[ba ba kul]

(informal) - hippy 

Même en 2001, il y a toujours des baba cools - Even in 2001, there are still some hippies.

Baba cool is synonymous with "baba," but the latter has some other meanings as well.

[ba ga ray]

(informal) to fight, clash, argue

Je déteste bagarrer - I hate fighting.

Mes parents ont bagarré pendant des heures - My parents argued for hours.

Related: la bagarre - a fight, fighting; bagarreur (adj) - aggressive

[ba nyuhl]

(informal) - car

J'ai dû vendre ma bagnole - I had to sell my wheels.

Tiens cette vielle bagnole ! - Look at that old banger!

[ba u]

sideboard

Sophie range la vaisselle dans le bahut - Sophie stores the china in the sideboard.

(informal) - school, taxi, truck

Alain a été viré du bahut - Alain was expelled from school.

Je vais prendre un bahut - I'm going to take a taxi.

[beh zay]

to kiss

Les hommes ne baisent plus les mains des femmes. - Men don't kiss women's hands any more.

Note: Baiser is also a vulgar slang term, depending on the context. In the above sentence, it is obvious that baiser means kiss. In a sentence like Il m'a baisée of course the listener would hear "He f...ed me." Basically, if you have any doubts, find another verb for kiss, like embrasser.

(vulgar slang) - to outdo, to be had; to have sex

Il s'est fait baiser - He was really had/outdone.

Related: un baiser - kiss; le baisement - kissing (e.g., the Pope's hand)

[bal]

(fem, inf) ~ money, euros, bucks

Je gagne 100 balles par heure - I make 100 bucks an hour.

Related: une balle - bullet, ball

[ba(n) da(n)]

(familiar adj) - sexy, interesting

Elle est vachement bandante ! - She is really sexy!

Ce film n'est pas très bandant - This movie isn't that interesting.

Related word: bander (familiar) - to have an erection; (normal register) to bandage, stretch, tense

[ba(n)d]

band, strip, bandage, line, group (of people or animals)

Il y a des bandes de tissus partout - There are strips of fabric everywhere.

Attention aux bandes sur la chaussée ! - Pay attention to the stripes on the road!

J'aime la bande "Menudo". - I like the group "Menudo."

(informal) bunch of, pack of

C'est une bande d'idiots ! - It's / They're a bunch of idiots!

Related words: un bandeau - headband, blindfold

[ba rak]

shed, hut, stand, stall

Tu peux mettre les pelles dans la baraque. - You can put the shovels in the shed.

J'ai loué une baraque à la foire - I rented a stand at the fair.

(informal) - shack, digs, dump

Quelle baraque ! - What a dump!

baraqué (inf adj) - well-built, hefty; un baraquement - group of huts, military camp

[ba ra ta(n)]

Il me fait du baratin - He's sweet-talking me.

Assez de baratin ! - Cut the chatter!

Related words: baratiner - to chat someone up, sweet-talk someone; un baratineur - smooth talker, windbag

Learn some 'baratin' and love language at http://french.about.com/library/begin/bl_love.htm

[ba var day]

J'aime bien bavarder avec mes amis - I really like to chat with my friends.

Related words: bavard/e (adj) - talkative, long-winded, (noun) - chatterbox, prattler; le bavardage - chattering, talking, gossiping

The À la française chatroom is the best place to bavarder: http://french.about.com/mpchat.htm

[bof]

(familiar, short for beau-frère) - brother-in-law; small-minded/petty person

Mon beauf est un de mes meilleurs copains. - My bro-in-law* is one of my best buddies

* I know it sounds funny; I'm just trying to get the flavor of "beauf" across.

Cette ville est pleine de beaufs ! - This town is full of small-minded people!

[bay ga(n)]

Michel a le béguin pour Dominique - Michael has a crush on Dominique.

Elle a le béguin pour cette maison - She took a fancy to this house.

Learn more informal language: http://french.about.com/od/slang

[berk]

(informal exclamation) - yuck!

Je lui ai dit qu'on va manger chez tante Linda et il a répondu « Berk ! » - I told him that we were going to eat at Aunt Linda's and he said "Yuck!"

C'est dégoutant, ça. Berk ! - That is disgusting, Yuck!

[bee shay]

Elisabeth biche parce qu'elle a réussi à l'examen. - Elisabeth is pleased with herself because she passed the test.

Related expression: Ca biche ? - How's life?

Learn scores of French expressions and proverbs at http://french.about.com/library/express/blexpres.htm

(informal, even slang) - village, dump, godforsaken place

C'est un bled ! - It's a dump!

Mes parents habitent dans un bled - My parents live in the middle of nowhere.

Le « bled » veut dire la ville en arabe marocain - "Bled" means town in Moroccan Arabic.

[blu fay]

(informal) - to bluff, try it on, fool

En jouant au poker, il faut savoir bluffer - When you play poker, you have to know how to bluff.

Il m'a bluffé ! - He fooled me!

Related words: un bluff - bluff, bluffing; un bluffeur - bluffer

[bo bo]

(informal, baby language) - boo boo, owie, wound

Maman, j'ai un bobo ! - Mama, I have a boo boo.

Bobo is also an abbreviation for "un bourgeois-bohème," but this term is becoming obsolete.

[buh buhn]

(inf, somewhat archaic - used in jest) - missus, dearie

Il est sorti avec sa bobonne - He went out with his woman.

-Tu viens ?
- Oui bobonne.

-Are you coming?
-Yes dear.

[bwat]

box, can

J'ai acheté du thon en boîte - I bought some canned tuna.

(informal) - nightclub

Sortir en boîte ce soir ! - Let's go to a club tonight!

Related: boiter - to limp; le boitement - limping; boiteux (ad) - lame, shaky; un boîtier - case

[buhr del]

(familiar) - mess, chaos (literally, bordel refers to a brothel)

Quel bordel ! - What a stinking mess! What a shambles!

Ça va être le bordel ! - It'll be chaos !

Expressions: mettre/foutre le bordel - to create havoc; mettre/foutre le bordel dans qqch - to screw/bugger something up; bordel de merde (vulgar expression used for emphasis) - for God's sake, goddamnit

[buh say]

(inf) - to work, slog/slave away

Il faut bosser ! - Time to work! Get back to work!

J'ai vraiment bossé pour cet examen - I really slaved away (studying) for this test.

Related: bosseur (adj) - hard working; un bosseur - hard worker

[bu shay]

(verb) - to cork, plug, block

N'oublie pas de boucher le vin - Don't forget to (re)cork the wine bottle.

J'ai le nez bouché - My nose is plugged up.

(familiar) Ca lui en a bouché un coin - He was gobsmacked/flabbergasted.

un boucher - butcher (person)

Related words: la boucherie - butcher (shop); un bouche-trou - stop-gap; un bouchon - cork, stopper

[bu fay]

Elle a les cheveux bouffés - She has full hair.

Ne bouffe pas ! - Don't gobble your food!

Related words: la bouffe (familiar) - grub; une bouffée - whiff, puff, outburst, gust; la bouffetance (familiar) - grub; un bouffeur (familiar) - greedy pig; bouffir - to puff up, become bloated

If you 'bouffe' too much, you'll need to do some exercise: http://french.about.com/cs/sports/index.htm

[bu lo]

(informal) - work, the daily grind

J'aime bien mon boulot - I really like my job.

Au boulot ! - Get to work!

Related: boulot (adj) - chubby, tubby (usually refers to women); boulotter (informal) - to eat, nosh, chow down

[bum]

(exclamation) - Boom!, Bang!

(masc noun) - bang, tremendous success

Nous avons entendu un grand boum - We heard a loud bang.

Son article a connu un grand boum - His article was tremendously successful.

(informal fem noun) - party

Allons à la boum ce soir - Let's go to the party tonight.

[bu ka(n)]

(informal) - book

Je n'aime pas du tout ce bouquin. - I don't like this book at all.

Related words: un/e bouquinniste - used bookseller, bouquiner - to read

[bu ray]

(adj) - stuffed, packed

Mon sac est bourré de vêtements - My bag is stuffed with clothes.

Il est bourré de problèmes - He always has problems.

(familiar) - drunk, plastered

Related word: bourrer - to stuff, fill

[bu reek]

(informal) - blockhead, pigheaded person

Quelle bourrique ! - What a pigheaded person!

normal register - donkey

Tu es têtu comme une bourrique - You're as stubborn as a donkey!

[bu stee fahy]

Le frigo est plein de boustifaille - The fridge is full of grub.

Learn more familiar French: http://french.about.com/od/slang

[bra(n) lay]

to shake, waggle; to be shaky, loose, unsteady

Il a branlé sa tête - He shook his head.

Cet immeuble branle quand il fait du vent - This building shakes when it's windy.

Slang expressions: Qu'est-ce qu'ils branlent ? - What the hell are they up to?; Il n'en branle pas une - He doesn't do a damn thing; Je m'en branle - I don't give a damn; (vulgar slang) - to masturbate

[bru tay]

Les vaches broutent l'herbe pendant tout l'été. - Cows graze on grass all summer.

Il nous les broute ! - He's a pain in the neck!

Related words: le broutement - grazing, nibbling; le broutage - grazing, nibbling; un broutard - grass-fed calf

Trouble with French verbs? You should "brouter" my lessons: http://french.about.com/cs/verbs

[bu shay]

Les étudiants doivent bûcher chaque nuit. - Students need to slog away (at their homework) every night.

Il faut bûcher ces arbres avant de construire le garage. - We have to fell these trees before building the garage.

Related words: un bûcher - woodshed, pyre; une bûche - log, (slang) clod; un bûcheron - lumberjack, woodcutter; une bûchette - twig; bûcheur (informal adj or noun) - hard-worker, hard-working

You're so "bûcheur" ! Take a break with some French fun: http://french.about.com/cs/funstuff

[bu tay]

to stumble, trip; antagonize; to score a goal in soccer/European football; to prop up

J'ai buté contre tes chaussures - I tripped over your shoes.

Cette décision va buter l'opposition - This decision is going to antagonize the opposition.

familiar - to bump off, kill

Related words: buté (adj) - stubborn, obstinate; une butée - abutment; un buteur - striker (soccer)

Due to the limitations of HTML, I cannot use true phonetic symbols. I tried to be as straightforward as possible, but please refer to this chart to understand my pronunciation symbols. Note that this is only a guide to help you get the most out of the sound file. Please refer to a dictionary for the exact pronunciation.