Crier au loup

L’expression française “crier au loup” vient d’une fable d’Esope (écrivain de la Grèce antique) intitulé “Le garçon qui criait au loup” (The Boy Who Cried Wolf). 

Wolf, Winter, Nature, Wilderness, Cold, Snow, Mountain

Cette expression signifie “exagérer l’alerte” et par extension “mentir” et “répandre des rumeurs alarmistes”, comme le garçon dans cette fable qui a force de s’amuser à prétendre qu’il a vu le loup, a été complètement ignoré par les villageois quand il en avait vu un et avait besoin d’aide. 

L’équivalent anglais est “to cry wolf” issu du même récit.   

Vocabulary

  • une fable = un récit imaginaire
  • écrivain: a writer
  • intitulé: entitled
  • répandre = diffuser des propos (to spread)
  • récit: a story, a tale

75th Anniversary of “Le Petit Prince”

This article is about one of the most famous French writers, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and probably the most famous French book, “Le Petit Prince”.

I was actually astonished to discover two fascinating things related to “Le Petit Prince” ,aka “The Little Prince” in English.

First thing is that the book was in fact first published in the United States, not in France. For the true fans of de Saint-Exupéry it might be something extremely trivial, as they all probably know that this was where the author went into exile in 1940, after the surrender of France to Nazi Germany. “Le Petit Prince” was subsequently published in 1943 in New York and in both French and English.

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Le mauvais temps: Weather Vocabulary

Le mauvais temps

The autumn has been here for some time now and the weather it has brought inspired me to post some interesting expressions related to (not so nice) weather.

Check how well you know the French expressions related to bad weather.  Some of them are similar to the English ones, others are a bit funny and surprising. How many of them do You know ?

10 Popular French Sayings

Popular French Sayings

It’s always fun to drop some common saying during a conversation. I always get the impression that I sound more natural and “native-like’ whenever I use one of these. But let’s cut to the chase, here are 10 very popular French sayings and their English equivalents.

How many of them do you know ? Try to guess and check how well you know the French language !

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How I Obtained the French Citizenship: Application and Interview

Requirements: Is It Hard to Apply For The French Citizenship ?

The general requirements are:

  • 5 years of residency in France: you will have to prove it by providing tax assessment, proof of lodging, owning a property, etc.
  • the proof of proficiency in French language at at least B1 CEFR level: a DELF or DALF test certification, or a certificate / degree from a French University as it was in my case.  
  • A financial guarantee, i.e. you are have an income of some sort (you are employed, or have a legal activity / company that generates income, or that you simply have lots of money)

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