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FRENCH WORD OF THE DAY

French Word of the Day: Verbaliser

This French word usually has little to do with turning a noun into a verb.

French Word of the Day: Verbaliser
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

Why do I need to know verbaliser?

Because if you find yourself interacting with a French police officer, this word would be important to know.

What does it mean?
 
Verbaliser – roughly pronounced vehr-bah-lee-zay – might look like an easy word to translate into English, but most of the time it actually means that you’re being given a fine or other penalty.

So if you’re driving over the speed limit for example, not wearing a seatbelt or cycling with earphones in or other low-level offences you might get pulled over and the police officer would record your offence or give you a fine. In this case, you would find yourself being ‘verbalisé’ by the officer.

This term often comes up whenever the French government is considering instituting a new fine or penalty.

Though less common, verbaliser can be used in other contexts aside from interacting with law enforcement. Just like it is in English, it can also mean “to verbalise” your thoughts rather than think them or write them down.

If you are looking for a synonym for verbaliser, you might say pénaliser, sanctionner, condemner, or payer une amende (to pay a fine).

Use it like this

Je suis passée au feu rouge, l’agent me verbalise. – I went through a red light and the police officer gave me a fine.

La Ville peut verbaliser les infractions au code de la route grâce à la vidéo protection. – The city can sanction road traffic offences thanks to video surveillance footage.

Member comments

  1. Did I read paragraph eight correctly?
    Surely that is one of those French driving myths.
    Why would driving without a shirt on be illegal? I quite often drive, in the summer, in just a vest. Does that mean I’m breaking the law?

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For members

FRENCH WORD OF THE DAY

French Word of the Day: Flipper

This French word does not have anything to do with marine mammals.

French Word of the Day: Flipper

Why do I need to know flipper?

Because this anglicism is used a bit differently in French than it would be in English.

What does it mean?

Flipper – roughly pronounced flea-pay – is a colloquial French term and these days it means to be upset or overly anxious. People often use it similarly to the English expression ‘to freak out’.

As you may have expected, the term is an anglicism, and it comes from the English word ‘to flip’. 

However, in French it does not mean to literally flip something over – you would use renverser for that. It comes from a different usage of the word ‘flip’, more in line with ‘losing one’s head’.

The word started being popular in France in the 1970s, and at that time it was almost exclusively used to describe the experience of ‘freaking out’ or having a bad trip after taking LSD or other hallucinogenic drugs, according to Le Figaro.

Over time, it started to refer to the period of depression many people experience after feelings of euphoria when high, as well as the anxiety that one might feel due to withdrawal. 

Nowadays, people mainly use it to refer to any irrational response. You can also call something flippant (shocking).

A more formal synonym for flipper might be paniquer.

And if you find yourself in an arcade, you may hear the word a few times, as flipper is also the French term for a pinball machine.

Use it like this

Arrête de flipper, on va être à l’heure.  – Stop freaking out, we’re going to be on time.

Les résultats des élections m’ont vraiment fait flipper. Mes amis n’ont pas été surpris pour autant. – The results of the election really freaked me out. My friends weren’t surprised though.

J’ai flippé en regardant le film d’horreur. – I freaked out when I was watching the horror movie.

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