diff --git a/includes/locale.inc b/includes/locale.inc
index f0aba35ea58..101e792f78c 100644
--- a/includes/locale.inc
+++ b/includes/locale.inc
@@ -829,7 +829,7 @@ function locale_translate_edit_form_submit($form, &$form_state) {
  * Delete a language string.
  */
 function locale_translate_delete($lid) {
-  $langcode = db_result(db_query('SELECT language FROM {locales_source} WHERE lid = %d', $lid));
+  $langcode = db_result(db_query('SELECT language FROM {locales_target} WHERE lid = %d', $lid));
   db_query('DELETE FROM {locales_source} WHERE lid = %d', $lid);
   db_query('DELETE FROM {locales_target} WHERE lid = %d', $lid);
   if ($langcode) {