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Bad French? (#534)
This Google search led a user to OffQc: is donner un lift à quelqu’un québécois Yes, in Quebec French, donner un lift à quelqu’un is an informal expression meaning “to give someone a lift” (in a...
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J’en ai plein mon casque (#535)
En avoir plein son casque — a French expression from Québec meaning “to be fed up.” J’en ai plein mon casque. I’m fed up. I’m sick of it. I’ve had it. You may hear casque pronounced as cass in this...
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Pris dans le trafic (#536)
With the snow falling in Montréal, you may find yourself pris dans le trafic — stuck in traffic. This morning, a radio host on Rouge FM asked a listener who called in from her car: T’es toujours prise...
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Stephen King on French (#537)
Author Stephen King said: “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. There’s no way around these two things that I’m aware of, no shortcut.” If...
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Drop ton esti d’gun! Informal Quebec French from 19-2 (#538)
If you have access to Radio-Canada on television or all the videos on tou.tv, give the police series 19-2 a try. You’ll find the dialogue in 19-2 challenging, but you really shouldn’t miss the show if...
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Les deux pieds dans la sloche (#539)
Les Justiciers masqués (two humoristes québécois named Marc-Antoine Audette and Sébastien Trudel) write a column in Montréal’s version of the free Métro newspaper. In the 8 February 2013 edition of...
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Serre pas ta carte (#540)
Yesterday I renewed a membership, and a new carte d’abonné (membership card) was given to me. As I put the new card into my wallet, the employee serving me told me not to put it away yet because she...
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Chiâler du 10 au 16 février (#541)
Two words used in the French of Québec for you to learn or review today: chiâler to complain quétaine tacky, cheesy In an article in Montréal’s Métro newspaper, Les Justiciers masqués comment on those...
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As-tu déjà eu des broches? (#542)
While reading the newspaper today, I came across an advertisement for a dentist. In the ad, they mention that they also offer orthodontic services like braces. To say braces, they used a feminine...
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What does ON PEUT-TU mean? (#543)
A googler landed on OffQc searching for an answer to what on peut-tu means in Quebec French. It’s an informal question starter meaning the same thing as est-ce qu’on peut. On peut-tu faire ça? means...
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Examples of yes-no questions using TU in Quebec French (#544)
The yes-no question marker -tu is only used at an informal level of speech in Quebec French. C’est-tu prêt? J’ai faim! (Est-ce que c’est prêt? J’ai faim!) Is it ready? I’m hungry! This yes-no question...
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Listen to a Mazda3 description in French (#545)
Published in Québec, Le Guide de l’auto is a thick book that comes out every year with detailed information on new car models, with photos. If you’re into cars, check it out. Another good one from...
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Faque dans le fond… (#546)
Thomas is a teenaged boy in the television comedy Les Parent. He and his brothers typically receive irrational and difficult-to-understand lessons about life from their parents. See if you can decipher...
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40 ans, ça fesse (#547)
Heard on the radio — a radio show host wishing a happy birthday to a listener celebrating his 40th. The radio show host then admitted that turning 40, ça fesse. Fesser means to hit, which, according to...
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Pronouncing HÂTE in Quebec French (#548)
In a comical radio ad, a husband announces to his wife that his mother is coming to stay with them… for a few months. Surprisingly, the wife is happy about it. To test her resolve, the husband then...
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Quebec French accent: Cynthia Dulude goes to France (#549)
The very charismatic Cynthia Dulude is a make-up artist from Montréal who earned her popularity by making her own beauty-related YouTube videos. Maybe you remember her from videos in the Listen section...
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C’est pas pire (#550)
Another example overheard on the radio: A young girl called in to Rouge FM. The host asked her what year she was in at school. She said she was en quatrième année. The host then asked if she found...
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Partir en appartement (#551)
On the Les Parent Facebook page, fans of the television show were asked if they thought Thomas was too young to leave home and move into his first apartment: Est-ce que Thomas est trop jeune pour...
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Il n’y a rien à son épreuve (#552)
In Québec, il n’y a rien à son épreuve means: There’s nothing he can’t face, Nothing can bring him down, There’s nothing he can’t handle, Nothing can stop him, etc. Similarly: Il n’y a rien à mon...
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L’appétit vient… en magasinant (#553)
L’appétit vient en magasinant! An example of the Quebec French verb magasiner (to shop) used on a sign in a Montréal shopping centre (Galeries d’Anjou). This sign is promoting the shopping centre’s...
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