Argot | French Language Blog

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Do you know what “LAISSE BÉTON” means in French Slang, “concretely”? If not, then “Just Forget It”!

Oct 29 2010

Oyez, oyez ! We’re now officiellement about to cover la première moitié (the first half) of the alphabet in our featured “B.A.-BA de l’argot” (“the ABC of French Slang”), and in order to properly celebrate this one happy occasion, we shall concentrate today on one and only expression which, in many funny ways, epitomizes French Slang: “LAISSE BÉTON !“

But juste une seconde (just a sec’), before we do that that, let’s make sure you bookmark all the previous posts, because what you’ll end up saving as a référence personnelle is an essential guide that will help you overcome the informal French barrier so often met by foreign students, especially when they go to France for the first time and hear French people speak among themselves (“Zut alors, it’s all Greek to me!”), or when they watch French movies, or even listen to French songs!

This is a “concrete” (uhm) example of a ”bétonnière qu’on a laissé béton”… - Roughly translated: A concrete mixer which was ”dropped like it’s hot.” If you still don’t get it, then, well, laisse béton… Or just read the section below!

* * *

“L Comme…” (“L as in…”):

* L A I S S E
B É T O N ! :

Even if you knew the meaning of each one of these two words separately, it’d be impossible for you to understand what the overall expression means, unless you’re already acquainted with the French concept of verlan !

Like we saw in previous posts of the B.A.-BA, the French word “verlan” means backslang. So, in this case, “béton” -which otherwise would literally mean “concrete” (the construction material, that is)- is in fact a backslang for the verb “tomber“, or “to fall” in English.

A funny rendering of the famous Renaud song “Laisse béton”, translating most of the lyrics from French Slang into their literal -and at times, “concrete”- meaning…

Combining both verbs, laisser (to let) and tomber (to fall) would give us “laisser tomber“, which means “to let fall”, or to just “drop” something.

A friend of yours would tell you: “Allez, laisse béton, on s’en va !“, that would mean: “Come on, drop it (or forget it), let’s just go!”

So, if after all this, if you still don’t get it, then, well, just “laisse béton”

More French SLANG! B.A.-BA de l’Argot: “Lettre G” (2ème partie)—and ATTENTION aux MEUPORGs!

Posted by Mr. Transparent 2 Comments

Aug 25 2010

La dernière fois (last time), we dealt with la première partie (the first part) of the letter “G“, as we introdued the slang words: “gaga” (senile), “galère” (tough time), “gamin” (a kid), and “géant” (awesome.)

Before we kickstart today’s post and continue with the letter ‘G’, here are the links to the previous chapters of the B.A.-BA de l’Argot (the ABC of French Slang), listed alphabetically for your convenience:

“G comme…”: “G as in…” :

* GIVRÉ:
Just as in “dingue” (see “D comme…” B.A.-BA de l’Argot (the ABC of French Slang: ‘D’)) or “barge/bargeot” (see B.A.-BA de l’Argot: ‘B’ (the ABC of French Slang: ‘B’)), the argot term “givré” means “crazy” or “nuts.”
Literally, ”givré” means “frost.” A “double entendre” song which plays on both meanings, the literal and the figurative, is “Faut Quand Même Être Givré” (“One Has To Be Really Nuts”), by this Grenoblois (i.e. from the city of Grenoble) band:

* GLANDER:
Remember “avoir la flemme” from the last B.A.-BA post? (* “F comme…” B.A.-BA de l’Argot: ‘F’ [2] (the ABC of French Slang: ‘F’ [2])), meaning “to feel totally lazy, like not doing anything at all”? Well, the verb glander has pretty much the same significance. If you like glander, then you’re technically called a “glandeur” (somehting like a “lazy bum”); which brings us to this song by the French group “Billy Ze Kid”, otherwise famous for a 90′s hit song by the title of “Mangez-moi!” The song in question is called “La Revanche du Glandeur” (“The Lazy Bum’s Revenge”):

Notice that the refrain (the chorus) says:
“Si le ciel est gris, je reste au lit (If the sky is grey, I stay in bed)
Si le ciel est bleu, je reste au pieu!” (If the sky is blue, I stay in “bed” [too]), as “pieu” (literally “stake”) is just another argotique term for bed!

A related or synonymous experssion to “tirer sa flemme” and “glander“ contains the verb from the next entry (gober), namely the expression “gober les mouches“, the literal meaning of which is “to swallow flies.”

* GOBER:
This verb means “to swallow” or “to gobble”, either literally or figuratively, as in to believe something easily, or “to fall for something.” Put negatively, like when you say: “Je ne peux vraiment pas gober ce mec!“, it means “I really can’t stand this guy!”
Also, see the expression “gober les mouches” from the previous entry (glander), which means “to swallow or to gobble flies.”
Needless to say, this expression is not to be taken au sens littéral (in the literal sense)… like this one “Flanby“ cat, a.k.a ”le chat gobeur de mouches!!” (“the flies-eating cat!!”)

* GOINFRER (SE):
After watching the last video, eating is perhaps not topping your list of things you’re feeling like doing right away (even though Flanby is still a cute cat), but the meaning of the verb se goinfrer means just that, and maybe a bit more, as in “to stuff one’s self.”
Just few months ago, a big national debate has taken France by surprise, dealing with kids who spend their whole time à se goinfrer de Meuporg (stuffing themselves with “Meuporgs“)… What is a MEUPORG?
You don’t know what a MEUPORG is?
You may suffer from MEUPORG and may not even know it!
Watch out for Meuporgs…
Check it out:

A L E R T E
R O U G E !
A T T E N T I O N
A U X
M E U P O R G S !
(Red Alert! BE CAREFUL OF MEUPORGS!)

“Un gamin de Paris!” (Yves Montand)

Posted by Mr. Transparent 1 Comment

Aug 20 2010

Le Parisien, 1952

Do you remember the word *GAMIN* from the French Slang ABC (“More French Slang! B.A.-BA de l’Argot: “Lettre G” (1ère partie)“)?
Non?
Well, then let me go ahead and— “refrench” you memory about it.

Gamin means a young boy, or a “young lad” if you will. There are also other argotiques (slang) ways to call a young child: Un “môme“ for example. You can also say -with or without affection- “un mioche“, or “un lard“, “un moufflet“, “un bambin“, “un petit bout“, or “un petit bout de chou“; and if they really start getting on your nerves, you can exclaim: “avorton!”, “gringalet!”, or “petit garnement!“

The picture that you see above, featuring a Parisian gamin running down the street with a baguette that’s almost longer than his size, is the work of the ”photographer of Paris par excellence“, namely the late Willy RONIS, who died last year at 99 years old.

This post-WWII photo iconique seems to have been specifically shot to go along with this one Yves MONTAND song (it has in fact been interpreted by many other artists as well), called “Un gamin de Paris“, which is by the way our DMCV (“Dieu Merci, C’est Vendredi !“=”Thank God It’s Friday!”) of this week!

I didn’t see a ready translation of the lyrics available online, so here’s for you my own traduction des paroles (lyrics tranlation), version américaine (American version.)

Un gamin d’Paris, c’est tout un poème
Dans aucun pays, il n’y a de même
Car c’est un titi, petit gars dégourdi que l’on aimeUn gamin de Paris, c’est le doux mélange
d’un ciel affranchi du diable et d’un ange
Et son oeil hardi s’attendri devant une orange
Pas plus haut que trois pommesMais lance un défi à l’aimable bonhomme
Qui l’appelait mon petit

Un gamin de Paris, c’est une cocarde:
Bouton qui fleurit dans un pot d’moutarde
Il est tout l’esprit, l’esprit de Paris qui musarde
Pantalon trop long pour lui
Toujours les mains dans les poches
On le voit qui déguerpit
Aussitôt qu’il voit un képi !

Un gamin de Paris, c’est tout un poème
Dans aucun pays, il n’y a de même
Car c’est un titi, petit gars dégourdi que l’on aime

Il est l’héritier, lors de sa naissance
De tout un passé lourd de conséquences
Et ça il le sait, bien qu’il ignore l’histoire de France

Sachant que sur les places, pour un idéal
Des p’tits gars pleins d’audace
à leur façon firent un bal

‘
‘

‘
‘
‘
‘
Un gamin d’Paris, rempli d’insouciance
Gouailleur et ravi de la vie qui chante
s’il faut peut aussi comme Gavroche
Entrer dans la danse

Un gamin d’Paris m’a dit à l’oreille
Si je pars d’ici, sachez que la veille
J’aurai réussi à mettre Paris en bouteille !

A Parisian boy, it’s a poem in its own right
In no other country, are you to find one like him
‘Cause he’s a titi [Parisian kid], a little smarty-pants that we just love

A Parisian boy, it’s the soft blend
of a sky freed from the Devil and one angel
And his fearless eye softening up at the sight of an orange”Not higher than three apples” [French idiomatic expression meaning "short"!]
And yet challenges a nice chap
who called him “kiddo”
A Parisian boy, it’s a cockade:
A button that blossoms in a mustard pot
He’s the whole spirit, the spirit of Paris that dawdles
Pants that are too long for him
Always hands in pocket
We see him take off
At the first sight of a [French police] kepi!

A Parisian boy, it’s a poem in its own right
In no other country, are you to find one like him
‘Cause he’s a titi [Parisian kid], a little smarty-pants that we just love

He’s the inheritor, since his birth
Of a whole past full of consequences
And that he knows, though he ignores the history of France

Knowing that on the places, for an ideal
Some young daring dudes
in their own way threw a party [Allusion to the French Revolution, that can be paralleled to the American "Tea Party": An equivalent historical "double entendre" in this case...]

A Parisian boy, full of nonchalance
Jokester and delighted about life that he sings
If necessary he can just like Gavroche [from les Mis'!]
Entering the dance
A Parisian boy whispered to my ear
If I leave from here, then know that on the eve
I’d have succeeded in “botteling in Paris”! [Typical Parisian expression mean in that with "ifs", you can do anything you want, like putting the whole of Paris inside a bottle!]

More French Slang! B.A.-BA de l’Argot: “Lettre G” (1ère partie)

Posted by Mr. Transparent 2 Comments

Aug 19 2010

You wouldn’t really stand la moindre chance (the slightest chance) to understand a French movie, or get an idea of what folks talking around you in the street or in the cafés when you go visit or live in France, if you don’t already know the meaning of some *must-know* mots et experssions argotiques (slang words and expressions). That’s why the TRASNPARENT French Blog, le B.A.-BA de l’Argot (the ABC of French Slang) secures you more than just a fighting chance to actually do it!

Here all the links to the previous posts, published so far in alphabetical order:

“G comme…” (“G as in…”)

* GAGA:
If you hear a French talk about some lady being a bit “gaga“, chances are, he or she’s most likely isn’t referring to the famous pop star singer…
Just as it’s the case for its English counterpart, in French, to be “gaga” means to be senile.

* GALÈRE:
As in “Quelle galère!” Galère means “a long and often painful hard work.” Therefore, the verb galérer means “to have a hard time.” Par exemple (for example): “Ah là là, j’ai vraiment galéré pour venir ici!” (“I had a real hard time to get here!”)

Another example of the use of the word galère can be found in this youtube video, coming to you straight from la France profonde (the “deep France”), experssing the social malaise that is generally felt these days in France:

* GAMIN:
Meaning a “young boy”, “a young lad”. For a “young girl”, you’d say une gamine. It can also be said about someone who’s immature, no matter how old they are…
A synonym of gamin that you should also remember is môme.

Here’s a song by Yves Montand called “Un gamin de Paris“:

* GÉANT:
Just replace the “É” with “I” and you got the English meaning: Giant. “C’est géant!” meaning “it’s awesome!”

A French commercial of “GÉANT VERT!”

“F comme…” B.A.-BA de l’Argot: ‘F’ [2] (the ABC of French Slang: ‘F’ [2])

Posted by Mr. Transparent 7 Comments

Aug 5 2010

* * *
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x39r

* FILER À L’ANGLAISE:
Depending on which side of la Manche (the English Channel, that is), you either say “filer à l’Anglaise“, or, conversely, “take the French Leave.” The expression means to ”jump ship.” Another close expression is ”fausser compagnie à quelqu’un“, like ”leaving under a cloud”!

* FIN DES HARICOTS:
“The end of beans” in French simply means “the End”, when it’s all over. Exemple, “Vous voulez dire qu’en 2012, ce sera la fin des haricots?” (“So you mean that it’s all gonna be over in 2012?”)

* FILS À PAPA:
Or “Daddy’s boy”, close in meaning to some kind of a spoiled, silver-spoon fed child.
Similarly, you can also say that someone is “un fils à maman” (Mommy’s boy!)
Check in the video below la volte-face (the about-face) of the recruiter when he finds out that the job seeker is a fils à papa, and that the papa in question is none other than the PDG (CEO) of the company…

* FLANCHER:
Synonymous to “jeter l’éponge” (“to throw the sponge”), meaning to give up.

* FLEMME:
“Avoir la flemme” means to feel totally lazy, like not doing anything at all. You can also say “tirer sa flemme”, meaning to take it easy and relax. Both expressions “avoir la flemme” and “tirer sa flemme” are used in this French song:

* FLIC:
Un or une flic means “a cop.” Like we saw in B.A.-BA de l’Argot: ‘A’ (the ABC of French Slang: ‘A’), ”Deux Flics à Miami“, meaning “Two Cops in Miami”, is the French title of the 80′s series ”Miami Vice.”
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8bswp

* FLIPPER:

It’s spelled the same way as the name of le gentil dauphin (the nice dolphin), but it means to get stressed out, or “worked out” about something. The adjective flippant, however, means “creepy.” For example, ”Ce film est vraiment flippant” (“This movie is really creepy.”)

* FLUTE!
Most new French learners know “zut!” or “zut alors!”, as in “darn!” or “shoot!”, but more common of an intejection is “mince!”
“Flute” is also as rarely used as “darn” in English, but it’s useful to know what it stands for if you happen to hear it.

* SE FOURRER:
To be dead wrong about something; to be mistaken.

* FOUTAISE:
Total nonsense. You can also say “des salades“ , as in “ce ne sont que des salades!”

* FRANGIN:
Frangin means “bro”, as in brother. Related to it is the word “fréro“, which is reserved for your little brother.
Here’s the trailer of the movie “Frangins malgré eux”— which is the French title of the Will Ferrell comedy “Step Brothers.”
Check it out, it’s dubbed in French!

* FRIC:
Money, dough, or ”ca$h”, as in the Euro “FRI€.“, which we’ve already seen in “YELLE (à tue-tête) if you like “le FRI€” the TTC way.”

* FRIGO:
Like the English “fridge”, Frigo is a French shorthand for refrigirator.

* FRIME
La frime is the noun which gives us a “frimeur“, that is someone who’s a show-off.
Par exemple: The character Mickael Vendetta is a frimeur wanna-be. Remember him from ”B.A.-BA de l’Argot: ‘B’ [Cont.] (the ABC of French Slang: ‘B’ [Cont.])“

* FRINGUES:
Les fringues mean clothes. Another argot synonym of fringues is fripes.

* FURAX:
Être furax comes from furieux, meaning furious. You can also say “disjoncter“, “perdre la boule“, or the more often used nowadays, ”péter un câble” or “péter les plombs.”

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