French France

un pied-à-terre

Idiom USED Frequently BY Almost Everyone

(a foot on the ground) • A small house or apartment in a city you do not live in, and where you stay when visiting that city for a short time

"Vivre à Paris ne m'empêche pas d'aller souvent à Rome, j'y ai un petit pied-à-terre."

"Living in Paris does not prevent me from going to Rome. I have a small pied-à-terre there""

French France

péter plus haut que son cul

Idiom USED Frequently BY Everyone

(to fart higher than one's arse) • To be conceited.

Les étrangers disent souvent que les Français pètent plus haut que leur cul.

Foreigners often say that French people fart higher than their arse.

French France

un avion de chasse

Expression USED Frequently BY Everyone

(fighter plane) • Used to describe someone that is very beautiful or attractive.

"Woah, la nouvelle serveuse est un avion de chasse!"

"Wow, the new waitress is a fighter plane!"

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French France

la poêle qui se moque du chaudron

Expression USED On Occasion BY Everyone

(the pan mocking the cauldron) • Used to point out hypocrisy towards another in a joking manner.

"Il est vraiment pas doué de ses mains." "C'est la poêle qui se moque du chaudron!"

"He's really not good with his hands." "It's the pan mocking the cauldron!"

French France

passer l'arme à gauche

Expression USED On Occasion BY Almost Everyone

(to pass the weapon to the left) • To die.

"Elle a passé l'arme à gauche."

"She passed the weapon to the left."

French France

passez l'arme à gauche

Expression USED On Occasion BY Almost Everyone

(to pass the weapon to the left) • To Die.

Elle a passé l'arme à gauche.

She passed the weapon to the left.

French France

kikou

Slang USED On Occasion BY Young people

Very unfamiliar and childish way to say hello. When you want to say hi to your friends in a cute way, comes from “coucou” which means something like "hey".

"Kikou!"

"Hi!"

Breton | Breton West Bretagne, France

Va doue benniget!

Interjection USED Frequently BY Almost Everyone

(my blessed god) • It literally means "my blessed god." Even though "benniget" isn't a common word to say "blessed," everyone around me (in Bretagne) uses it from time to time. It's used like "oh my god !" Older people, who speak more Breton than French use it often. The younger generation, however, sometimes use it in a funny or ironic way because there isn't a lot of breton speakers nowadays.

"Jean a eu un 20/20 en maths!" -"Va doue benniget! C'est un génie."

"Jean has a 20/20 in maths!" -"Oh my blessed god! He's a genius."

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French | Breton Bretagne, France

restachoú

Idiom USED Frequently BY Almost Everyone from northwest France

(n.) • (leftovers ) • It is mostly used by old people who still know Breton, but can be used by younger people as a funny way to say that there is nothing to eat, or when you don't remember something well, or when there are only some traces of something left.

"Je n'ai plus que des restachoú, allons manger au restaurant." "Je n'ai pas parlé anglais depuis longtemps, je n'ai que des restachoú de grammaire." "Ma grand-mère est mal à l'aise quand elle entend de l'allemand, des restachoú de l'occupation probablement."

"There's only leftovers at home, let's eat at the restaurant instead." "I haven't spoken English for a while, I only remember leftover grammar." "My grandmother is uncomfortable when she hears German, probably some leftovers of the occupation."

syn

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French France

gros

Word USED Very frequently BY Some People

(n.) • (fat) • Similar to the French words mec (M.) and meuf (F.), this pair, gros and grosse, mean dude. It's very informal, it can only be used with friends, and the literal meaning, fat, is not relevant at all here.

"Salut gros, ça fait longtemps ! Ça va toi?" "bah ouais grosse ! J'étais en vacances dans le sud et toi?"

"Hi fat, it's been a while! How are you doing?" "yeah fat ! I was in the south for the holiday and you?"

French France

tilter

Slang USED Frequently BY Everyone

To understand or to realise.

"J'avais jamais tilté que les chats marchaient sur leurs orteils !"

"I had never realised that cats walk on their toes!"

French France

comme cul et chemise

Expression USED On Occasion BY Some People

(like ass and shirt) • This expression is a metaphor used to describe friendships, « special » bonds people have.

"Aujourd’hui, il ne s’entendent plus. Mais fut un temps, ils étaient comme cul et chemise."

"Today, they don’t get along anymore. But at some point, they were like ass and shirt."

French France

je m'en bats les couilles

Expression USED Very frequently BY French people

(I beat my testicles with it) • I don't care.

"As-tu vu le nouveau film des Avengers?" "Franchement, je m'en bats les couilles!"

"Did you see the new Avengers movie?" "Frankly, I beat my testicles with it!"

French France

faire des pieds et des mains

Expression USED On Occasion BY Everyone

(to make feet and hands) • Make incredible efforts to achieve or get something

"Le concert était plein mais il a fait des pieds et des mains pour nous avoir des places !"

"The gig was fully booked but he made feet and hands to get us tickets!"

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French France

cassos

Slang USED Frequently BY Everyone

Abbreviation of "cas social" (social case), which originally is a term for people who have high financial and social difficulties. It is now used to refer to someone who is believed to have such difficulties, e.g. someone who os low educated, rude, not smart...

"Y avait une famille de cassos devant moi à la caisse, ils étaient trop chiants !"

"There was a cassos family in front of me at the checkout, they were so annoying!"

French French speaking countries

que dalle

Expression USED Frequently BY Everyone

Nothing at all.

"'Y a que dalle dans le frigo, faut qu'on fasse des courses."

"There's nothing at all in the fridge, we must do the grocery shopping."

Dutch Belgium

frietkot

Word USED Frequently BY Everyone

(noun) • (french fry shed) • This is a place where you would buy french fries, as well as the additional snacks like a gehaktbal or a curryworst.

“Ik ga vanavond naar het frietkot voor een vers pak friet!”

“Tonight I'm going to the french fry shed to get some fresh fries!”

French France

tout ça pour ça

Expression USED Frequently BY Almost Everyone

(all of this for this) • Used when you have put much effort into something and are disappointed of the outcome.

"J'ai révisé toute la semaine pour cet examen et je n'ai eu que 8 !" "Tout ça pour ça !"

"I studied the whole week for this exam and I only got an 8!" "All of this for this!"

Confirmed by 3 people

French France

C'est comme pisser dans un violon.

Expression USED On Occasion BY Some People

(It's like pissing in a violin.) • Used to describe something useless and ineffective, or to complain about not being listened to after asking somebody to do something. Pissing in a violin is ineffective, it won't make a sound.

"Quand je demande à ma fille de ranger ma chambre, c'est comme pisser dans un violon !"

"When I ask my daughter to clean her room, it's like pissing in a violin!"

Confirmed by 3 people

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French Suisse romande, Switzerland

natel

Word USED Frequently BY Almost Everyone

(n.) • A mobile phone.

“J’ai perdu mon natel.”

“I lost my phone.”

Confirmed by 2 people