#weird french

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Weird French #04

Être fleur bleue

Literally “to be blue flower.”

Means “to be romantic and sentimental,” maybe even overly so, and also a little naive. Could be translated as being mushy, but has a gentler connotation. When talking about a person, refers to their personality.

“Elle rêve au grand amour, elle est un peu fleur bleue.” (She dreams of finding the one, she’s a little too sentimental.)

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Weird French #06

“Avoir un cœur d’artichaut”

Lit.: to have an artichoke’s heart.

Someone who has an artichoke’s heart easily falls in (and out?) of love. Can have a cutesy connotation, or a more derogatory one (i.e. that person can’t be trusted). It is also used more broadly, to mean someone who’s easily moved. 

Comes from a XIXth century proverb: “artichoke’s heart, a leave for everyone.” (”Cœur d’artichaut, une feuille pour tout le monde.”)

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Weird French #02

“Ça casse pas trois pattes à un canard”

Lit: It doesn’t break a duck’s three legs.  Actual meaning: it’s nothing extraordinary, nothing to write home about.

(I don’t know what else to tell you…) 

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Weird French #05

TRAVEL EDITION

Dépayser (v.), dépaysement (n.), dépaysant (adj.) lit: un-country-fy, un-country-fication, un-country-fying meaning: to experience something completely new through travelling or changing one’s habits. To get away from it all, and lose your bearings (but in a good way). ex: “Les Alpes sont très dépaysantes pour une parisienne comme moi.” The Alps are very uncountryfying for a Parisian like me.

Décalage horaire (exp.) lit: time gap meaning: time difference by extension: “être décalé,” when one’s sleeping patterns are all out of sync, whether because of jet lag or not. (Does not necessarily imply lack of sleep/tiredness.) ex: “Ça fait une semaine que je suis arrivée à Tokyo, et je suis toujours complètement décalée!” I’ve been in Tokyo for a week now, and I’m still jet-lagged/still out of sync.

Mal du pays (exp.) lit: pain of (home) country meaning: homesickness

Mal au cœur (exp.) lit: heart pain meaning: motion sickness, feeling nauseous

Être barbouillé (exp.) lit: to be smeared, to be smudged meaning: to have motion sickness, to be nauseous  ex: “Il y a eu de la houle pendant la traversée, et Arthur était tout barbouillé!” There was swell during the crossing, and Arthur was all sea-sick!

Flâner (v.) meaning: stroll around, wander aimlessly, with a positive connotation of idleness and enjoyment, of taking in the view and atmosphere. ex: “J’ai flâné le long des canaux d’Amsterdam.” I strolled along the canals of Amsterdam.

Retrouvailles (n.f.pl.) meaning: being happily reunited with someone close to you after a long time apart.  ex: “Mon père est parti rejoindre ma mère pour vivre à Shanghai. Ça va être de joyeuses retrouvailles.” My father is going to go live with my mother in Shanghai. It’s going to be a happy reunion.

Auberge espagnole (exp.) lit: Spanish inn meaning: originally meant a inn or hostel where you had to bring your own food and drink (either because of lack of supplies, or because of the poor quality, obv. meant as a dig toward the quality of Spanish accommodations). Nowadays, has evolved to mean a place where you can find people and things from all origins and cultures. (see “L’Auberge Espagnole” by Cédric Klapisch)

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Weird French #03

Poser un lapin

Literally: to set a rabbit down. Meaning: to stand someone up.

Origin: so there's a vague explanation going around the french internet saying that, in the 19th century, it meant not repaying the "favours" of a woman, and more generally running away without paying. It explains nothing, but there you have it. (Who's the woman? Is that a euphemism for sex-worker? If so wouldn't it be less expensive to pay with money than with a rabbit? Or does it mean running as fast as a rabbit? But then why is the rabbit "posé"? So many questions, so little answers.)

ex: "C'est la troisième fois qu'il me pose un lapin ! C'est fini !" (It's the third time he stood me up! It's over!)

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Weird French #01

"Faire la grasse matinée"

In this week's first (and only??) installement of Weird French, a common expression, used by people of every age and social background.

Literally means "to do the fat morning." The actual translation is sleeping in, having a lie-in. Often shortened to "grasse mat'" in casual speech.

The origine is unclear. Maybe it's simply linked to the idea of indulging, like we indulge in rich food, or it could comme from the Latin "crassus," thick, meaning that the time spent in bed is prolonged compared to an usual morning.

Ex: "Juste un ou deux petits épisodes de plus. J'aurais qu'à faire la grasse mat'."

"Just one or two more episodes. I'll just sleep in tomorrow."