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Fear not traveler, for we have taken our idioms from La Sorbonne, Lycée Louis le Grand, Henri IV and other mighty academic institutions! |
A few useful idiomatic expressions, you won't find in phrase books. Phonetics are given in parentheses.
Basics Bonjour - Hello Au revoir - Goodbye Pardon - sorry/excuse me Oui - Yes Ouais (oo-ay) - Yeah/yup Non - No Moi - me Toi - you Ou est? - where is?
Civilities Je ne suis pas du cru - I am not of this wine year (I am a foreigner) Merci - Thank you Ca va? (sa-va )- How are you? Ca va (sa-va) - I'm fine Monsieur (meuh- sieu) - Sir or Mister Madame - Madam Mademoiselle - Miss
Conversation Pas Mal (pa-mal) - Not bad Vachement - Extremely Super cool - Super cool Cher (sher) - Expensive Pas cher (pa-sher) - Cheap C'est goutu (say-gootu) - Tasty (used for food)
C'est l'amour Toi et moi - you and me T'es mimine, ma jolie (tay-meemean-ma-jolly) - To show appreciation for a femme fatale T'es mignon toi (tay-meeyon-toi) - To show appreciation for a man T'as de beaux yeux (ta-deuh-bo-zee-euh) - You have pretty eyes (this is a classic pick-up line) C'est l'amour (say-la-moor) - This is love! Ma chérie - My cherished (male) one Mon chérie - My cherished (female) one Je t'aime - I love you! Je t'adore - I adore you!
Choiced idioms to express discontent The old saying has it that nobody complains as much as French people. Parisians are in fact the whiniest among Frenchmen. We like to express our discontent given any opportunity, this is assuredly at the heart of the true Paris culture. Do not hesitate to yell, make a fuss and bicker if service is inadequate, or simply if you feel like nitpicking. Caca - pooh (milder form of merde) Merde - Shit Putain, chier! - very shit indeed Merde in France - merde in France (this is a famous French song)
Choicer idioms to insult people Expect to argue all the time and everywhere in Paris, except if you plan to go to Disneyland Paris where employees are actually paid to be nice to you. This is no joke. Parisians, are loud mouthed aggressive people who will not hesitate to step on tourists if they stand in the way. Yep, Parisians are usually all talk and full of hot air. However, do not willfully pick a fight against Parisians, but be prepared to hurl some insults to demonstrate your understanding of Parisian culture. Sale con - dirty female genitals (You jerk!) Va te faire voir - go show yourself (Go f**** yourself!)
Other useful expressions Au secours (o-secoor) - Help! Tombe la chemise (tumb-la-chemise) - Chill out! C'est la vie - That's life! Téléphone maison - Phone home
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