French phrases that language learners just don’t get

C'est n'importe quoi

Ni'importe quoi is one of those terms we hear thrown into French sentences a lot, so we naturally try to do the same, but don't always get it right.

Often used to express exasperation, “C'est n'importe quoi!” can be a tough one for foreigners to grasp but usually means something like “That's nonsense/rubbish”. N'importe quoi by itself can also mean “whatever”.

Du coup

This filler phrase meaning something like “so” or “therefore” pops up in French conversation similarly to how “like” peppers the speech of an American teenager. It can bewilder French learners who don't understand how it can be so omnipresent yet have no actual meaning. 

In this case it's not that we use it incorrectly, but more that we never use it (but would really love to) because we haven't a clue when it's appropriate.

Photo: Sara Dinu/Flickr

  J'avais peur, mais je l'ai fait quand même.

   I was afraid, but I did it anyway (or but i still did it).

 

   C'est quand même difficile.

   It's actually quite hard.

 

   Quand même !

   Really! Honestly! (disbelief, outrage)

 

   Quel idiot, quand même !

   Really, what an idiot!

Désolé(e)

This word isn't used with nearly the same frequency as “sorry” in English. The French are far more likely to say “pardon” or “excusez-moi” for everyday blunders and save désolé for when they're truly sorry for something they did. 

 

Désolé… Photo: Flickr

Oh là là

First of all, it's not Ooh (là là) but Oh. In English this phrase has taken on a sexual innuendo, but that's not the case in French, where it's basically used for everything else. Here's a comprehensive guide on how to use these three little words.

English-speakers need to be careful not to mix these two up. “Visiter” is for a place, such as a monument or a city, while “rendre visite” is used when talking about people. If you just say you're going to visiter someone, it can have a sexual connotation. 

Sacré bleu

English-speakers might whip out this phrase to express astonishment thinking it makes them sound oh-so-French, but in reality it's extremely out-dated and almost never used by French people these days, except perhaps in jest.

J'ai chaud

In English it would sound ridiculous to say “I have hot” as opposed to “I'm hot” on a sweltering day. But in French saying “Je suis chaud” could land you in trouble, as it actually translates to “I'm horny”.

Bonjour

Bonjour seems like the simplest of French words — a no-brainer, right? Au contraire. Foreigners too often get it wrong by not saying it at all (which some argue is the root cause of why French people are said to be so rude). Read this to make sure you actually know how to use the most important word in French. 

And don't say it twice to the same person in the same day. Say “re-bonjour” instead.

“It's common to hear an Anglophone say after a good dinner: 'Ce dîner est excellent et maintenant, je suis plein(e),' French teacher at French a la Carte Florence Harang told The Local. “But Je suis plein(e) means “I am pregnant” (and is only actually used for animals, not humans). 

Saying J'ai bien mangé is far more appropriate for when you can't eat another forkful of Gallic grub.

Another couple of pesky phrases for French learners as we often confuse the two.

Camille Chevalier-Karfis, who runs the language learning website French Today says: “For this one, the answer is simple: memorise an example that rhymes. C’est bon means yummy. So remember “c’est bon le jambon” – ham is yummy.

“C’est bien means approval, so 'c’est bien Julien' or Damien, or Félicien… pick a name you know!” 

C'est pas terrible

English speakers can be forgiven for getting confused with the word terrible in French, as saying “c'est pas terrible” actually means something is terrible, rather than isn't, as you would think at first.