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FRENCH WORD OF THE DAY

French Word of the Day: Zut!

This French word was probably taught to you by your French teacher, but you may not have heard it on the streets of France yet.

Published: 13 March 2024 11:44 CET

French Word of the Day: Zut!

Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

Why do I need to know zut ?

Because this is a polite way to express frustration in France.

What does it mean?

Zut – roughly pronounced zoot – is a French interjection that basically means “damn” or “shoot”.

If you lose the card game, drop a plate or accidentally step in dog poop, you might let out a zut! in frustration.

While colloquial, it is not very offensive and you are most likely to hear older people or children using it.

That being said, it is not very commonly used and it is falling out of fashion, especially among young people.

You are more likely to hear the average frustrated French person use swear words like putain, or the more sanitised, family-friendly versions such as purée or mince.

READ MORE: Cows and bugs: How to ‘swear’ politely in French

The French dictionary La Rousse defines zut as a way of expressing “spite, weariness, indifference, contempt, or refusal.”

French textbooks in the anglophone world seem strangely convinced that French people say ‘zut alors‘, but this is very rarely heard in France.

Use it like this

Oh zut, tu as gagné ! Je n’ai toujours pas de cartes correspondantes. – Oh shoot, you win! I still do not have any matching cards.

Zut ! J’ai fait tomber l’assiette ! – Damn! I dropped the plate!

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French Expression of the Day: Avec des si on mettrait Paris en bouteille

Why do I need to know avec des si on mettrait Paris en bouteille?

Because every so often we all have outlandish things to say.

What does it mean?

Avec des si on mettrait Paris en bouteille – roughly pronounced ah-veck day see ohn met-tray Par-ee ahn boo-tie – translates as ‘with ifs we could put Paris in a bottle’.

As you might’ve guessed, this French expression is not a literal one. In reality, avec des si… is more of a proverb than something you would say in everyday conversation, though don’t be surprised if an older French person uses it to temper your expectations.

People have been speaking this French phrase since at least the 18th century, and it is meant to be a warning against unnecessary or irrelevant speculation and doubt.

The expression basically means if the impossible were possible (e.g. putting the entire city of Paris into a bottle), then reality would be different, but there is no point in worrying or fantasising about unrealistic things.

A similar English expression might be “if ‘its’ and ‘buts’ were candy and nuts, it would be Christmas every day”.

You might use this French expression if your friend has a habit of imagining the worst case scenario all the time.

Someone might also add it after describing an unlikely hypothetical situation – for example ‘if I were president…’ or ‘if I were the wealthiest person in the world…’

Use it like this

Si je dirigeais le monde, je mettrais fin à la faim dans le monde, mais avec des si on mettrait Paris en bouteille. – If I ruled the world, then I’d end global hunger, but no point in fantasising about the impossible.

Si j’étais maire de Paris, j’exigerais que tous les habitants nettoient les déjections de leurs chiens, mais bon. Avec des si on mettrait Paris en bouteille. – If I was the mayor of Paris, I’d make everyone clean up after their dogs, but whatever. That’s a pipe dream.

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