French Life-expat France

When I’m not dealing with the challenges of running French gites, the French language is one of the big challenges for me, and for pretty much anybody who moves to France. There are various stages that need to be passed through - asking simple questions, having a conversation, understanding the television, being able to understand overheard chat and so on. None are easy.

But a new challenge has emerged that possibly surpasses all of these, and that is messaging. Telephone text messages and MSN Messenger both use a more abbreviated version of the language than you are used to, and are not always immediately easy to understand. And even if you do understand, can you respond correctly to your teenage child? For those with no interest in the vagaries of the French language - best move on to a different entry!

Some examples to get you started in communicating (all shamelessly stolen from real conversations I’m sorry to say):

ta mere a dit koi

salut c chacha g reçu ton mail et o faite oui tu es ma copine je t adore rep a+

je sais pô quoi dire désole

t et la si t et là t rep OK!!!

a+ a12c4

Now if all that is immediately clear to you, well done. And if you can write like that, either ‘well done’, or ‘try harder next time’. A translation guide follows - straight into english, rather than via real French, I have to leave you a bit of a challenge - but with a bit of an explanatory note from time to time.

ta mere a dit koi: what did your mother say? (koi = quoi)

salut c chacha g reçu ton mail et o faite oui tu es ma copine je t adore rep a+ : Hello, it’s [Chacha], I received your email and yes you are my friend. I love you, see you soon. (In the French alphabet ‘g’ is pronounced the same as j’ai - I have - and a+ means à plus, an abbreviation of ‘à plus tard’ which means ’see you later’)

je sais pô quoi dire désolé : I’m sorry, I don’t know what to say

t et la si t et là t rep OK!!!: Are you there? If you are there please answer me!

a+ a12c4: See you later, to one of these days (à un de ces quatres - see you soon)

I hope that clears up some of the mystery for you, because it remains a mystery to me. Just be aware that however hard you try, however well you think you know French, you can never keep up with a 10 year old…