Ben, in the television series 19-2, works as a police officer. He and his blonde have received two guests at their place for a get-together.
The female guest, trying to be funny, makes a joke about the cops in the film Police Academy, describing them as:
une gang de colons qui se grattent la poche pis qui donnent des tickets
… or “a bunch of dolts who scratch their balls and hand out tickets.” Her joke doesn’t go over well. Ben takes it personally and the conversation goes sour.
In Québec, gang is a feminine word pronounced like its English equivalent.
Un colon refers to someone unsophisticated, without class or style, or someone who acts like a hick.
Pis (sounds like pi) is an informal pronunciation of puis; it means “and” here.
In un ticket, the final t is pronounced and stress falls on the last syllable (tick-ETT). In the plural tickets, the final s is silent.
[Quote taken from 19-2, season 2, episode 3, Radio-Canada, Montréal, 11 February 2013.]
