Sayings from our regions

Each week, Pandora’s Box reveals a saying from Belgium, Brittany, the Pyrenees or the French Riviera: what it means and how to use it like a local. Here they all are, for the curious among you.

The Belgian word Belgium

• Il dracheIt’s pouring down: ideal for small talk at the start of a video call on a rainy day.
• S’il vous plaîtUsed instead of ‘here you are’ when handing a document or a coffee to a colleague.
• Jouer avec les pieds de quelqu’unTo push someone’s patience to the limit: ideal for describing a tough negotiation.
• SavoirUsed to mean ‘can’ (‘Je sais vous envoyer le rapport cet après-midi’, i.e. ‘I can send you the report this afternoon’): a natural turn of phrase to close a business email.

The Breton word Brittany

• C’est la reuzIt’s chaos, a total mess: ideal for describing a badly filed folder or a stormy meeting.
• Partir en riboulTo go out partying: one to suggest to the team once a big project is wrapped up.
• KenavoGoodbye, literally ‘until we meet again’: perfect for ending a video call.
• Un goulennA question or a request: ideal for opening the Q&A session after a presentation.

The Pyrenean word the Pyrenees

• Adiu ! Adishatz !Hello or goodbye in Gascon: ‘adiu’ to one person, ‘adishatz’ to greet the whole group as you arrive at the office.
• Être espantéTo be astonished or dumbfounded: perfect for expressing surprise at an unexpected turn of events.
• MiladiúAn exclamation of surprise or dismay in Gascon: perfect for reacting to news of yet another last-minute meeting.
• A vista de nasGascon for ‘by the look of it’, roughly ‘at a guess’: perfect for signing off a provisional budget or a rough delivery date.

The Niçois word the French Riviera

• Ça m’espanteThat amazes me: one to drop on a café terrace on the Cours Saleya.
• PeuchèreAn expression of sympathy, ‘poor thing’: for the colleague stuck in traffic.
• Ça pègueIt’s sticky: one to say while tidying the meeting room after a leaving do.
• Un pitchounA little one or a youngster: used affectionately for the team’s new recruit or apprentice.