not gain knowledge of every existing culture, but we have come a long way if we are able to learn how to understand and accept people from other cultures.