Translation Note

I recently was inspecting a Heineken ad I saw on the back of one of my French magazines. Like typical ads by foreign companies in France, there are some English phrases featured along with an asterisk that leads you to the translation into French along the bottom.

As someone familiar with the translation process, I know that of course literal translations are not always best. However, I wonder how the translator arrived at the translation displayed on this ad for the whole world to see.

Underneath the Heineken logo is the slogan "open your world". This was translated into French as "Ouvrir une Heineken, c'est consommer une bière vendue dans le monde entier" (Opening a Heineken means drinking a beer sold worldwide).

In addition, the ad also features the phrase "Be Fresh", which was translated into French as "Pour être fraîche, Heineken doit être servie à 3°C" (To be fresh, Heineken must be served at 3°C).

While the translations are factually accurate, I don't think they quite capture the cosmopolitan feel that Heineken was trying to impart to consumers.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments. (Bonus points for suggested translations!)

Mot du jour: cire de l'oreille

Today's word is a two in one bonus!

Définition: earwax (medical term: cérumen)

As you may have figured out, cire means wax and oreille is the word for ear, thus cire de l'oreille gives us earwax.

Je me cure les oreilles avec un coton tige pour enlever la cire de l'oreille.
-I clean my ears with a cotton swab to remove the earwax.

Mot du jour: coton tige

Definition: cotton swab, cotton bud, Q-tip

You can also use the more generic term bâtonnet ouaté


Click here for a word related to the use of coton tiges!

Mot du jour: cavale

This week fugitive George Wright was caught after 41 years. Il a été en cavale.

Definition: escape, en cavale: on the run, on the lam

Un fugitif arrêté après 41 ans de cavale. - Le Monde (article link here)
-Fugitive arrested after 41 years on the run.

Un Américain arrêté au Portugal après une cavale de 41 ans. - TF1 (article link here)
-An American arrested in Portugal after escape for 41 years.

The verb cavaler is used in the sense of to rush around or to chase after, notably in the cavaler après les femmes (to be a womanizer).

Mot du jour: presse-papier

Definition: paperweight

Je ramassai des coquillages pour lui des galets que je peignais aux couleurs du drapeau breton pour lui servir de presse-papiers. (Catherine Cuset, En toute innocence)
-I collected shells for him and painted pebbles with the colors of Brittany's flag for him to use as paperweights.

Presse-papier can also be used in the sense of the clipboard in computing:

Tapez Ctrl + C pour copier des données dans le presse-papier.
- Press Ctrl + C to copy data to the clipboard.

Mot du jour: binoclard(e)

The other week I finished reading Balzac et la Petite Tailleuse chinoise by Dai Sijie. In the book there is a character nicknamed Le Binoclard, someone who suffers from une grave myopie (severe nearsightedness).

Definition: (informal term) bespectacled, someone who wears glasses, approximately equivalent to calling someone "four-eyes" in English.

Synonym: bésiclard

Le Binoclard possédait une valise secrète, qu'il dissimulait soigneusement.

-Four-Eyes had a secret suitcase that he carefully kept concealed.

The popular Japanese manga Case Closed (or Detective Conan) has inspired a parody in French called Détective Binoclard (Detective Four-Eyes). 

Check it out here: http://detective-binoclard.centerblog.net/

Mot du jour: ronfler

The other day my friend told me I was snoring while I was asleep, which made me think maybe we should examine snoring in French.

The verb "to snore" is a regular "-er" verb: ronfler  
Pronunciation: [ ro(n) flay ]


Apparemment, je ronfle quand je dors. - Apparently, I snore when I sleep.

Ronfler also can mean to hum, to roar, to rev.

Faire ronfler son moteur - to rev one's engine

Leave your stories and uses for ronfler in the comments!

Téléfrançais

When I first started learning French, our teacher would often reward our progress by letting us watch a video on Fridays. As expected with this being school, the video was often of an educational nature. However, I soon discovered that French instructional programming, or at least the sort selected by my teachers, was scarcely devoid of entertainment.

One program in particular quickly gained a special place in my heart. It was so popular among my classmates that it was frequently discussed and requested to be played well throughout upper level French classes in high school.

Téléfrançais is a gem straight out of the Ministry of Education in Canada. Originally designed to teach French to Anglo-Ontarians, this TVOntario program from the '80s has gained a somewhat cult following. It stars Jacques, Sophie, and their friend Ananas (a talking pineapple. yes, really!) who engage in unlikely adventures and hilarity ensues.

If you are unfamiliar with the French student essential, I'm sure you'll soon be hooked. Here is the link to the first episode and you can find more on YouTube. Amusez-vous!

Par où commencer? / Where to start?

Bienvenue! Welcome to Francophiles Anonymes.

What is Francophiles Anonymes?
This is a project that I've had floating around in my head for quite some time now and I figured it best to finally start. This will be a French language and culture blog featuring cultural items that I find interesting as well as examinations of French words and phrases.

This may or may not be a daily blog and the days may or may not have themes, depending on my ambition.

So if you're a die-hard francophile like me I hope you'll join me when you're looking for your next French fix.