French Word of the Day March 2003

Sent: Monday, March 31, 2003 8:59 AM

Entraver = to hinder, to obstruct. Also, slang for "understand"

E.g. entrave à la justice = obstruction of justice

j'entrave que dalle = I don't understand anything (slang).

Sent: Friday, March 28, 2003 8:22 AM

And now we put the pieces together:

A force d'user les mots

Sur toutes les portes closes

Je me suis acheté un sourire

En forme de mépris […]

Alors je monte le son

Alors je monte le son

Et je m'isole

Je cherche quelque chose

Qui raisonne

Aston Villa -- Raisonne

Sent: Thursday, March 27, 2003 9:14 AM

résonner = to resound, to echo

Not to be confused with:

raisonner = to reason with, to rationalize, to think carefully

E.g. la cloche résonne = the bell resounds

Raisonner avant d'agir = to think carefully before acting

Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2003 8:54 AM

rire = to laugh

sourire = to smile

(le) mépris = contempt

Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 2003 9:21 AM

User = to use, or to wear out

E.g.: il a usé de diplomacie = he was diplomatic

User sa santé = to ruin one's health

Il s'use au travail = he wears himself out with overwork

Sent: Monday, March 24, 2003 9:15 AM

(le) son = sound

E.g. Monter le son = to turn the volume up

Acheter du son = to buy music, in the parlance of our times.

Sent: Friday, March 21, 2003 9:58 AM

(une) porte = a door

Expressions using "porte":

Prendre la porte = to leave (literally: to take the door)

Entrer par la petite/grande porte = to start at the bottom/top (literally: to enter by the small/large door)

Enfoncer une porte ouverte = to state the obvious (literally: to knock down an open door)

Il faut qu'une porte soit ouverte ou fermée = you've got to decide one way or the other (literally: a door has to be either open or closed)

Sent: Thursday, March 20, 2003 9:34 AM

(un) oxymoron or oxymore = an oxymoron

E.g. "Cette obscure clarté qui tombe des étoiles" = "This dark light that falls from the stars" (Corneille - Le Cid)

Sent: Wednesday, March 19, 2003 10:24 AM

(la) joie de vivre = joie de vivre

(la) paresse = laziness

E.g. je suis paresseux = I am lazy

Sent: Tuesday, March 18, 2003 9:08 AM

Idem = ditto

E.g. "Et toi? Idem!"

Sent: Monday, March 17, 2003 9:10 AM

Mordoré(e) = golden brown

E.g. la lune mordorée = the golden-brown moon

Sent: Friday, March 14, 2003 9:39 AM

N'importe quoi = nonsense, rubbish

E.g. tu dis n'importe quoi = you don't know what you're talking about

C'est n'importe quoi ! = this is nonsense !

Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2003 8:43 AM

(une) tapenade = well, tapenade. Mashed olives with olive oil and herbs, sometimes anchovies, great for dipping.

And some interesting reading:

http://www.bbspot.com/News/2003/03/liberty.html

Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2003 9:29 AM

Inopiné(e) = unexpected

E.g. un contrôle inopiné = a surprise (police, customs, etc) check

Sent: Tuesday, March 11, 2003 9:13 AM

Parler Français comme une vache Espagnole = "to speak French like a Spanish cow", i.e. not to speak French very well.

Sent: Monday, March 10, 2003 9:49 AM

One more synonym for "drunk" that I left out last time: torché

Sent: Friday, March 07, 2003 9:08 AM

(une) pomme = an apple

(une) pomme de terre = a potato

Pommes de terre frites = French Fries. Aka "Pommes frites" or simply "Frites"

Sent: Thursday, March 06, 2003 9:08 AM

(un) attrape-nigaud = a con, a trick. Literally: a moron-catcher. A vulgar synonym: (un) attrape-couillon

Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2003 1:33 PM

(un) service = a service

:-|

Sent: Tuesday, March 04, 2003 8:36 AM

(la) décrépitude = decay / degeneration

E.g. tomber en décrépitude = to crumble, to degenerate

Sent: Monday, March 03, 2003 9:43 AM

(une) raison = reason / cause

E.g. J'ai raison = I am right

Perdre la raison = to lose one's mind

Il n'a aucune raison de s'énerver = he has no reason to be mad