It gives you a taste of real French, the authentic language of native speakers.<\/p>\n
You can learn some of those French slang expressions right here. Memorize as many as you like, and be sure to drop them in front of your French-speaking friends!
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Before we get into our list, check out this video from the FluentU French YouTube channel<\/a> to hear some of the most common French slang terms:<\/p>\n Did you already know any of them? Great!<\/p>\n If not, no worries. We won’t cover every slang expression you just saw in our video, but we’ll go over some in more detail as well as plenty of other useful French slang expressions.<\/p>\n Our first French slang expression is similar to the extremely common Q&A phrase \u00e7a va<\/em><\/a>, and it means the same thing: “How are you?” “Good!”<\/p>\n This phrase uses the verb baigner <\/em>(to bathe), and refers to something submerged in a liquid, as in: \u00c7a baigne dans de l’huile<\/em> (It is bathed in oil).<\/p>\n In fact, that’s likely where this mid-20th century expression comes from!\u00a0\u00c7a baigne <\/em>is often associated with the beach, where people se baignent <\/em>(go for a dip) or are often baign\u00e9s <\/em>(bathed) in oil\u2014tanning oil, that is.<\/p>\n -Je t\u2019ai pas vu depuis longtemps. \u00c7a baigne <\/strong>?<\/em>\u00a0(I haven\u2019t seen you in a long time. Everything going okay?) While this expression isn’t all that vulgar, it’s definitely not for mixed company.<\/p>\n That’s because the real meaning of the last word, p\u00e9ter<\/em>, is “to fart.”<\/p>\n And, originally, the la <\/em>combined with bretelle <\/em>(suspender), because in the 19th century, holding out one’s suspender and making it p\u00e8te <\/em>(snap) against one’s chest was a way of punctuating a brag or show-offy comment.<\/p>\n Nowadays, leave bretelle <\/em>out of this phrase\u2014unless you’re in Qu\u00e9bec!<\/p>\n J\u2019aimerais qu\u2019il arr\u00eate de se la p\u00e9ter<\/strong>. Il est hyper arrogant ! <\/em>(I wish he\u2019d stop showing off. He\u2019s so arrogant!)<\/p>\n This is a very casual, bordering-on-rude way to say that you’re leaving somewhere.<\/p>\n It can also be used as a suggestion: On se casse ? <\/em>(Should we get out of here?)<\/p>\n And it can even be used as a sort of insult. To say Casse-toi ! <\/em>to someone means, “Get out of here!” or even “Piss off!”<\/p>\n Don’t say it around just anyone, but if you’re being harassed in the street, a well-placed Casse-toi ! <\/em>definitely gets the message across.<\/p>\n J\u2019en ai marre de cette situation. Je me casse <\/strong>!\u00a0<\/em>(I\u2019ve had enough of this situation. I\u2019m outta here!)<\/p>\n Astute French grammarians will see that the negator\u00a0ne<\/em> has been dropped from this phrase, as it has in most French slang expressions.<\/p>\n You can use this phrase as in “he’s super out of it,” or to describe an airhead or someone a few crayons short of a full box.<\/p>\n For more emphasis, you can say,\u00a0Il capte trois fois rien<\/em>\u00a0(He doesn’t understand anything times three). Of course, astute mathematicians will say that three times nothing is still nothing, but French slang isn’t an exact science!<\/p>\n Il est vraiment \u00e9tourdi. Il capte rien <\/strong>aujourd\u2019hui.<\/em> (He\u2019s really in a daze. He just isn\u2019t understanding anything today.)<\/p>\n Laisse tomber <\/em>means “Let it go” or, directly translated, “Let it fall.”<\/p>\n This is a great expression for when the person you’re talking to doesn’t understand what you’re saying and you’re tired of trying to explain… which can happen frequently when you’re learning a language!<\/p>\n This expression has become so common in French that some prefer to use it in verlan<\/em> (a special type of French slang)<\/a>.\u00a0The verlan <\/em>for laisse tomber <\/em>is laisse b\u00e9ton<\/em>, which becomes all the more amusing when you realize that b\u00e9ton <\/em>also means “concrete.”<\/p>\n Laisse tomber<\/em><\/strong>\u2014\u00e7a ne vaut pas la peine de se disputer. <\/em>(Let it go\u2014it\u2019s not worth arguing about.)<\/p>\n Flemme <\/em>comes from the same root as flegmat<\/em>ique<\/em>, though while the latter describes someone of a relaxed and peaceful nature, flemme <\/em>is more negative in nature and refers to laziness.<\/p>\n Someone using this phrase is\u00a0saying that they aren’t in the mood to do a task set before them, or that they’re in a general state of laziness at that point in time.<\/p>\n Je dois finir mes devoirs, mais j\u2019ai la flemme<\/strong><\/em>\u2014je vais plut\u00f4t faire la grasse matin\u00e9e. <\/em>(I should finish my homework, but I\u2019m feeling lazy\u2014I\u2019m going to sleep in instead.)<\/p>\n Those born before the early ’90s will remember when “duh” became the word of choice for teens across America. So is sans d\u00e9c <\/em>for French teens today.<\/p>\n Sans d\u00e9c <\/em>is the abbreviated version of Sans d\u00e9conner<\/em>, which means approximately “You’re not kidding,” though the word choice is far stronger than “kidding.”<\/p>\n This is a fairly vulgar expression that you’ll want to avoid in mixed company. For a similar but tamer expression, try sans blague <\/em>(no joke).<\/p>\n -Tricoter un pullover, c\u2019est un vrai effort ! <\/em>(Knitting a sweater is a real effort!) This expression is usually used to describe someone’s foreign language skills… and it’s not a compliment. It’s a colorful way of saying that they don’t speak very well.<\/p>\n In fact, you’ll often hear French speakers complain that they speak English comme une vache espagnole<\/em>\u00a0(“like a Spanish cow”).<\/p>\n If someone ever does compare your language skills to a Spanish cow, you should be sure to have a ready retort to prove them wrong.<\/p>\n C\u2019est difficile de l’\u00e9couter parler en fran\u00e7ais. Elle le parle comme une vache espagnole<\/strong> ! <\/em>(It\u2019s hard to listen to her speak French. She speaks it like a Spanish cow!)<\/p>\n In French, saying that you have a creux <\/em>(hollow) means a very specific place\u2014your stomach.<\/p>\n This isn’t commonly used to express great hunger, but it comes in handy when someone asks if you’d like to eat and you want to say something like “I’m a bit peckish” or “I could eat.”<\/p>\n If you do want to use this expression when you’re very hungry, just remove the petit <\/em>(little) and replace it with a grand\u00a0<\/em>(big).<\/p>\n Je veux pas bouffer maintenant;\u00a0j\u2019ai<\/strong> juste un petit creux<\/strong>. <\/em>(I don\u2019t want to pig out; I\u2019m just a little peckish.)<\/p>\n Those familiar with French slang probably don’t see how this counts as an expression, but quoi <\/em>isn’t always just “what.”<\/p>\n In recent years, French speakers have started using quoi <\/em>as a general way to punctuate sentences. It has no real meaning, save one of slight emphasis or summary.<\/p>\n It’s actually difficult to use quoi <\/em>incorrectly. Start tacking it on to the end of your sentences for emphasis, and see how impressed your French friends are!<\/p>\n Je vais marcher au restaurant pour la grande bouffe. C\u2019est une sorte d\u2019exercice, quoi<\/strong>. <\/em>(I\u2019m going to walk to the restaurant for the big feast. It\u2019s sort of exercising, whatever.)<\/p>\n Elle aime les sucreries, les bonbons, s\u2019empiffrer de chocolat, quoi<\/strong>. <\/em>(She likes sweets, candies, binging on chocolate, and so forth.)<\/p>\n The literal translation is: “To be in the coal tar.”\u00a0Coal tar is a thick, black liquid byproduct of coal processing. It has some purported medicinal purposes but is mostly used for paving roads and waterproofing roofs.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re in this icky stuff, it means you\u2019re not thinking clearly\u2014you\u2019re in a daze, you’re dizzy or disoriented.<\/p>\n There are two similar expressions: \u00eatre dans le cirage<\/em> (to be in (wood\/shoe) polish) and the more modern variation<\/a> \u00eatre dans le p\u00e2t\u00e9<\/em> (to be in the p\u00e2t\u00e9<\/em>, a finely ground mixture of meat and fat).<\/p>\n J\u2019ai travaill\u00e9 jour et nuit, sans cesse. Je me sens vraiment\u00a0dans le coaltar<\/strong> ! <\/em>(I worked night and day, without a break. I really feel like I\u2019m in a daze!)<\/p>\n Une piste <\/em>literally means “a trail” or “a track,” but partir en piste <\/em>is a way of saying, “to go out drinking”\u2014and not just a beer after work.<\/p>\n It’s used for planned debauchery in Bretagne<\/em><\/a> (Brittany), where the expression means getting “fall-down” drunk.\u00a0It has a similar connotation in French-speaking Switzerland<\/a>, though the Swiss version is a bit milder\u2014perhaps causal socialization that then escalates to inebriation.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re more interested in dancing than drunkenness, you can also use partir en piste <\/em>to mean “hit the dance floor.”<\/p>\n Nous sommes partis en piste<\/strong> hier soir et j\u2019ai toujours la gueule de bois. <\/em>(We went out drinking last night and I still have a hangover. [literally, “wooden mouth”])<\/p>\n Alice aime bien danser; donc, elle a demand\u00e9 \u00e0 Patrick de partir en piste<\/strong>. <\/em>(Alice really likes to dance, so she asked Patrick to go out on the dance floor.)<\/p>\n No matter where you started, finir sur la paille<\/em> (literally “to finish on the straw”) means that you end up poor.<\/p>\n This expression may go back to the story of Jesus\u2019 nativity, in which the newborn was laid in a manger<\/a>. Traditionally, the bedding is portrayed as straw, which is used for farm animals\u2014a humble place for humans to rest.<\/p>\n If someone ends up “on the straw,” they are out of resources with no money or means whatsoever.<\/p>\n Si tu fais confiance en un financier louche, tu peux finir sur la paille<\/strong> ! <\/em>(If you put your faith in a shady financial advisor, you can end up broke!)<\/p>\n Une rallonge <\/em>(an extension) can refer to many things: an extra leaf for your dining table, an extension cord or even extra time on a deadline.<\/p>\n Demander une rallonge<\/em> can also be used to ask for an advance on your salary, or simply for some extra money.<\/p>\n And in the context of a courtroom, it can be a way to ask for a continuance<\/a> in a trial, if more time were needed to prepare a case.<\/p>\n Apr\u00e8s s’\u00eatre rendu compte qu\u2019elle n\u2019avait pas assez de temps pour finir sa dissertation, Anne a demand\u00e9 une rallonge<\/strong> \u00e0 son prof. <\/em>(After having realized that she wouldn\u2019t have enough time to finish her term paper, Anne asked her professor for an extension.)<\/p>\n Originally, the whole expression was tirer les marrons du feu avec la patte du chat <\/em>(to pull the chestnuts out of the fire with the cat\u2019s paw), in reference to Jean de la Fontaine\u2019s poetic adaptation of “Le Singe et le Chat”<\/em><\/a> (“The Monkey and the Cat”) in 1679.<\/p>\n Figuratively, it was a way of saying that someone was doing something dangerous or risky in order to get a reward, traditionally for the benefit of someone else.<\/p>\n The phrase was shortened<\/a> to simply tirer les marrons du feu<\/em>, and while it can still mean doing something dangerous for someone else\u2019s benefit, it can also mean that you <\/em>will reap the reward from the risk.<\/p>\n Si je risque mon propre argent dans cet investissement, je pourrais tirer les marrons du feu<\/b> et gagner beaucoup. <\/em>(If I risk my own money on this investment, I could profit it from it and gain a lot of money.)<\/p>\n Colle <\/em>means “glue” or “paste.” Have you ever had to ask a difficult or “sticky” question? In French slang, you’d call this poser une colle<\/em>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n It can also mean to “pose a riddle,” ask a trick question or make someone guess about something. For example, il m\u2019a pos\u00e9 une colle<\/em> means “he stumped me,” and se<\/em> poser une colle <\/em>means that someone has put you on the spot or forced you into an awkward position.<\/p>\n Colle<\/em> can also be slang for after-school detention or a classroom test.<\/p>\n H\u00e9l\u00e8ne est une fille pleine de curiosit\u00e9. Chaque jour, elle pose une colle<\/strong> \u00e0 ses parents et ils ont du mal \u00e0 y r\u00e9pondre. <\/em>(H\u00e9l\u00e8ne is very curious girl. Every day, she asks her parents a tricky question and they have a hard time answering it.)<\/p>\n If tempers are flaring, this is an informal way you might tell an agitated person to tone down their anger and chill out a bit.<\/p>\n It can also mean to approach something carefully, slow down or take it slow. Mollo<\/em> is a hip, slang way of saying mollement<\/em>\u2014an adverb meaning “softly,” “lazily” or “half-heartedly.”<\/p>\n –Je peux pas croire ce qu\u2019il a fait ! <\/em>(I can\u2019t believe what he did!) Vas-y mollo<\/em><\/strong> ici. Ce travail est d\u00e9licat.<\/em> (Go lightly here. This is delicate work.)<\/p>\n As French slang, zoner <\/em>is much like “zoning out” in English. As a\u00a0regular -ER verb<\/a>, zoner<\/em> means “to hang around,” “to loiter,” “to bum around” or “to slum it.”<\/p>\n It’s a particularly popular term in French hip-hop. Djadja & Dinaz use the expression Je zone<\/em><\/a> extensively in their song<\/a> by that title. Artist RK has two songs that use this expression: “Zone<\/a><\/em>” and “J\u2019ai trop zon\u00e9<\/a><\/em>.”<\/p>\n Moi, je suis trop \u00e9puis\u00e9 pour travailler. Je vais simplement zoner<\/strong> avec mes potes aujourd\u2019hui. <\/em>(I\u2019m too wiped out to work. I\u2019m just going to chill out with my friends today.)<\/p>\n This expression means you\u2019ve got a bad attitude, you’re headed down the wrong path, you\u2019ve fallen on hard times, you\u2019re in a funk or you\u2019re just cranky and moody.<\/p>\n Literally it’s “to spin a bad cotton,” though it can also be used to mean that someone\u2019s health is in decline. You might say it when you feel a cold coming on or use it to describe a period of illness in someone\u2019s life.<\/p>\n Ces ados Common French Slang Words and Phrases<\/h2>\n
1. \u00c7a baigne ? \u00c7a baigne ! <\/em>\u2014 How’s it going? It’s going!<\/h3>\n
\n-Ouais, \u00e7a baigne<\/strong> ! <\/em>(Yeah, it\u2019s going well!)<\/p>\n2. Arr\u00eate de te la p\u00e9ter <\/em>\u2014 Stop showing off<\/h3>\n
3. Je me casse <\/em>\u2014 I’m outta here<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/french-slang-je-me-casse.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n4. Il capte rien <\/em>\u2014 He doesn’t understand anything<\/h3>\n
5. Laisse tomber <\/em>\u2014 Never mind<\/h3>\n
6. J’ai la flemme <\/em>\u2014 I’m (feeling) lazy<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/french-slang-jai-la-flemme.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n7. Sans d\u00e9c<\/strong><\/em><\/a> \u2014 No kidding<\/h3>\n
\n-Sans d\u00e9c<\/strong>. Il m\u2019a fallu un mois pour finir.<\/em> (No joke. It took me a month to finish.)<\/p>\n8. Parler comme une vache espagnole <\/em>\u2014 Talk like a Spanish cow<\/h3>\n
9. J’ai un petit creux <\/em>\u2014 I’m a little hungry<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/french-slang-Jai-un-petit-creux.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n10. Quoi <\/em>\u2014 What (etc.)<\/h3>\n
11. \u00catre dans le coaltar <\/em>\u2014 To be in a daze<\/h3>\n
12. Partir en piste <\/em>\u2014 To go out and get drunk<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/french-slang-Partir-en-piste.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n13. Finir sur la paille <\/em>\u2014 To end up destitute<\/h3>\n
14. Demander une rallonge <\/em>\u2014 Request an extension<\/h3>\n
15. Tirer les marrons du feu <\/em>\u00a0\u2014 To pull the chestnuts from the fire<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/french-slang-Tirer-les-marrons-du-feu.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n16. Poser une colle <\/em>\u2014 Ask a difficult\/tricky question<\/h3>\n
17. Vas-y mollo <\/em>\u2014 Take it easy\/Chill<\/h3>\n
\n<\/em>–Vas-y mollo<\/strong>. Ce n\u2019est pas si mal que \u00e7a.<\/em> (Take it easy. It\u2019s not that bad.)<\/p>\n18. Zoner <\/em><\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 Zone out\/Hang around<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/french-slang-zoner.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n19. Filer un mauvais coton <\/em>\u2014 To be headed for trouble<\/h3>\n