| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le filet | net | rhwyd | tanavenn |
| le siège (chair, stool, toilet); la place (on bus/train); la selle (bicycle) | seat | sedd | seziz |
| la hache d’arme | battleaxe | bwyell ryfel; cadfwyell | kadvouc’hal |
| le virago | battleaxe (quarrelsome woman) | hen sguthan; hen arthes | oz(h)ac’hwreg |
| le coucou | cuckoo | cwcw; cog | koukoug |
| la pendule à coucou | cuckoo clock | cloc cwcw | |
| le loutre | otter | dyfrgi | dourgi |
| le slip | underpants | trôns; drafers | bragez vihan |
| les caleçons; les longs | longjohns / leggings | trôns llaes; drafers hir | bragoù-dindan |
| le (chapeau) haut-de-forme | top hat | het silc | |
| le (chapeau) melon | bowler hat | het galed; het gron (galed) | tog-meloñs; tok pompad |
| le chapeau mou | trilby | het feddal; het drilbi | |
| le dent; la roue dentée | cog | dant; cocsyn; olwyn ddannedd | rod dantek |
| être un rouage de la machine | to be (only) a cog in a machine | bod neb o bwys yn y drefn | |
| la gargote | greasy spoon, cheap restaurant | bwyty bwyd loddin; bwyty rhad | tarzhell |
| j’ai tout emporté sauf les murs | I’ve packed everything but the kitchen sink | popeth dan haul; eich holl drugareddau | |
| la gouttière | guttering | landeri; landerydd; bargod | kan-dour |
| le jardin d’hiver | conservatory | ty gwydr; ystafell wydr | jardin go(u)añv |
| la croisière | cruise | mordaith; criws | merdeadenn |
| être en maraude | to cruise (for customers, i.e. taxi) |
Category: French (français)
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| la brute; le tyran | bully | bwli | tirant |
| tyraniser; rudoyer; intimider | to bully | gormesu; bwlio | gaiet gante; abafiñ |
| la laisse | lead | tennyn | roll |
| le pont | deck (of ship) | bwrdd | pont |
| la passerelle (de commandement) | bridge (of ship) | pont (lywio) | pontenn |
| l’arête (f) / le dos | bridge (of nose) | cefn | ker |
| le chevalet | bridge (of violin) | pont | pontig |
| quand le chat n’est pas là, les souris dansent | when the cat’s away the mice will play | llon llygod lle ni bo cath |
Korriganed
Korriganed are apparently small creatures that live under standing stones (dolmen/menhirs) in Brittany. They feature in one of the lessons in my Breton course and are explained thus:
“Les korrigans doivent être des êtres particulièrement petits, puisque ce mot est formé de korr, “nain”, puis du diminutif -ig puis du’un autre diminutif – obsolète aujourd’hui – -an. Il s’agit donc de “petits petits nains.”
Or
“The korrigans must be particularly small beings, since the word is formed from corr, “dwarf”, and the diminutive -ig and the another diminutive – now obsolete – -an. So they are “little little dwarfs.”
When I read the explanation in French I saw the word nain and thought it was the Welsh word for grandmother, not realising that is means dwarf or midget in French. So for a while I believed that the Korriganed were tiny grandmothers. Later I realised my mistake and discovered the actual meaning of that word.
According to legend, the Korriganed erected the standing stones in Brittany.
Do you mistake words in one language for words in another at all?
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| se vendre | to sell out | gwerthu rhth i gyd; gwerthu’r cwbl | gwerzhañ holl (?) |
| la sueur | sweat | chwys | c’hwezenn |
| suer; transpirer | to sweat | chwysu | c’hweziñ |
| suer/transpirer comme un boeuf | to sweat like a pig | chwysu fel mochyn/ceffyl | |
| la scène musicale | the music scene | man cerddoriaeth (?) | |
| ouvert aux éléments | open to the elements | agor i’r gwynt a glaw; agor i’r tywydd mawr | |
| le pavé | paving stone | carreg balmant; fflacsen | pavez |
| la gare routière/d’autobus | bus station | gorsaf fysus | gar ar c’hirri-boutin |
Pseudolanguages
One way English speakers play with English is by making into Pig Latin. This involves move the first sound of each word to the end and adding “ay”; for example Pig Latin becomes Ig-pay atin-lay. If a word starts with a vowel you might add hey, way or yay to the end. This creates a sort of pseudolanguage that sounds vaguely like Latin and can be used as a secret code, or just for fun.
I found an article today about language games like this in other languages.
I knew about Pig Latin, though had never played with, and about Verlan in French, but not about the equivalents in other languages. Have you played any of these games? Do you know of any others?
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| avoir une idée en tête; être obnublié par qch | to have a bee in one’s bonnet | chwilen yn dy ben | |
| être imbu(e) de soi-même | to be full of oneself | bod yn llawn ohonat ti dy hunan | |
| imbiber qch de | to soak sth in | gwylchu/mwydo rhwybeth mewn | intrañ; spluiañ; gouzourañ |
| s’imbiber de | to become saturated with | dirlenwi efo/gyda | gouzourañ |
| le noisetier | hazel (tree) | cyll | kelver |
| la dépression; la cuvette | hollow | pant; cafn; ceudod | izelder |
| le tourbillon | whirlpool | trobwll; pwll tro | mordro(l)enn(ad); korvent; troenn-vor |
| le mode de comportement | pattern of behaviour | patrwm ymddygiad | patrom emzalc’h |
| l’élastique (m) | rubber band | band rwber/lastig | stirenn; lastikenn |
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le poney (des îles Shetland) | (Shetland) pony | merlen; merlyn; poni (Shetland) | pone (Shetland) |
| la mouette tridactyle | kittiwake | gwylan goesddu | karaveg |
| l’ornithologue | ornithologist | adaregwr, adaregydd | evnoniour |
| l’orinthologue amateur | bird-watcher; twitcher | gwyliwr adar; sbeciwr ar adar | evnoniour amatour |
| la menuiserie | woodwork (joinery) | gwaith coed | munuzerezh |
| sortir d’un peu partout | to crawl out of the woodwork | ||
| la charpenterie | carpentry | gwaith coed/saer; saernïaeth | frammerezh; kilvizerezh |
| l’ébénisterie (f) | cabinetmaking | gwaith saer | ebenouriezh |
| le cil | eyelash | blewyn amrant; blewyn llygad | (blev) malvenn |
| le sourcil | eye brow | ael | abrant |
| pire | worse | gwaeth | gwashoc’h |
| empirer | to worsen | gwaethygu; mynd yn waeth | gwashañ |
| ne faire que empirer | to get worse and worse | mynd o ddrwg i waeth | gwashoc’h-gwashañ |
| au pire | if the worst comes to the worst | os daw hi i’r pen; ar y gwaethaf | ar gwashañ |
Les mots de le semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le mine (de charbon) | (coal) mine | mwynfa (glofa; pwll glo) | poull-glaou |
| le mine | (explosive) mine | ffrwydryn | min |
| se venger (de qn) | to take one’s revenge (on sb) | dial (ar rywun) | venjiñ |
| ingénieux; astucieux | clever (device, system) | dyfeisgar; medrus | ijinek; barrek |
| à double vitrage | double-glazed | dwbl-wydrog | gweradur doubl |
| le double vitrage | double glazing | ffenestri dwbl; gwydro dwbl | |
| le store | (window) blind | cysgodlen; bleind | rideoz |
| le volet | (window) shutter | caead | stalaf |
| le rideau | curtain | llen; cyrten | rideoz |
| le valeurs mobilières; les titres | stocks and shares | stociau a chyfrannau | teulioù |
| toxicomane; accro | addict | adict | drammgaezhiad |
| l’ardoisière (f) | slate quarry | chwarela llechi | meinglazeg |
| la déesse | goddess | duwies | doueez |
| la lance | spear | gwaywffon | goaf |
| la hanche | hip | clun | lez |
| nier; refuser | to deny | gwadu | nac’hañ |
| creuser; bêcher | to dig | cloddio; palu | kleuzañ; palarat |
Bouder
I learnt a new word in French today: bouder, which means to sulk; to pout; to avoid; to turn one’s nose up at (sth); to refuse to have anything to do with (sb).
Related expressions include:
– boudant = sulking; pouting
– bouder son plaisir = to deny oneself a good thing; to sulk one’s pleasure (never heard this one before – have you?)
– ne pas bouder son plaisir = to enjoy fully; to enjoy without restraint
– se bouder = not to be on speaking terms
– on ne boudera pas = we shall not complain (about); we shall not avoid
It came up in my Breton course – the Breton equivalent is mouzhat – and appears in the sentence, Perak ‘ta, klañv eo pe o vouzhat emañ? (Why? Is she sick or is she sulking?).
The origins of the English words pout and sulk are unknown, according to the OED.
Are there any interesting expressions featuring the equivalents of these words in other languages?
Pantoufler
Yesterday I discovered the interesting French word pantoufler /pɑ̃.tu.fle/, which, according to Reverso means to “switch from civil service to the private sector (French elite jargon, usually to make more money)”.
According to Wikpedia the related word pantouflage refers to high-level French civil servants, usually former students of the École Polytechnique or the École nationale d’administration, going to work in private enterprise. It also applies to politicians doing the same thing. Someone who engages in pantouflage at known as a pantouflard, which is also translated as stay-at-home.
The word pantoufler come from pantoufle (slipper), which combines pan (a piece of cloth) with the suffix -oufle, which denotes mbloated objects and muffled sounds. A pantoufle was originally a cloth shoe [source].
Apparently the term revolving door is used for this practice in the USA.
In Japan this practice is known as 天下り [amakudari] (“descent from paradise or the sky”).
Are there similar expressions and practices in other languages?