Sunday, October 12, 2014

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Lifting

Lifting London
Now and again there's time to read a little French. And as I cut my way through the jungle of half-understood expressions, something that is a great relief is to find old friends - words the French have lifted from English . Each one is a little encouragement: fewer new words to learn, and the sense that, in any case, French is moving closer to English.

But, there's a twist. The words don't always mean what we're used to them meaning in English.

One of the things they've been lifting is the word lifting itself. I've just come across it in the French/English Toulouse Airport magazine, InToulouse, in a piece to encourage visitors to London. Here's the actual French text:
"Sur les bords de la Tamise, tout bouge en permanence, à l’image du lifting architectural qui dynamise depuis quelques années la capitale anglaise."
Yes, lifting. The translation is:
"On the banks of the Thames, everything is in constant movement, like the new and exciting architecture which has boomed in Britain’s capital in recent years."
Doesn't that word lifting just jump out at you? Google translate says that in French it meas a face-lift, which I guess fits, what with the Shard going up and, no doubt, lots of other buildings too.

Why didn't the French just take the actual English word, face-lift? I guess it wasn't quite English enough. It had to be Englished up a bit more by adding that -ing ending. There we are, a properly English word that's had its own relooking, its own lifting

Monday, April 8, 2013

The Place to Be

Driving through Pibrac at the weekend I see a big poster advertising the big shopping centre at Blagnac:

"Le Centre Commercial Blagnac: THE PLACE TO BE."


"BE CHIC," I can understand:
I'm not so sure about "BE FOOD" though:






Monday, March 4, 2013

pressing

Listening to Le Grand Entretien I've just discovered Bernard Cerquiglini  and his great snippets-of-linguistics program Merci Professeur.

He explains things about the French languagge - where the word merci come from, why there are circumflexes on some words (hâte, pâte...), all manner of things.

And he touches on some anglicisms too. For instance pressing. A word that you might get as an adjective in English ("I have a more pressing engagement.") or as a verb ("We were pressing flowers.") but hardly ever as a noun ("From the first pressing of the olives").

In French it means a dry cleaner's. See Google Translate:


Here's Bernard Cerquiglini on the subject:


Saturday, January 5, 2013

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Geste do it.




[Indila]
Miss me miss me, you are the one who makes me feel
Makes me feel for real
In the night in the night, you know when I close my eyes
I can hear your voice for ever
Im dreaming, singing, hoping, smiling
Giving flying falling, fighting, crying, living, writting when you love me
Im dreaming, singing, hoping, smiling
Giving flying falling, fighting, crying, living, writting when you love me

[Youssoupha]
J'écris des textes en relief juste avec des rimes plates
J'ai pas changé mes rêves contre un chèque de 1000 plaque
Quand je suis en concert et que le public back
C'est grâce a Philo mon frère big up a mon big black
J'suis parti de mon bled forcé sous les bruits d'balles
Dans la rue les murs ont des oreilles et les briques parlent
Rap de référence tu sais je ne biz pas, espérant que ce putain de show biz ne me brise pas
D'une manière ou d'une autre rêvais de toucher le ciel
J'pouvais pas être astronaute alors j'ai fait de la scène
J'ai un pied sur terre, l'autre dans le vide
Un pied dans le superficiel, l'autre dans le din
J'ai un coeur chez les miens, un coeur chez les fous
Un coeur sur la main, un coeur au milieu de la foule

[Indila]



[Youssoupha]
(yeah)
J'allume une bougie pour éclairer nos remords
Je me bouge vite pour ne pas rester dehors
Le temps s'écoule vite donc on a besoin de l'or
Jai le flow de LL Cool J quand jai besoin de loves
Jai une main sur mes proches l'autre sur une femme
Jai une main sur le microphone l'autre sur une arme
Le succes est de taille mais faut garder nos repères
Plus belle sera la médaille plus lourd sera le revers
J'écris ces quelques lignes car souvent je m'y perd
La defaite est orpheline la victoire a mille pères
J'ai un œil sur nos vie un œil sur le monde
Un œil sur mon fils un œil sur la montre
Ma vie sans la foule triste anesthésie
Quand je souffre pour vous je souffre avec plaisir
En guise de refrain pour le public qui m'entoure
Ya cette voix qui revient pour vous dire tout mon amour

[Indila]

[Indila]
No one else but you
Im nothing without you
I don't want it to end
My love is ïn your hands</div>