French phrases in an English word

[dakanga]

This is a well presented little clip with pictures by Sean O'Neill, and written by Arika Okrent, about French Phrases hidden in an English word.

1. What other French Phrases do you know that we use in English ?

( either hidden in an English word - or French word(s) that we use as a word or a phrase. )

2. Does anyone know why we have ever so many of them ?

3. What "French words/phrases" used in English have different meanings in French ?

click on this picture and it will take you to the clip. ...

mentalfloss ; messynessychic

[dakanga]

Other links to interesting things :

wikipedia ;
about education ;
The Phrase Finder ;
FluentU ;
the Good Life ;
antimoon ;
30 words ;
love to Know ;
love to Know- Famous Sayings ;
English Club ;
french expressio ;
reverso french-english phrases ;
orbilat ;
kids net ;
french phrases to use in an argument ;
cambridge Dictionaries ;
canadian vs American English ;
quiz French Phrases used in English ;
french words used incorrectly ;
quara ;
french phrases ;
french phrases ;
oxford dictionary foreign words ;
french district funny french phrases ;
babla ;
a la .. ;
french words already used ;
cool french phrases ;

why so many French words in English

about ;
ask

---

http://mentalfloss.com/article/74782/fr ... lish-words

[dakanga]

Originally posted by Saelyria

A lot of the French hidden in English is because of the Norman (French) conquest in 1066. When the French took over, the language of the courts and the monarchy/aristocracy became French. So a lot of words we use in law/finance (judge, jury, defendant, culprit, etc) come from French. If you've ever heard the terms "accounts payable" or "attorney general" and wondered why the adjectives come after, that's because of the French influence that was never dropped. The upper rung of society being French also made a lot of words derived from French sound a little more formal than words from Germanic influence, e.g. commence vs start, continue vs go on, encounter vs meet, etc.

English as a whole is kind of a hodge podge of different languages because of the British Isles being conquered/invaded by different groups at many different points in history (the Romans, the Normans, the Saxons, the Vikings), which is also why it has such a rich set of synonyms.

---

Also, just another fun note, the English usage of "je ne sais quoi" (like in "This person, they have a certain je ne sais quoi about them") is actually also used in French the same way.

[dakanga]

Originally posted by hivemindx

"Je suis marié avec une enfant" "Je suis fini"

Both seem fine to an English speaker but mean something different in French.

"I am married to a child" "I am finished (dead)"

[MoniqueMaRie]

I think the little clip can help English speakers build some mnemonic bridges to French words. I liked it.