‘In France most people talk French, but in Paris most Parisians talk slang.’
Anar de la Grenouillere, The Continong (1894).
So said the author of this best-selling guide to travelling in France. He offered twelve pages of examples, but here is a small selection, with the occasional intervention from your Jotter.
Va falloir abouler, mon vieux You will have to stump up, old fellow.
Allez vous asseoir. Go along with you.
Il a une araignee dans le plafond. He has got a bee in his bonnet.
Se renvoyer la balle. Log-rolling.
Baptiser. To dilute wine with water.
Cette maison est une vraie baraque. This house is a wretched place, a miserable shanty.
Bassiner. To bore to death.
Monter un bateau, To impose upon one.
Becot. A kiss
Bernique. Not a bit of it.
Beugler. To bellow out. Also to weep.
If a fait son beurre. He has feathered his nest.
Bidard. A lucky chap.
Devisser son billard. To kick the bucket.
Avoir une biture. To be drunk.
Je n’y vois que du bleu. I can’t make head or tail of it.
Blinde. Boozed.
Ferme la boite. Shut up. Boite also means Public School.
Ca me botte. It suits me to a t.
Ce restaurant est un vrai bouchon. This restaurant is a nasty dirty place.
Bouffer. To guzzle.
Bouillon d’onze heures. Drowning or poisoning.
Bouis-bouis. A small theatre, low music hall, or restaurant.
Yeux en boule de loto. Goggle eyes.
Braise. Money.
Interestingly, we have the slang term ‘brass’ for money.
Cabot. A third rate actor, also: a dirty-looking dog.
Caflot. Weak coffee.
Such as you get in Starbucks today.
Cafard. A sneak.
Camelot. A street hawker.
Camelotte. Rubbish; trash
Caner. To funk, shirk.
Tirer une carotte. To humbug.
Allez-y carrement. Go for it.
I wonder if the French still use this slang today.
Casquer. To fork out.
Chambarder. To smash up.
Charogne. A blackguard; also bad meat.
Un chic type. A good chap. Un type chic. A swell. C’est salement chic. It’s vastly pretty.
Chiper. To bag.
Jouer un tour de cochon. To play a dirty trick.
Un villain coco. A nasty fellow; a cad.
I wonder if this is where ‘Coco the clown’ came from.
Cogne. A Peeler, copper, policeman.
Copain. Pal, chum
Lacher d’un cran. To give the slip.
Une crème d’homme. An awfully nice fellow.
N’avoir plus de cresson sur le caillou. To be very bald.
Avoir du culot. To be courageous.
Dada. A fad.
Most English dictionaries define this word, after which the early twentieth century Art movement was named, as a hobby-horse, which is not the same as fad. Interesting.
Rincer la dalle. To stand drinks.
Je lui ai donne une danse. I gave him a thorough good drubbing.
Il est debrouillard. He knows his way about.
Degoter. To knock off its perch.
It est degourdi. He is a knowing one.
Depot. Temporary prison.
C’est la le diable. There’s the rub. Tirer le diable par la queue. To be beastly hard up. To be without a sou.
Etre joliment embete. To be awfully cut up. To be bored.
Epatant. Grand. Awfully nice. Stunning.
Faire de l‘epate. To show off.
Epater. To astound.
Faires des esbrouffe. To swagger.
To be continued. (above ‘Apaches’ in Paris – merci Zig – Zag)