French Expression of the Day: C’est chaud

Why do I need to know c’est chaud?

Because chaud has lots of different meanings in French, and a lot of it depends on the verb you pair it with.

What does it mean?

C’est chaud – roughly pronounced 'say show' – translates precisely to ‘it’s hot’. 

Its most obvious meaning is that an object is hot - for example, a friend warning you that the cup of tea is scalding - but the phrase has other meanings too. 

While watching a sports game, the French person to your side might say  ‘c’est chaud !’ to mean “it’s exciting!”, “it’s a nailbiter”, or “it’s intense”. You might also hear someone describe another intense moment in their personal or professional life as having been chaud.

You probably also heard of the other, more traditional slang meaning for chaud in French. You can also use chaud (or chaude for women) to mean sexually enticing or aroused.

Finally - if you invite a friend to come do an activity with you, they might use another variation of chaud by saying “je suis chaud” (I am hot). This basically means “I am down” for the activity. 

This is where we get to the verb bit.

Je suis chaud uses the verb être - to be - which is the one we would use in English (I am hot). However in French using être means that you're using chaud in its more slangy sense - to mean that you're either ready, excited or sexually aroused. 

If you are looking to tell someone that you are physically warm, you would say j’ai chaud using the verb avoir (to have) which literally translates as 'I have hot' which sounds pretty weird to English speakers but actually lots of French adjectives use avoir (eg hungry, thirsty, embarrassed).

It's likely that your French teacher told you to never use Je suis chaud - but in fact you can use it, just be aware that you're not talking about the temperature.

The same applies for wanting to comment on the weather - if you are looking to tell someone that it is hot outside, you would say il fait chaud, instead of c’est chaud.

Use it like this

Ce match a été chaud. Je pensais vraiment que nous allions perdre jusqu'aux tirs au but. – That match was really intense.  I really thought we were going to lose until the penalty kicks.

Personne A: Comment s'est déroulée la manifestation ? 

Personne B: C’était chaud. J'avais l'impression qu'à tout moment, la violence aurait pu éclater. – Person A: How was the protest? Person B: It was intense. I thought at any moment it could have turned violent.