Le Mot du Jour

avoir beau – Mot du Jour

Part of Mots Du Jour | It’s So French

avoir beau – to have beautiful – is a very French structure.

When followed by an infinitive verb – and often a  ‘quand même’ (still) in the second phrase – it expresses the idea of  ‘despite’, ‘in spite of’, ‘even though’, ‘although’.

* « J’ai beau aimer l’automne, je crains quand même l’arrivée de l’hiver. »

* “Even though I like the fall, I (still) fear the arrival of winter.“

Tenses and modes 

présent : il a beau, nous avons beau

passé composé : il a eu beau, nous avons eu beau

futur : il aura beau, nous aurons beau

 

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avoir beau – practice the expression – Bitesize

Expressions with BEAU and BELLE – Bitesize

 

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under the stars – French expression

Part of Mots Du Jour | Practice French Expressions

à la belle étoile – at the beautiful star. And just like in English, une étoile is a star in the sky and in the movies. In everyday French, à la belle étoile means ‘outside’, ‘out in the open’, ‘under the stars’. This expression is often used with the verb COUCHER, to sleep.

* « Les enfants sont tout contents, car ils vont coucher dans le champ, à la belle étoile. »

* “The children are very happy, for they are going to sleep in the field, under the stars.”

French verbs – Tenses and Modes

présent : nous couchons à la belle étoile

passé composé : nous avons couché à la belle étoile

imparfait : nous couchions à la belle étoile

 

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Cannes Festival Fun Facts – Today’s French

un navet – French expression

un long fleuve tranquille – French expression

Le Festival de Cannes – Course

 

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to sell like hotcakes — French expression

Part of All Levels | Mots du Jour – Daily Practice

What does the French expression ‘ faire un tabac ’ mean? How is it used in a sentence? Listen to Anne’s audio

faire un tabac – to make a tobacco – means to be very successful, to sell like hotcakes.

* « Le bouquin fera un tabac. »

* “The book will sell like hotcakes.”

Tenses and modes

présent : il fait un tabac

imparfait : il faisait un tabac

passé simple : il fit un tabac

Try using this expression at least once today.

Further your French – Allez plus Loin

FAIRE

French Trivia – 1

 

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Bon et Joyeux anniversaire ! – Chansonnette française

Part of All Levels | French Culture

Here is the French song for Happy Birthday.

Bon anniversaire, nos vœux les plus sincères

Que ces quelques fleurs vous apportent le bonheur

Que l’année entière vous soit douce et légère

Et que l’an fini, nous soyons tous réunis

Pour chanter en cœur : Bon Anniversaire !

Happy birthday, our best wishes

We hope that these few flowers bring you happiness

That the whole whole year be sweet and light for you

And that at the end of the year, we are all together

To sing together “Happy Birthday!”

 

Connect and Continue

 

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Further your French – Allez plus Loin

About birthdays in French

heureux comme un roi – French expression

Masculine and Feminine – Quiz

Conjugate Birthday verbs

Comparing in French

joyeux, heureux, content in French

 

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chop-chop — French expression

Part of All Levels | Mots du Jour – Daily Practice

Des élèves d’Anne, il y a longtemps 🙂

dare-dare – dare-dare. In everyday French, dare-dare means chop-chop, in a jiffy, very swiftly.

* « Allez les enfants ! Filez, dare-dare ! »

* “Come on children ! Go away, chop chop.”

Further your French – Allez plus Loin

Dire DIRE – Today’s French

French Trivia – 1

 

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a fender-bender – French expression

Part of French Headaches | Mots du Jour – Daily Practice

un accrochage – a fender-bender in everyday French, un accrochage can also mean the action of hanging something – l’accrochage des tableaux – or a clash between people – l’accrochage entre eux s’est bien terminé.

* « On allait à Paris en voiture et on a eu un petit accrochage. Mais c’est bon, la police est arrivée maintenant. »

* ‘We were driving to Paris by car and we had a fender-bender. But it’s okay, the police are here now.’

 

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Further your French – Allez plus Loin

Singular or Plural ? – Today’s French

About TO DRIVE – Today’s French

 

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just around the corner – French expression

Part of Le Mot du Jour | French Adjectives

à grands pas – at big steps. à grands pas means ‘very quickly’, ‘very soon’, or ‘just around the corner’ to make it metaphorical. à grands pas is often used with ‘arriver’ or ‘approcher’, both -ER verbs.

* « Les vacances arrivent à grands pas. Il faudrait que je boucle tous mes dossiers rapidement si je veux partir du bureau tranquille. »

* “The holidays are just around the corner. I’d have to finish up all my files quickly if I want to leave the office in peace.”

Further your French – Allez plus Loin

Étudier avec les Infos – Blogue 

Place of Adjectives – Today’s French

French Adjectives – The Course

French Verbs – The Course

 

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a twit – French expression

Part of Le Mot du Jour | Thanksgiving

une dinde  – a turkey. Literally, une dinde is ‘a turkey’. And as it’s almost Thanksgiving  in the States, I thought it fun to talk about this bird everyone loves so. In everyday French though, une dinde is a French expression that describes a stupid empty-headed woman. It’s a very sexist and derogatory term.

* « Ce politicien vient de tuer sa carrière en appelant la maire de Lannemarion “une dinde”. »

* ‘This politician just killed his career by calling the mayor of Lannemarion “a twit.’

 

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Merci DE ou Merci POUR – Today’s French

le dindon de la farce – French expression

une citrouille – French word

Merci – a song to learn French with

 

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to be stuck with – French expression

Part of Le Mot du Jour | Thanksgiving

se farcir – itself to stuff. farcir means ‘to stuff’ as in ‘to stuff a bird, a turkey, a goose’ for a holiday meal. In everyday French, when using farcir with pronoun SE, français means ‘to be stuck in an unpleasant situation’, ‘to be stuck with’.

You’ll notice that, as there is a pronoun, it has to be declined as well.

* « Je vais encore me farcir le ménage. Pourquoi c’est toujours moi ? »

* ‘I’m going to be stuck with cleaning the house again. Why always me?’

 

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Object Pronouns Placement – Today’s French

Merci DE ou Merci POUR – Today’s French

le dindon de la farce – French expression

 

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être le dindon de la farce – French expression

Part of Le Mot du Jour | Thanksgiving

être le dindon de la farce – être is to be, un dindon is a Tom turkey and une farce can be either a joke or the stuffing you add to a turkey roast. ‘to be the Tom turkey of the stuffing?’ – être le dindon de la farce means ‘to be fooled’, ‘to be made a fool of’, or ‘to be taken advantage of’.

* « Après tout le boulot que je lui avais fait, j’étais sûre qu’elle allait me donner le poste, et elle l’a donné à sa sœur. J’ai été le dindon de la farce. »

* “ After all the work I had done for her, I was sure she was going to give me the job, and she gave it to her sister. I was really taken advantage of. ”

Further your French – Allez plus Loin

Tenses and modes

présent : je suis le dindon de la farce, nous sommes le dindon de la farce

passé composé : j’ai été le dindon de la farce, nous avons été le dindon de la farce

subjonctif présent: que je sois le dindon de la farce, que nous soyons le dindon de la farce

 

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