French Expression of the Day: Noir de monde
This is a useful expression for describing busy tourist sites, political meetings and rock concerts.
Why do I need to know noir de monde?
Because this expression can be used in a wide range of contexts - particularly as the weather gets warmer.
What does it mean?
Noir de monde, pronounced nwah duh mond, literally translates as black of the world.
But it is generally used to describe somewhere as being busy or crowded.
The origins of this phrase are disputed. But logically, it refers to the fact that when a mass of people are crammed into one spot, very little light passes through. You cannot necessarily see what is behind the crowd, so your vision is essentially blacked out - think getting stuck in a mosh pit or the Paris Metro.
Noir de monde is sometimes written noire de monde - the latter phrase being used to describe feminine-gendered places.
Le quai est noir de monde - The platform is crazy busy
On va se voir dans la gare noire de monde? - Will we see each other in this jam-packed station?
Le meeting politique était noir de monde ce weekend - The political rally this weekend was absolutely rammed
Synonyms
There are many adjectives to describe somewhere as busy in French including:
Blindé - crowded
Bondé - packed
Surpeuplé - overcrowded/overpopulated
Fréquenté - busy (much frequented)
Encombré - overcrowded/stuffy
Plein - full
Rempli de monde - full of people
Dense - dense
Saturé - saturated
There are also many French ways of talking about a crowd.
La foule - the crowd
Le public - the public audience
L'attroupement - the crowd
La marée humaine - the human tide
L'assemblée - the assembly of people (although this is also used as shorthand to talk about France's Assemblée nationale
Comments
See Also
Why do I need to know noir de monde?
Because this expression can be used in a wide range of contexts - particularly as the weather gets warmer.
What does it mean?
Noir de monde, pronounced nwah duh mond, literally translates as black of the world.
But it is generally used to describe somewhere as being busy or crowded.
The origins of this phrase are disputed. But logically, it refers to the fact that when a mass of people are crammed into one spot, very little light passes through. You cannot necessarily see what is behind the crowd, so your vision is essentially blacked out - think getting stuck in a mosh pit or the Paris Metro.
Noir de monde is sometimes written noire de monde - the latter phrase being used to describe feminine-gendered places.
Le quai est noir de monde - The platform is crazy busy
On va se voir dans la gare noire de monde? - Will we see each other in this jam-packed station?
Le meeting politique était noir de monde ce weekend - The political rally this weekend was absolutely rammed
Synonyms
There are many adjectives to describe somewhere as busy in French including:
Blindé - crowded
Bondé - packed
Surpeuplé - overcrowded/overpopulated
Fréquenté - busy (much frequented)
Encombré - overcrowded/stuffy
Plein - full
Rempli de monde - full of people
Dense - dense
Saturé - saturated
There are also many French ways of talking about a crowd.
La foule - the crowd
Le public - the public audience
L'attroupement - the crowd
La marée humaine - the human tide
L'assemblée - the assembly of people (although this is also used as shorthand to talk about France's Assemblée nationale
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