From 2013 to 2014 I produced a series on Québécois expressions in Concordia University student newspaper The LINK. These are just a sample of the comics I’ve produced during that time.
Liqueur (lee-kar)
Commonly known as a soft drink. Hard liquor could be translated to “spiritueux”, “fort” or “liqueur de (name of the kind of alcohol)”.
Char (shar)
“Char” is used to describe a car, but the correct term would be “automobile” or “voiture.” “Char” commonly refers to a tank (char d’assault) or chariot.
Pété au ‘Frette’ (pay-tay oh fret)
“Pété au Frette” is a colloquial expression to describe when something is broken or has stopped working when it’s cold. It originally referred to the trees that popped and cracked under really cold temperatures. “Péter” means to blow up or to break, and “frette” is a way of saying “froid,” or cold.
Pas pire (pah peer)
This roughly translates to “not bad.” Even though “pire” means worst, it would not translate to “not the worst.” “Pas mal” is the more popular way of saying “not bad” across the pond.
Barrer (bah-ray)
To lock. In the days of yore a big wooden bar used to lock the doors. France uses the words “verrouiller” or “fermer à clé” instead.
Tanné (tan-eh)
In the Québécois dialect, “tanné” means being “fed up” or being annoyed with something you’ve been doing or dealing with for a long time. The correct use of “tanner” is the action of tanning leather.
Y’a rien là (ya ree-ay law)
Literally translates to “there’s nothing there.” In this context it means “no problem” or “it’s nothing.”
De valeur (deh-vah-lehr)
Used in colloquial Québécois, “c’est de valeur” means, “it’s too bad.”
Lendemain de Brosse (lah-deh-may deh Bross)
This expression is used to describe being hungover. “Lendemain” translate to the next day and to take “une brosse” means to drink until intoxication. In other words, “lendemain de brosse” is the day after the drunkenness.
