Ask M. White for help with French translation

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It's not said in French.

― M. White (Miguelito), Thursday, 10 November 2005 18:25 (eighteen years ago) link

Zing!

― giboyeux (skowly), Thursday, 10 November 2005 18:30 (eighteen years ago) link

I think it's been re-verlanise de qq sorte, but don't know for sure 'Rebeu', non?

― M. White (Miguelito), Thursday, 10 November 2005 18:32 (eighteen years ago) link

"Ciel mon mari! Vite, cache-toi!"- what does it mean? Please send translation help pronto.

― kovacs laszlo (Ken L), Thursday, 10 November 2005 18:40 (eighteen years ago) link

Ça veut dire que qqn est cocu.

― M. White (Miguelito), Thursday, 10 November 2005 18:51 (eighteen years ago) link

Thanks. Wonder when I can leave this closet?

― kovacs laszlo (Ken L), Thursday, 10 November 2005 19:00 (eighteen years ago) link

I think you just outed yourself, Ken.

― M. White (Miguelito), Thursday, 10 November 2005 19:06 (eighteen years ago) link

If you must address me by my prénom, Michael, please to take it from my screen name.

― kovacs laszlo (Ken L), Thursday, 10 November 2005 19:09 (eighteen years ago) link

You're not related to Victor, are you?

― M. White (Miguelito), Thursday, 10 November 2005 19:17 (eighteen years ago) link

Non, in Hungary, Kovacs are a dime a dozen.

― kovacs laszlo (Ken L), Thursday, 10 November 2005 19:40 (eighteen years ago) link

So, about 21 Forints then...

― M. White (Miguelito), Thursday, 10 November 2005 20:46 (eighteen years ago) link

http://www.bvdp.de/files/positionen-studien/images/Laszlo_Kovacs_EU-Kommissar_200x313.jpg

c'est toi?

― Baaderonixx ménage ses forces dans l'attente du Grand Soir (baaderonixx), Friday, 11 November 2005 09:07 (eighteen years ago) link

Ça me paraît peu probable.

― M. White (Miguelito), Friday, 11 November 2005 15:02 (eighteen years ago) link

No, but in fact there is another Laszlo Kovacs here on ILX- after all, it is in fact a common name- perhaps that is an image of him.

― kovacs laszlo (Ken L), Sunday, 13 November 2005 01:02 (eighteen years ago) link

please give me a hand in understanding why edith cressons carp about the stockmarket- "la borse, j'en ai rien a cirer"- is so funny and well remembered. is it true that she's remembered as a sort of mrs. malaprop ?

― m bott, Sunday, 13 November 2005 01:34 (eighteen years ago) link

― m bott, Sunday, 13 November 2005 01:35 (eighteen years ago) link

I think it's because "rien à cirer" is a slangy expression thought to be a bit too vulgar for a prime minister. It'd be like if Tony Blair said at a press conference: "I couldn't give two craps about the stock exchange."

― jz, Monday, 14 November 2005 09:22 (eighteen years ago) link

It's also a spectacularly stupid thing for a modern prime minister to say.

― M. White (Miguelito), Monday, 14 November 2005 16:56 (eighteen years ago) link

obviously. just like her comparison of the japanese to 'fourmi', and allegation that most english men are gay.

― m bott, Monday, 14 November 2005 19:05 (eighteen years ago) link

"nothing to wax"? it's impossible to even determine the anecdotal origin of such a thing.. my favorite of these inscrutable french sayings is if you want somebody to understand you've got more important things to do you say you have "other cats to whip" -- ????

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Monday, 14 November 2005 19:23 (eighteen years ago) link

to correct myself- 'des fourmis'

― m. m bott, Monday, 14 November 2005 19:51 (eighteen years ago) link

les formis croondent.

― Mädchen (Madchen), Monday, 14 November 2005 21:04 (eighteen years ago) link

Quoi sur les fourmis?

(T'ai-je dis, aujourd'hui, combien tu es jolie?) ;-)

― M. White (Miguelito), Monday, 14 November 2005 21:33 (eighteen years ago) link

*quietly inserts the letter u* bah bah

― Mädchen (Madchen), Monday, 14 November 2005 21:36 (eighteen years ago) link

bonsoir ma puce!

― Mädchen (Madchen), Monday, 14 November 2005 21:37 (eighteen years ago) link

ILX a d'autres chats à fouetter

― Baaderonixx ménage ses forces dans l'attente du Grand Soir (baaderonixx), Tuesday, 15 November 2005 08:45 (eighteen years ago) link

I think the "chat" of that expression refers not to the animal but to the "chat-aux-neuf-queues".

― jz, Tuesday, 15 November 2005 09:21 (eighteen years ago) link

c'est à dire?

― Baaderonixx ménage ses forces dans l'attente du Grand Soir (baaderonixx), Tuesday, 15 November 2005 09:38 (eighteen years ago) link

C'est à dire que le chat-aux-neuf-queues était une sorte de fouet utilisé pour punir les marins à bord des bateaux de la marine du 18ème siècle.

― jz, Tuesday, 15 November 2005 09:55 (eighteen years ago) link

Cat o' nine tails? I doubt it, jz.

― M. White (Miguelito), Tuesday, 15 November 2005 18:41 (eighteen years ago) link

également utilisé par les libertins dans des romans du 18ème siècle..

I think I still have a dictionary somewhere that would explain these sorts of expressions, je vais effectuer une recherche. cela m'intrigue quoi.

― dar1a g (daria g), Tuesday, 15 November 2005 18:55 (eighteen years ago) link

Couquine, va.

― M. White (Miguelito), Tuesday, 15 November 2005 18:56 (eighteen years ago) link

Or 'coquine', as you prefer.

― M. White (Miguelito), Tuesday, 15 November 2005 18:57 (eighteen years ago) link

one month passes...

Dear M. White,

At Le Loir dans la Théière in the Marais recently, I read a quote at the bottom of a poster promoting some theatrical production that referred to it as a "chassé-croisé des actrices" and my partner in crime could not, for the life of her, find even a suitable explanation in English for this phrase, though she knew very well what it meant to her. Can you?

Gratefully yours,

Traceur Main

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 16:39 (eighteen years ago) link

I don't think you'll find a concise equivalent but it can describe the pattern of characters coming and going and narrowly missing each other. I guess a loose translation would be "criss-cross".

― Baaderonixx born in Xyxax (baaderonixx), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 16:50 (eighteen years ago) link

My dictionary has chassé-croisé translated as a 'continual coming and going'.

― M. White (Miguelito), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 16:53 (eighteen years ago) link

J'ne profite pour souhaiter une très bonne année à notre petite communauté francophone de ILX!

― Baaderonixx born in Xyxax (baaderonixx), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 17:02 (eighteen years ago) link

Cest gentil, baaderonixx. A toi, aussi.

― M. White (Miguelito), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 17:08 (eighteen years ago) link

Geniale!

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 17:23 (eighteen years ago) link

Bonjour à tous. Je vous souhaite mes meilleurs voeux de bonheur pour la nouvelle année 2006.

― Redd Harvest (Ken L), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 17:38 (eighteen years ago) link

c'est beau ca ! joyeux noel et bonne annee a tous et a toutes.

― dar1a g (daria g), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 18:02 (eighteen years ago) link

Le grand courage, c’est encore de tenir les yeux
ouverts sur la lumière comme sur la mort. -Camus

Does this mean something like "the greatest courage is to look at life as clearly as we look at death"? That seems to be counter-intuitive, since moste people don't look at death very clearly.

― Bnad (Bnad), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 18:05 (eighteen years ago) link

salut

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 18:06 (eighteen years ago) link

I've been trying to think of slangy, possibly outdated, possibly derogatory, French words for "child." So far I got these:

môme
gosse
rejeton

What am I missing?

― Redd Harvest (Ken L), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 21:10 (eighteen years ago) link

marmot
mioche
morveux

― M. White (Miguelito), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 21:41 (eighteen years ago) link

bambin

― M. White (Miguelito), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 21:44 (eighteen years ago) link

Bnad: lumière = light, not life?

― StanM (StanM), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 21:45 (eighteen years ago) link

Light but also understanding or reason.

Note that the Enlightenment was how the English translated the French expression L'Age des Lumières.

― M. White (Miguelito), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 21:54 (eighteen years ago) link

I thought L'Age des Lumières started in 1895?

― Redd Harvest (Ken L), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 21:55 (eighteen years ago) link

Gros malin, va.

― M. White (Miguelito), Wednesday, 4 January 2006 21:58 (eighteen years ago) link

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