Why translating french word-for-word can help - or confuse

SOMETIMES EVEN FRENCH PEOPLE CANNOT EXPLAIN A FAMILIAR PHRASE BECAUSE THAT IS ‘JUST THE WAY IT IS’ When learning another language, many of us are told not to translate phrases too literally.

However, doing so can often help us to remember them. For example, ‘what is it that it is?’ still helps me to spell _qu’est-ce que c’est?_, even though I have lived here since 2004. Many

people do the same with ‘I have hot’ or ‘I have 21 years’. WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT! One of my favourite French phrases is _regarde-moi ça un peu_, the literal translation of which would be

‘look at me that a bit’. Have you come across this one? ‘Look at me that a bit’ is used to point something out, with the goal of sharing laughter, or perhaps indignation. READ MORE: WIDEN

YOUR VOCABULARY WITH 10 ALTERNATIVES TO COMMON FRENCH PHRASES For example, two mothers might be at the park chatting while their children play, when one child starts ordering the other kids

around from the top of the climbing frame. Her mother might nudge the other parent and say_ regarde-moi ça un peu_, before they both start chuckling. Our English equivalent is ‘would you

look at that!’, but the reason I particularly love the French version is the _moi_, which is present even in the short version (_regarde-moi ça_). Essentially, the speaker is inviting you to

look at ‘that’ (_ça_) but actually begins with ‘look at me’ (_regarde-moi_), which is an impossibility unless you have independently functioning eyes. At least they are only asking you to

do this for a short time (_un peu_). READ MORE: SIX IDIOMS TO SPICE UP YOUR FRENCH CONVERSATIONS FRENCH PEOPLE CANNOT EXPLAIN IT EITHER Here in Brittany, an event occasionally warrants an

extension: _regarde-moi ça un peu, là!_ means ‘look at me that a bit, there’, which now gives you three places to look. Ask a French person to explain this phrase, and after an initial

attempt at justification they will usually conclude: Bah, c’est comme ça. Indeed, that’s just the way it is. There are some phrases and aspects of French life that you simply have to accept

and then move on. Next time you want to point something out to a French acquaintance, invite them to ‘look-at-me-that-a-bit’ and you will sound like a native. RELATED ARTICLES UNRAVEL THE

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