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Thursday, March 19, 2015

French words of the day: culottes, concierge, moi!

Sometimes a simple translation is not enough, because of the implications, or alternative possibilities, often depending on context.

culottes - cut trousers, short trousers, can be below knee or above, like short bell bottoms, sometimes called a divided skirt

concierge - not a porter who carries bags, but a front desk person dealing with travel, restaurant bookings, recommendations for shopping and other bookings and needs outside the hotel,

- in a block of flats a receptionist and manager, checking visitors are expected by phoning to alert flat owners, checking credentials, taking parcels, helping workers on site

moi - literally me, used as an expression of affected surprise, (you don't mean me - surely not, certainly not) not me, never me, would I ever - sometimes ironic.

Chocolate Museum, Minsk, Belarus.

Angela Lansbury B A Hons, chocoholic author, photographer, speaker.

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