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FRENCH WORD OF THE DAY

French Word of the Day: La rentrée (is it that time already?)

Because today's the day.

French Word of the Day: La rentrée (is it that time already?)
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

Why have we chosen la rentrée?

From news sites to adverts, this word is hard to escape at the moment. 

In France, la rentrée doesn’t only refer to a specific time of year, it is also something of a tradition and a cultural moment in France.

So, what does it mean?

La rentrée – pronounced lah ron-tray – literally means ‘the return’ and is the term used to mean the start of the school year and the return to work after the summer holidays during the first week of September.

But as you’ll know if you live in France, it takes on a greater sense of importance than the English translation might suggest. 

In France, with many people – especially those with children – taking three weeks off over the summer and with school children on holiday for a whopping two months during July and August, getting back to work after the break is a big deal.  

It is almost seen as a substitute for New Year and in France la rentrée is seen as a fresh beginning, which doesn’t only apply to school children – adults return to work, governments usually launch a new programme of policies and there’s a flurry of new books published.

Why ‘la rentrée’ means so much more in France than a new school year

La rentrée scolaire – the school return, traditionally on September 1st

La rentrée littéraire – the peak of the publishing year, as new books are published in September, hoping to catch the eye of the judges of France’s book prizes.

La rentrée politique – the restart of parliament after its summer break and the launching of new policy programmes 

Examples

La rentrée scolaire aura lieu début septembre – The start of the school year will take place at the beginning of September.

In headlines:

Les 100 choses à faire à Paris à la rentrée – One hundred things to do in Paris at the beginning of term.

Le coût de la rentrée scolaire de plus en plus cher – The cost of the start of the school year gets more and more expensive.

Bonne rentrée à tous !

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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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