🗣️L'argot et son origine
Ce que les gens disent vraiment, et d'où vient chaque mot.
8 concepts
Les colonnes suivent les langues activées en haut. Le genre après le mot (m/f/n) ; l'API en dessous ; les notes, variantes et origines encore en dessous — rien n'est caché.
| Concept | English | Français | Español |
|---|---|---|---|
great / cool adjective · slang | coolslang also: sick, wicked (UK), lit 1930s–40s African-American jazz slang (cool jazz), from 'cool-headed' composure. Still going after 80 years — most slang dies in ten. | génialinformal also: trop bien, chouette, ouf / de ouf 'Of genius' → 'brilliant'. Trop bien, chouette (older; from the owl, 19th c.), and ouf (verlan — syllable reversal — of fou 'mad') are the street versions. | guayslang also: chévere, chido, bacán Spain, 1980s movida madrileña; origin unclear. Latin America: chévere (Caribbean, probably from Efik via Cuba), chido (Mexico), bacán (Chile/Peru), copado (Argentina). |
money noun · slang | quidslang also: bucks (US), dough, cash UK, 17th c.; probably from Latin quid pro quo. Bucks (US) from buckskins traded on the frontier; dough/bread from the 'money feeds you' image. | fricslang also: thune, blé, pognon, oseille 19th c., from fricot (stew) → fricoter (to cook up / fiddle). French has dozens: thune, blé (wheat), oseille (sorrel), pognon, flouze (Arabic flous). | pastaslang also: plata, lana, guita Spain — 'dough', the same image as English. Latin America: plata (silver), lana (Mexico, 'wool'), guita (Argentina), billete. |
mate / buddy noun · slang | mateinformal also: buddy (US), bro, pal UK/AU. From Middle Low German māt, 'companion' — literally someone you share meat with. Buddy (US) from 'brother' in baby-talk, or butty (workmate). | poteinformal also: mec, frérot, copain 19th c., shortened from poteau 'post' — a friend as solid as a post. Mec = guy; frérot = little bro. | tíoslang also: colega, güey (Mexico), pana Spain: literally 'uncle', used like 'dude'. Güey (Mexico) from buey 'ox' — once an insult, now punctuation. Pana (Venezuela/Caribbean), parce (Colombia, from parcero). |
to eat (informally) verb · slang | to grab a biteinformal also: nosh, scoff (UK), chow down (US) Nosh is from Yiddish nashn 'to nibble'; scoff (UK) from Afrikaans/Dutch schoft 'meal'; chow from Chinese Pidgin English. | boufferslang also: grailler, se goinfrer (to stuff oneself) 18th c.; originally 'to puff out the cheeks' (onomatopoeic). La bouffe = food, grub. Grailler is the newer street word. | papearslang also: jalar, jamar, tragar Spain; from papa, baby-talk for food. Jalar (Spain), jamar (from Caló/Romani jamar), tragar ('to swallow' → to wolf down). |
job / work noun · slang | giginformal also: the grind, nine-to-five 1920s jazz musicians' word for a one-night engagement; now the 'gig economy'. Grind = tedious work. | boulotinformal also: taf, job 19th c., from bouleau 'birch' — carpenters' boulotter, to work birch wood. Taf is the newer word (disputed: 'travail à faire' or from tafer, to fear). | curroslang also: chamba (Mexico), laburo (Argentina, from Italian lavoro) Spain, from Caló (Romani) currar 'to work / to hit'. Currar = to work. Mexico/Andes: chamba (probably from chambear, Portuguese/English origin debated). |
home / place (informal) noun · slang | padslang also: crib (US), gaff (UK), place 1700s cant for a bed of straw; 1950s beats revived it for an apartment. Crib (US) went from baby's bed to home via 1990s hip-hop; gaff (UK/Irish) from fairground slang. | baraqueinformal also: piaule, chez moi (neutral) From Catalan/Spanish barraca 'hut'. Piaule (room / flat) is 19th c. cant, from pier 'to drink' — a tavern room. | quelislang also: piso (neutral, Spain), cantón (Mexico), bulín (Argentina) Spain, from Caló quer 'house'. Bulín (Argentina, lunfardo, from Lombard bulin); cantón (Mexico). |
drunk adjective · slang | hammeredslang also: wasted, pissed (UK), plastered 1980s. Pissed (UK, 1920s) from 'piss'; wasted (US 1960s); legless; plastered (1910s). | bourréslang also: pété, cuit, déchiré Literally 'stuffed / crammed' (bourrer). Pété ('burst'), cuit ('cooked'), déchiré ('torn'), rond ('round'). | pedovulgar also: ciego, mamado, borracho (neutral) Spain/Mexico: ir pedo — literally 'to go fart'. Ciego ('blind'), mamado (Spain), borracho is the neutral word (from borracha, a wineskin). |
boring / a drag adjective · slang | a draginformal also: meh, dull (neutral) 1860s, something that slows you down. Meh (2000s, popularised by The Simpsons); dull, tedious are neutral. | relouslang also: chiant, saoulant, ennuyeux (neutral) Verlan (syllable-reversal slang) of lourd 'heavy', 1980s banlieue. Chiant (vulgar, from chier), saoulant ('making you drunk' → tiresome). | un rolloslang also: coñazo, plasta, aburrido (neutral) Spain — qué rollo 'what a drag'; literally 'a roll' (of paper) → a long boring speech. Coñazo (vulgar), plasta (a boring person). Aburrido is neutral. |