French Words and Expressions in English

Quiz

chic   "stylish"
   Chic sounds more chic than "stylish."

cinéma vérité   "cinema truth"
   Unbiased, realistic documentary filmmaking

comme il faut   "as it must"
   The proper way, as it should be

cordon bleu   "blue ribbon"
   Master chef

cordon sanitaire   "sanitary line"
   Quarantine, buffer zone for political or medical reasons.

coup de foudre   "bolt of lightning"
   Love at first sight

coup de grâce   "mercy blow"
   Deathblow, final blow, decisive stroke

coup de main   "stroke of hand"
   Somehow the English meaning (surprise attack) got completely separated from the French (assistance, helping hand).

coup de maître   "master stroke"
   A stroke of genius

coup de théâtre   "stroke of the theater"
   Sudden, unexpected turn of events in a play

coup d'état   "state blow"
   Overthrow of the government

coup d'œil   "stroke of the eye"
   A glance

crème brûlée   "burnt cream"
   Baked custard with carmelized crust

crème caramel   "caramel cream"
   Synonym of flan - custard lined with caramel

crème de cacao   "cream of cacao"
   Chocolate-flavored liqueur

crème de la crème   "cream of the cream"
   Synonymous with the English expression "cream of the crop" - refers to the best of the best.

crème de menthe   "cream of mint"
   Mint-flavored liqueur

crème fraîche   "fresh cream"
   This is a funny term. Despite its meaning, crème fraîche is in fact slightly fermented, thickened cream.

crêpe de Chine   "Chinese crepe"
   Type of silk

cri de cœur   "cry of heart"
   The correct way to say "heartfelt cry" in French is cri du cœur (literally, "cry of the heart")

crime passionnel   "passionate crime"
   Crime of passion

critique   "critical, judgment"
   Critique is an adjective and noun in French, but a noun and verb in English; it refers to a critical review of something or the act of performing such a review.

cuisine   "kitchen, food style"
   In English, cuisine refers only to a particular type of food/cooking, such as French cuisine, Southern cuisine, etc.

cul-de-sac   "bottom (butt) of the bag"
   Dead-end street


debutante   "beginner"
   In French, débutante is the feminine form of débutant - beginner (noun) or beginning (adj). In both languages, it also refers to a young girl making her formal début into society. Interestingly, this usage is not original in French; it was adopted back from English.

décolletage, décolleté   "low neckline, lowered neckline"
   The first is a noun, the second an adjective, but both refer to low necklines on women's clothing.

dégustation   "tasting"
   The French word simply refers to the act of tasting, while in English "degustation" is used for a tasting event or party, as in wine or cheese tasting.

déjà vu   "already seen"
   This is a grammatical structure in French, as in Je l'ai déjà vu=> I've already seen it. It can also disparage a style or technique that has already been done, as in Son style est déjà vu=> His style is not original.
   In English, déjà vu refers to the scientific phenomenon of feeling like you have already seen or done something when you're sure that you haven't: a feeling of déjà vu = une impression de déjà vu.

demimonde   "half world"
   In French, it's hyphenated: demi-monde. In English, there are two meanings:
   1. A marginal or disrespectful group
   2. Prostitutes and/or kept women

demitasse   "half cup"
   In French, it's hyphenated: demi-tasse. Refers to a small cup of espresso or other strong coffee.

démodé   "out of fashion"
   Same meaning in both languages: outmoded, out of fashion

de rigueur   "of rigueur"
   Socially or culturally obligatory

dernier cri   "last cry"
   The newest fashion or trend

de trop   "of too much"
   Excessive, superfluous

Dieu et mon droit   "God and my right"
   Motto of the British monarch

divorcé, divorcée   "divorced man, divorced woman"
   In English, the feminine, divorcée, is far more common, and is often written without the accent: divorcee

double entendre   "double hearing"
   A word play or pun. For example, you're looking at a field of sheep and you say "How are you (ewe)?"

droit du seigneur   "right of the lord of the manor"
   The feudal lord's right to deflower his vassal's bride

du jour   "of the day"
   "Soup du jour" is nothing more than an elegant-sounding version of "soup of the day."


eau de Cologne   "water from Cologne"
   This is often cut down to simply "cologne" in English. Cologne is the French and English name for the German city Köln.

eau de toilette   "toilet water"
   Toilet here does not refer to a commode - see toilette, below. Eau de toilette is a very weak perfume.

embarras de richesse, richesses   "embarrassement of wealth/richness"
   Such an overwhelming amount of good fortune that it's embarrassing or confusing

emigré   "expatriate, migrant"
   In English, this tends to indicate exile for political reasons

en banc   "on the bench"
   Legal: indicates that the entire membership of a court is in session.

en bloc   "in a block"
   In a group, all together

en brochette   "on (a) skewer"
   Also known by the Turkish name: shish kebab

encore   "again"
   A simple adverb in French, "encore" in English refers to an additional performance, usually requested with audience applause.

enfant terrible   "terrible child"
   Refers to a troublesome or embarrassing person within a group (of artists, thinkers, etc).

en garde   "on guard"
   Warning that one should be on his/her guard, ready for an attack (originally in fencing).

en masse   "in mass"
   In a group, all together

en passant   "in passing"
   in passing, by the way; (chess) the capturing of a pawn after a specific move

en prise   "in grasp"
   (chess) exposed to capture

en rapport   "in agreement"
   agreeable, harmonious

en route   "on route"
   On the way

en suite   "in sequence"
   Part of a set, together

entente cordiale   "cordial agreement"
   friendly agreements between countries, especially those signed in 1904 between France and the UK

entrez vous   "come in"
   English speakers often say this, but it's wrong - the correct way to say "come in" in French is simply entrez.

esprit de corps   "group spirit"
   Similar to team spirit or morale

esprit d'escalier   "stairway wit"
   Thinking of an answer or comeback too late

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