# French expressions in English **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 8, 2018, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523 "2018-07-08T15:53:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2018, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/1 "2018-07-08T15:53:19Z")
Wiki has an interesting page on French expressions in English. > **[Glossary of French words and expressions in English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_French_expressions_in_English)** > > Many words in the English vocabulary are of French origin, most coming from the Anglo-Norman spoken by the upper classes in England for several hundred years after the Norman Conquest, before the language settled into what became Modern English. English words of French origin, such as art, competition, force, machine, and table are pronounced according to English rules of phonology, rather than French, and are commonly used by English speakers without any consciousness of their French origin... Of course I knew there were quite a few, but I was surprised just how many I was familiar with. How many did you know? Did they miss any that you know? What about “reservoir”? ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2018, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/2 "2018-07-08T15:57:42Z")
… if they’re going to include any word that comes from French (such as baguette) they’ll have to include quite a few hundred more. ---
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2018, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/3 "2018-07-08T16:20:36Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > … if they’re going to include any word that comes from French (such as baguette) they’ll have to include quite a few hundred more. “words” yes, many hundreds, I found the “expressions” to be interesting. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2018, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/4 "2018-07-08T16:39:11Z")
Actually tens of thousands. The article notes that a full 45% of English words derive from French, but says “This article, on the other hand, covers French words and phrases that have entered the English lexicon without ever losing their character as Gallicisms: they remain unmistakably “French” to an English speaker.” Obviously there is a certain amount of subjectivity in deciding what words fit that description. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2018, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/5 "2018-07-08T17:27:31Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > Actually tens of thousands. The article notes that a full 45% of English words derive from French, but says “This article, on the other hand, covers French words and phrases that have entered the English lexicon without ever losing their character as Gallicisms: they remain unmistakably “French” to an English speaker.” Obviously there is a certain amount of subjectivity in deciding what words fit that description. I just skimmed the list, but I’d be surprised if most American English speakers consider “gaffe” to be unmistakably French. Is it seen that way in Britain? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2018, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/6 "2018-07-08T18:19:42Z")
I could try to name some, but je ne sais quoi. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2018, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/7 "2018-07-08T19:33:41Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > Actually tens of thousands. The article notes that a full 45% of English words derive from French, but says “This article, on the other hand, covers French words and phrases that have entered the English lexicon without ever losing their character as Gallicisms: they remain unmistakably “French” to an English speaker.” Obviously there is a certain amount of subjectivity in deciding what words fit that description. entrepreneur 😛 (no, we’re not planning on letting y’all live that one down) ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2018, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/8 "2018-07-08T23:41:19Z")
As a raconteur and general bon vivant who’s personally come vis-a-vis avec torsades de pointes, I’m not surprised at all. Zut alors! ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/9 "2018-07-09T00:56:50Z")
Linking to Wiki. How gauche. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/10 "2018-07-09T01:13:33Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Linking to Wiki. How gauche. :rolleyes: Touche! ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/11 "2018-07-09T01:47:34Z")
There were quite a few that I have never heard used in English and some few (I would have included reservoir had it been on the list) that have been fully adopted as English words. In Quebec, there are a number of French words and phrases that are regularly used in English, but are limited to Quebec. Example: subvention for research grant. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/12 "2018-07-09T09:13:09Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > As a raconteur and general bon vivant who’s personally come vis-a-vis avec **torsades de pointes** , I’m not surprised at all. > > Zut alors! Wow, you’ve taught me a new expression in my mother tongue, thanks ! ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2018, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/13 "2018-07-10T20:54:51Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > I just skimmed the list, but I’d be surprised if most American English speakers consider “gaffe” to be unmistakably French. Is it seen that way in Britain? Never even considered the matter. So: no. j ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2018, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/14 "2018-07-10T21:12:03Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > There were quite a few that I have never heard used in English … …and some words that I do know have extremely specific uses, and not even in the original sense. (I was aching to pull them up on cul-de-sac, but the article properly notes that the French word for this is\* voie sans issue\*). I was actually stopped in my tracks by the first word. “à gogo” is (to the best of my knowledge) almost never used in English except in gogo dancer and Whisky-a-gogo. So it’s a very strange inclusion. My feeling is that a lot of this list comes from the\* Just Thought Of Another!\* school of wiki editing j ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2018, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/15 "2018-07-10T21:46:15Z")
“_We don’t just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary._” – James Nicoll ---
**Author:** ![DavidwithanR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3bc359/32.png) [@DavidwithanR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidwithanR)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2018, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/french-expressions-in-english/817523/16 "2018-07-11T16:10:49Z")
It’s fun to twist history and pronounce some of these either too French or not French enough. Hors d’oeuvres is a good example - either going full-on French, or fully anglicizing it to “Horse doovers”. 🙂