français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
---|---|---|---|
le vers | verse | pennill | poz |
le refrain | chorus | corawd | diskan |
le réseau (électrique) | (electricity) grid | rhwydwaith (trydan) | rouedad (tredan) |
la charrette | (horse-drawn) cart | cart; trol | karr |
le cheval de trait | cart horse | ceffyl gwedd/gwaith/cart | kezeg tenn |
metter la charrue avant les bœufs | to put the cart before the horse | rhoi’r cart/drol o flaen y ceffyl | |
se concentrer sur | to concentrate on | canolbwyntio ar | en em dopliñ war |
porter son attention sur | to concentrate one’s attention on | canolbwyntio ar | en em dopliñ war |
la colombe | dove | colomen | koulm |
la pensée latérale | lateral thinking | meddwl ochrol; meddwl wysg eich ochr | soñj gostez (?) |
un vieil ami | an old friend | hen gyfaill | kamarad kozh (?) |
les algues (fpl) | seaweed | gwymon | bezhin |
gaspiller | to squander (money) | gwastraffu; afradu | digalzañ |
gâcher | to squander (chances) | gwastraffu | priennañ |
travail en retard | backlog of work | llwyth o waith yn aros i’w wneud | |
les séquences | footage (filmed material) | ffilm | laziad |
creuser | to dig (a hole) | palu; cloddio | kleuzañ |
bêcher | to dig (the garden) | claddu | palat |
taper (qch à qn) | to scrounge (sth off sb) | begera (rhywbeth gan rywun) | |
mettre l’accent sur qch | to put emphasis on sth | pwyleisio ar rywbeth |
Category: French (français)
Les mots de la semaine
français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
---|---|---|---|
prendre des libertés | to take liberties | bod yn hy[f]; beiddio gwneud rhth | monet / mont re frank ouzh ub |
le devis | quotation (estimate) | pris | rakpriz |
la citation | quotation (from book) | dyfynnu | arroudenn |
les guillemets (m) | quotation marks | dyfynodau | klochedigoù |
les arrhes (m) | deposit (refundable) | blaendal (ad-daladwy) | arrez |
l’acompte (m) | deposit (non refundable) | blaendal (di-ad-daladwy) | rannbae |
hors taxes; exempté de douane | duty-free | di-doll; tollrydd | pep taos er-maez |
le chargement | load (things carried) | llwyth | fard |
il pleuviote | it’s spitting (with rain) | mae hi’n pigo bwrw / taflu dafnau | pleuvasser a ra |
la bruine; le crachin | drizzle | glaw mân; gwlithlaw; manlaw; brithlaw | ailhenn |
éthique; moral | ethical | ethic | buhezegezh; divezel |
Archerien
An interesting word that came up in my Breton lesson today is archerien, which means police. It caught my attention because it has no obvious connection to the word police, and because it is completely different to the equivalent words in other Celtic languages:
– Welsh: heddlu (“peace force”)
– Cornish: kreslu (“peace host”)
– Irish: gardaí (síochána) (“guards of peace”); póilíní
– Manx: meoiryn shee (“peace keepers/stewards”); poleenyn
– Scottish Gaelic: poileas
The English word police comes from the French police (public order, administration, government), from the Latin polītīa (state, government), from the Greek πολιτεία (politeia – citizenship, government, administration, constitution). It is shares the same root as policy, politics, politician and various other words [source].
Many languages use variants on the word police, e.g. Politsei (Estonian), პოლიცია (polits’ia – Georgian), Polizei (German), पुलिस (pulis – Hindi), پلیس (pulis – Persian), Booliis (Somalia), Policía (Spanish), Pulis (Tagalog), but some do their own thing:
– Bavarian: Kibara
– Chinese: 警察 (jǐngchá); 公安 (gōng’ān)
– Faroese: Løgregla
– Greek: Αστυνομία (Astynomía)
– Hungarian: Rendőrség
– Icelandic: Lögregla
– Japanese: 警察 (keisatsu)
– Korean: 警察 (gyeongchal)
– Thai: ตำรวจ (tảrwc)
Are there other examples of languages with a word unrelated to police for police?
Les mots de la semaine
français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
---|---|---|---|
imperméable | waterproof | diddosi | didreuz |
barboter; faire trempette | to paddle (in water) | slotian; padlo; ffritian | bourbouilhañ |
pagayer | to paddle (a kayak/canoe) | rhwyfo; padlo | roeñvat |
la pataugeoire | paddling pool | pwll padlo | poullig patouilhañ |
patauger | to wade/splash about; flounder | sblasio; fflatsio; slotian; ymdrochi | papouilhat |
décrocher | to go cold turkey | gwneud triniaeth croen gwydd | diskregiñ |
tailler | to sharpen (pencil) | rhoi/gwneud blaen (ar bensel); hogi, miniogi | krennañ |
le taille-crayon | pencil sharpener | peth gwneud min/awch ar bensel | beger-kreionoù |
aiguiser | to sharpen (blade/appetite) | hogi; rhoi min ar | lemmañ |
le coquelicot | poppy (wild) | llygad y cythraul; llygad y bwgan; bochgoch | roz-aer |
le pavot | poppy (cultivated) | pabi | roz-moc’h |
les soins intensifs (m) | intensive care | gofal arbennig; gofal dwys | prederioù askoridik |
les menottes (f) | handcuffs | gefynnau (llaw) | kefioù-dorn; grizilhonoù |
menotter | to handcuff | gefynnu; rhoi gefynnau (ar) | grizilhonañ |
avoir les menottes aux poignets | to be handcuffed | bod mewn gefynnau |
Tag questions, innit!
Tag questions or question tags are interrogative fragments (tags) added to statements making them into sort of questions. They tend to be used more in colloquial speech and informal writing than in formal writing, and can indicate politeness, emphasis, irony, confidence or lack of it, and uncertainty. Some are rhetorical and an answer is not expected, others invite a response.
In English they come in various forms, for example:
– I like coconut, don’t I?
– You’re tall, aren’t you?
– He’s handsome, isn’t he?
– She said she’d be here, didn’t she?
– It’ll rain tomorrow, won’t it?
– We were away, weren’t we?
– You’d gone, hadn’t you?
– They’ll be there, won’t they?
A simpler tag question used is some varieties of English in innit, a contraction of isn’t it, which could be used for all the examples above. Other English tags include right? and eh? – do you use any others?
Tag questions in Celtic languages can also have quite complex forms which depend on the verb and the subject in the main clause, particularly in Welsh.
Manx
– T’eh braew jiu, nagh vel? (It’s fine today, isn’t it?)
– Hie ad dys y thie oast riyr, nagh jagh? (They went to the pub last night, didn’t they?)
– Bee oo goll magh mairagh, nagh bee? (You’ll go out tomorrow, won’t you?)
Irish
– Tá sé go breá inniu, nach bhfuil? (It’s fine today, isn’t it?)
– Chuaigh siad go dtí an teach tábhairne aréir, nagh ndeachaigh? (They went to the pub last night, didn’t they?)
– Beidh tú ag dul amach amárach, nach bheidh? (You’ll go out tomorrow, won’t you?)
Scottish Gaelic
– Tha i brèagha an diugh, nach eil? (It’s fine today, isn’t it?)
– Chaidh iad dhan taigh-òsta an-raoir, nagh deach? (They went to the pub last night, didn’t they?)
– Bidh thu a’ dol a-mach a-màireach, nach bi? (You’ll go out tomorrow, won’t you?)
Welsh
– Mae’n braf heddiw, on’d ydy? (It’s fine today, isn’t it?)
– Mi aethon nhw nhw’n mynd i’r dafarn neithiwr, on’d wnaethon? (They went to the pub last night, didn’t they?)
– Fyddet ti’n mynd allan yfory, on’ fyddet? (You’ll go out tomorrow, won’t you?)
I’m not sure about how tag questions work in Breton and Cornish.
In other languages things can be simpler:
– Czech: že?
– French: n’est-ce pas? non?
– German: nicht wahr? nicht? oder?
– Italian: no? vero? (positive), non è vero? (negative)
– Polish: prawda? (positive), nieprawdaż? (negative)
– Russian: да? (da?)
– Spanish: ¿no? ¿verdad?
Can you provide other examples?
Les mots de la semaine
français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
---|---|---|---|
la cuisinière | cooker | cwcer; popty; ffwrn | keginerez; fornigell |
la cusinère à gaz; la gazinière | gas cooker | popty/ffwrn nwy | keginerez dre c’haz |
la cuisinère électrique; le four électrique | electric cooker | popty trydan; ffwrn drydan | keginerez-tredan |
l’autocuiseur (m) | pressure cooker | sosban bwysedd/frys | primgaoter |
le panneau solaire | solar panel | panel haul | panell-heol |
le panneau photovoltaïque | photovoltaic (PV) panel | panel ffotofoltäig/ffotofoltaidd | panell-fotovoltaek |
la courbe | curve | cromlin | krommenn |
courbe; arrondi | curved | crwm; crom | kromm |
l’accordéon (m) | accordion | acordion; cordion | akordeoñs |
l’accordéon à touches | piano accordion | piano-acordion | akordeoñs piano |
le concertina | concertina | consertina | koñsertina |
Les mots de la semaine
français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
---|---|---|---|
le macadam (goudronné) | tarmac | tarmac | makadam |
goudronner | to tarmac/asphalt | tarmacio; coltario | koultronañ |
les bons et les méchants | goodies and baddies | dynion da a dynion drwg | an tud vat hag an tud fall |
un sachet de petits cadeaux | a little bag of goodies | bag bach o dda-da | |
[petit sac pour emporter les restes après un repas au restaurant] | doggie/doggy bag | bag sborion | |
clair comme de l’encre | as clear as mud | annealladwy; fel tatws llaeth | |
clair comme le cristal / comme de l’eau de roche | as clear as day/crystal | mor olau a’r dydd; clir fel grisial | |
le champ de foire | fairground | cae ffair | marc’hallac’h |
le typhon; l’ouragan | typhoon | gyrwynt; corwynt; teiffŵn | tifon |
la monnaie; la devise | currency | arian (treigl/cyfredol) | moneiz; teulenn |
les devises étrangères | foreign currency | arian tramor | moneiz estren (?) |
Les mots de la semaine
français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
---|---|---|---|
le linge | laundry (clothes) | dillad golchi; y golch | lien |
la blanchisserie | laundry (shop, place) | golchdy | gwennerezh; kannerezh |
la laverie (automatique) | laundrette | laundrette | gwalc’herezh; kanndi |
la guérison | curing, healing, recovery | iachau; iachâd | pare; gwelladeg |
la gueule de bois | hangover | pen mawr/clwc; salwch bore drannoeth; salwch ar ôl y ffair | poan vlev |
joindre les deux bouts | to make ends meet | cael deu ben llinyn ynghyd | |
avoir beaucoup de mal à joindre les deux bouts; tirer le diable par la queue | to stuggle to make ends meet | cael yn anodd i gael dau ben llinyn ynghyd | |
l’influence (f) de l’entourage; pression exercée par les autres | peer pressure | pwysau cyfoedion | |
le loup de mer | old seadog; sea bass | hen forwr; ysbinbysg y môr | bleiz mor; ki mor |
farcir | to stuff (food) | llenwi; stwffio | farsañ |
le fenouil | fennel | ffenigl; ffunell | fanouilh |
malveillant | evil (person) | drwg; drygionus; dihiryn | maliset |
branlant | wobbly (chair/table) | sigledig; siglog; woblog | brall; divrall |
tremblant | wobbly (voice/jelly) | crynedig | krenedik |
avoir les jambes flageolantes | to feel wobbly | teimlo yn sigledig / siglog / woblog | sentet trabidellus |
Je ne te reproche pas | I don’t blame you | ni welaf i ddim bai arnat ti | |
une motte de gazon | sod; piece of turf | darn o dywarchen | moudenn leton |
brouter | to graze (on grass) | pori | peuriñ |
mouchard | grass (informer) | prepiwr; hen brep; clep; clepgi | to(u)pin |
donner qn | to grass on sb | prepian am/ar rywun | kelaouiñ da unan bennak |
la flottabilité | buoyancy | hynofedd | flotuster |
La gueule de bois
This week I discovered that in French a hangover is une gueule de bois (“a wooden mouth”), which seems quite a good description of the condition.
In my thesaurus word for hangover in English include after-effects, katzenjammer, morning after, and the morning after the night before. Do you have any others?
I’ve heard of katzenjammer before, but not in this context – to me it’s the name of a band from Norway. Katzenjammer comes from German and means “cats’ wailing”, and according to the Free Dictionary, it means a confused uproar or a hangover, mainly in US English.
Welsh words for hangover include pen mawr (big head); pen clwc (addled head), salwch bore drannoeth (illness of the following morning) and salwch ar ôl y ffair (illness after the fair).
Since I gave up drinking about 11 years ago I haven’t suffered from a wooden mouth, an addled head or a cats’ wailing, and one reason why I gave up was because I didn’t enjoy such afflictions.
Everything but the kitchen sink
The phrase ‘everything but the kitchen sink’ indicates many things or almost everything, as in ‘I took everything but the kitchen sink with me on holiday. The OED gives the earliest use of the phrase in writing as 1965. The kitchen sink part of the phrase apparently comes from army slang and appears in Partridge’s 1948 Dictionary of Forces’ Slang as “Kitchen sink, used only in the phrase indicating intense bombardment ‘They chucked everything they’d got at us except, or including, the kitchen sink.’”
According to Know Your Phrase, however, it appeared in The Syracuse Herald, an New York newspaper in 1918 in the following sentence.
“I have I shall rather enjoy the experience, though the stitlons are full of people trying to get out and the streets blocked with perambulators, bird cages and ‘everything but the kitchen sink.'”
I discovered yesterday that the French equivalent is ‘tout sauf les murs‘ (everything but the walls), as in j’ai tout emporté sauf les murs = I took everything but the walls.
In Welsh the equivalents are popeth dan haul (everything under the sun) and eich holl drugareddau (your whole bric-a-brac).
Are there equivalent idioms in other languages?