The French Hit Back! (1 Viewer)

[yodeli]

Why do French road signs say 'STOP' in English? Often wondered that.

Why do you say Rendez vous? Can't you say something like Love appointement or Lover meet. You have the words. Rendez-vous is for LOVERS in French, AND for an APPOINTEMENT as well.

 

[DBK]

Why do you say Rendez vous? Can't you say something like Love appointement or Lover meet. You have the words. Rendez-vous is for LOVERS in French, AND for an APPOINTEMENT as well.

I guess the difference is we don't mind these French words in our language, but whoever put that sticker in place was trying to protect the purity of the French language. A noble aim but doomed to failure I fear.
But as I said earlier, this thread was only meant as a bit of fun to lighten the mood, given the grim news from the UK today.

 

[chaser]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/onlyfools/quotes/quote31.shtml

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[yodeli]

I don't mind either having English or German or Latin or even Arabian words popping up now and then. I use arabian words in my everyday language as I was brought up hearing it all the time. I'm a bit more fussy with French Grammar as I am supposed to be a technician of French language which has been the main subject along all my studies at University of Languages. But what I found funny and silly is the hard work put on the use of the camping-car word while they don't realise the so many anglicisms they use.....What about our every working day "sandwich"? LOL !!!

 

[appydaze]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/onlyfools/quotes/quote31.shtml

Actually the way I heard it was.....

"Rodney, Rodney, what's the name for a duck in French"

"Its canard Del, canard"

"I know it is Rodney, that's why I'm bloodywell asking you"

 

[Popeye]

French Canadians call KFC, PFK, (Poulet Frit Kentucky), they don't even call it PFK in Paris Oh Please!.

New Forest dwellers call KFC......

KFC

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[DBK]

New Forest dwellers call KFC......
..................................................

KFC

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The bucket is useful after the meal too.

 

[EX51SSS]

New Forest dwellers call KFC......

KFC

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[magicsurfbus]

You'd be amazed to see the many many many words English language has taken from French.

Not to mention place names. I went to school in Kibworth Beauchamp. The next village was called Kibworth Harcourt. Down the road, Newton Harcourt. Not far away Carlton Curlieu.

My recent ancestors lived in Ashby de la Zouch, to the north of Leicester.

All down to those pesky Normans.

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[Stretto Boy]

I live just down the road from the Kibworths, in the Italian influenced Stretton Magna aka Great Stretton. B----y Romans, what did they ever do for us?

 

[Minxy]

I love the fact that the French don't appear to have a word for 'cheap' ... stuff is often described as moins cher (less dear) ...

 

[magicsurfbus]

I live just down the road from the Kibworths, in the Italian influenced Stretton Magna aka Great Stretton. B----y Romans, what did they ever do for us?

Small world - I grew up in Glen 'Magna'. If I'm not very much mistaken the Romans put a ruddy great motorway through your part of the world and your village was named after it. Improving the infrastructure so to speak. PS: Do you know where to find loads of Ammonite fossils not very far from your place? I do.

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[yodeli]

I love the fact that the French don't appear to have a word for 'cheap' ... stuff is often described as moins cher (less dear) ...

Abordable, Avantageux , Bon marché
It's just easier to say pas cher, especially for the lazy gits lol!

 

[magicsurfbus]

Why do French road signs say 'STOP' in English? Often wondered that.

The only time I was pulled over by Police in France was for failing to stop at sign saying STOP in English. The road either side was clear of traffic to the horizon, but STOP means STOP.

Michel Thomas (excellent relaxing language courses) says that 60% of the words in the English language are of French origin.

.and let's not get started on how many have Scandinavian and Germanic origins, especially the names of our towns and villages, and not a few of our favourite rude words.

I don't mind either having English or German or Latin or even Arabian words popping up now and then. I use arabian words in my everyday language as I was brought up hearing it all the time.

The main reason we don't do sums in Roman numerals any more is due to the Arabic mathematicians who devised our numeric system.

 

[ShiftZZ]

English is a West Germanic language that originated from Anglo-Frisian dialects brought to Britain in the mid 5th to 7th centuries AD by Germanic invaders and settlers from what is now northwest Germany, west Denmark and the Netherlands.

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[ShiftZZ]

Welsh evolved from British, the Celtic language spoken by the ancient Britons. Alternatively classified as Insular Celtic or P-Celtic, it probably arrived in Britain during the Bronze Age or Iron Age and was probably spoken throughout the island south of the Firth of Forth.
Bronze Age Britain is an era of British history that spanned from c. 2500 until c. 800 BC.

 

[magicsurfbus]

Welsh evolved from British, the Celtic language spoken by the ancient Britons. Alternatively classified as Insular Celtic or P-Celtic, it probably arrived in Britain during the Bronze Age or Iron Age..

Cue mental image of the original stone axe wielding inhabitants of what is now Llandudno muttering and grumbling about Celtic speaking migrant workers arriving in droves to dig that strange bluey-green stuff out of what is now the Great Orme. "Heating it up and pouring it into these new-fangled mould things, I ask you? What's wrong with the traditional stone-working skills of our fathers? Just a fad - it'll never catch on. And they worship strange Gods and don't talk proper like what we do."

 

[Badknee]

Interesting that because KFC is now the official name of the company (not Kentucky...) the same as BP and BT are no longer British... In that case the name should be changed back to KFC

Little boy asks his grandad " can we go to McDonalds grandad? Grandad says " we can if you can spell it son". Little lad has a think about it, "Oh flip it then we'll go to KFC"

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[orridge]

KFC in New Zealand is Kiwi for Chicken

 

[sallylillian]

I think it was Mitterrand who, concerned at the level of English phrases and nouns, demanded that the French universities created new words to replace the incursive English. So Le Fortnight became "quinze jours", computer became Le Ordinateur etc, they still have a much weaker vocabulary than English however!

 

[sallylillian]

I love the fact that the French don't appear to have a word for 'cheap' ... stuff is often described as moins cher (less dear) ...

That' demonstrates the weakness, so a sentence in English become a paragraph in French!

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[jockaneezer]

Changing it to Le Ordinateur, that's just not PC, is it ?

 

[KeithChesterfield]

If you order a drink of 1664, that liquid refreshment that you may or may not like and is sold in bars, then getting you brain round 'Sixteen sixty four' has been helped by every barman in France understanding 'Sez' means you're thirsty and will serve said drink.

Love the French.

 

[yodeli]

I think it was Mitterrand who, concerned at the level of English phrases and nouns, demanded that the French universities created new words to replace the incursive English. So Le Fortnight became "quinze jours", computer became Le Ordinateur etc, they still have a much weaker vocabulary than English however!

I can assure you we never said Computer or Fortnight in our vocabulary. I have never ever heard anyone around me when computeurs became an everyday reality, say anything else but ordinateur.
But we did have "walkman" , and the whole idea came from that point. Why would we say walkman? So we had a huge competition to find new french words for the new technology which just arrived . All the English names were CREATED because the new technology was coming MAINLY from China or Japan, and some from America too.

Walkman became Baladeur.

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[2657]

That' demonstrates the weakness, so a sentence in English become a paragraph in French!

And a full page in German

 

[Teuchter]

"Camping-car" (whilst the actual words are English) is not really used in England - we use Motor home, Caravanette, Campervan, Camper or even Dormobile though it was really only applicable to Bedfords but not Camping-car.

I have only seen the term used in France (perhaps used elsewhere in Europe but I have not come across it)

 

[The Lobster]

You'd be amazed to see the many many many words English language has taken from French.

Or "l’anglais n’est que du français mal prononcé" as Dumas wrote... but, unlike French, English has continued to evolve and grow. In fact the French emphasis on keeping the language static seems to have led to something that is more like medieval English in it's structure. We might have the occasional whinge about how Americans mangle it, but actually it is because there isn't an Académie Française that English thrives.

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[nicholsong]

Why do French road signs say 'STOP' in English? Often wondered that.

Ask the Quebecois why theirs say 'Arret' and they say it is French for stop. Plus ca difference.

 

[pyro]

My French Canadian p.a. tells me that it is written in French so that the huskies can understand it

 

[Popeye]

Walkman became Baladeur.

Baladeurs surely Frankie,

I can assure you we never said Computer or Fortnight in our vocabulary.Walkman became Baladeur.

Frankie, my very dear girl, in Egland we have a saying -

...................."Never let the truth stand in the way of a good story"

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