casual francaise Flashcards
les abrutis
jerks/idiots/morons/assholes
decroche
1️⃣ To take down / To unhook / To pick up
J’ai décroché le tableau du mur. → I took the painting down from the wall.
Dépêche-toi de décrocher le téléphone ! → Hurry up and pick up the phone!
2️⃣ To land / To secure (a job, diploma, opportunity)
J’ai décroché un nouvel emploi chez Google. → I landed a new job at Google.
Elle a décroché son diplôme avec mention. → She earned her diploma with honors.
3️⃣ To disconnect / To lose motivation or interest
Pendant le cours, j’ai complètement décroché. → During the class, I totally lost focus.
Depuis son échec, il a décroché de ses études. → Since his failure, he has dropped out of his studies.
4️⃣ To give up / To stop doing something
Il a finalement décroché du tabac après dix ans. → He finally quit smoking after ten years.
Elle a décroché du sport après sa blessure. → She stopped doing sports after her injury.
🌟 Synonyms & Related Expressions
“Lâcher prise” → To let go
“Abandonner” → To give up
“Obtenir” → To obtain
embrouiller
1️⃣ To confuse / To mix up (someone’s thoughts or ideas)
Il m’a embrouillé avec ses explications compliquées. → He confused me with his complicated explanations.
Ce problème de maths m’embrouille complètement. → This math problem is totally confusing me.
2️⃣ To tangle / To mess up (physically or figuratively)
Le vent a embrouillé mes cheveux. → The wind tangled my hair.
Les câbles sont tout embrouillés ! → The cables are all tangled up!
3️⃣ To involve someone in a conflict / To cause a dispute
Il a embrouillé ses amis avec une fausse rumeur. → He caused a dispute between his friends with a false rumor.
Arrête d’embrouiller tout le monde avec tes histoires ! → Stop stirring up trouble with your stories!
4️⃣ (Colloquial) To argue with someone
Il s’est embrouillé avec son patron. → He got into an argument with his boss.
Ils se sont embrouillés pour une bêtise. → They argued over something silly.
🌟 Synonyms & Related Expressions
“Brouiller” → To blur, to scramble
“Mélanger” → To mix up
“Semer la confusion” → To cause confusion
“Se disputer” → To argue
amorcer
eg
1️⃣ To initiate / To begin (a process, a discussion, an action)
Il a amorcé une conversation sur la politique. → He started a conversation about politics.
Le projet a été amorcé il y a deux mois. → The project was initiated two months ago.
2️⃣ To prime / To trigger (a mechanism, a bomb, a reaction)
Il faut amorcer la pompe avant de l’utiliser. → You need to prime the pump before using it.
Le terroriste a amorcé l’explosif. → The terrorist triggered the explosive.
3️⃣ To bait (in fishing or hunting)
Le pêcheur amorce l’hameçon avec un ver. → The fisherman baits the hook with a worm.
Il faut bien amorcer la zone pour attirer les poissons. → You need to properly bait the area to attract fish.
4️⃣ To sketch / To outline (the beginning of something, like a drawing or an idea)
Il a amorcé un croquis de la tour Eiffel. → He sketched the beginning of an Eiffel Tower drawing.
L’écrivain a amorcé son prochain roman. → The writer started outlining his next novel.
🌟 Synonyms & Related Expressions
“Commencer” → To begin
“Initier” → To initiate
“Déclencher” → To trigger
“Lancer” → To launch
Relancer
Le gouvernement veut relancer l’économie après la crise. → The government wants to revive the economy after the crisis.
Il a relancé la discussion après un long silence. → He restarted the discussion after a long silence.
2️⃣ To follow up (with someone, like for a response, payment, or an email)
Je vais relancer mon professeur pour obtenir une réponse. → I’m going to follow up with my professor to get a response.
L’entreprise m’a relancé plusieurs fois pour le paiement. → The company followed up with me several times for the payment.
3️⃣ To throw again (in sports or a game)
Le joueur a relancé le ballon vers son coéquipier. → The player threw the ball again to his teammate.
4️⃣ To revive interest / To boost (something that was slowing down)
Ce film a relancé la carrière de l’acteur. → This movie revived the actor’s career.
Cette publicité a relancé les ventes du produit. → This advertisement boosted the product’s sales.
🌟 Synonyms & Related Expressions
“Redémarrer” → To restart
“Réactiver” → To reactivate
“Raviver” → To revive
“Poursuivre” → To follow up
tels que
1️⃣ Meaning: “Such as” / “Like” (Used to introduce examples)
J’aime les sports tels que le tennis et le basketball. → I like sports such as tennis and basketball.
Elle admire des écrivains tels que Victor Hugo et Balzac. → She admires writers such as Victor Hugo and Balzac.
2️⃣ Agreement with the Noun (Tels que, Telles que, Tel que, Telle que)
Singular Masculine: Un acteur tel que Depardieu est rare. → An actor such as Depardieu is rare.
Singular Feminine: Une chanteuse telle que Edith Piaf est inoubliable. → A singer such as Edith Piaf is unforgettable.
Plural Masculine: Des artistes tels que Monet et Van Gogh ont révolutionné la peinture. → Artists such as Monet and Van Gogh revolutionized painting.
Plural Feminine: Des villes telles que Paris et Lyon sont très visitées. → Cities such as Paris and Lyon are highly visited.
🌟 Synonyms & Related Expressions
“Comme” → Like
“À l’exemple de” → Following the example of
“Notamment” → Notably
“Par exemple” → For example
PRENDRE CONGE
1️⃣ Meaning: “To take leave (formally say goodbye)”
Used when politely taking leave from someone in a formal or professional setting.
Je dois prendre congé de mes collègues avant de partir en vacances.
→ I must take leave of my colleagues before going on vacation.
Il a pris congé de son hôte avec une poignée de main.
→ He took leave of his host with a handshake.
2️⃣ Meaning: “To take time off”
Refers to taking official time off from work.
Je vais prendre congé pendant une semaine pour me reposer.
→ I’m going to take leave for a week to rest.
Elle a pris congé pour des raisons personnelles.
→ She took time off for personal reasons.
🌟 Synonyms & Related Words
“Dire au revoir” → To say goodbye
“S’absenter” → To be absent
“Prendre des vacances” → To take a vacation
“Demander un congé” → To request leave
davantage
1️⃣ Meaning: “More” (in quantity, intensity, or degree)
Used when talking about an increase in something.
Il faut travailler davantage pour réussir.
→ One must work more to succeed.
J’aimerais en savoir davantage sur ce sujet.
→ I would like to know more about this topic.
2️⃣ Meaning: “Further” / “Beyond”
Refers to going beyond a certain point.
Nous n’irons pas davantage, il commence à pleuvoir.
→ We won’t go any further, it’s starting to rain.
🌟 Synonyms & Related Words
“Plus” → More (less formal, more common in speech)
“Encore plus” → Even more
“D’autant plus” → All the more
“Supplémentaire” → Additional
le taux
1️⃣ Meaning: “Rate” (Percentage, Ratio, or Proportion)
Used in financial, economic, or statistical contexts.
Le taux d’intérêt de ce prêt est très élevé.
→ The interest rate on this loan is very high.
Le taux de chômage a augmenté cette année.
→ The unemployment rate has increased this year.
2️⃣ Meaning: “Level” (Degree, Measure of Something)
Refers to a measured quantity of something.
Le taux de sucre dans le sang doit être surveillé.
→ The blood sugar level must be monitored.
Le taux de réussite à l’examen était impressionnant.
→ The success rate on the exam was impressive.
🌟 Synonyms & Related Words
“Pourcentage” → Percentage
“Proportion” → Proportion
“Niveau” → Level
“Indice” → Index
overwhelming
“Overwhelming” can mean different things depending on the situation:
Emotionally intense → C’était une expérience bouleversante. (It was an overwhelming experience.)
Too much to handle → J’ai trop de travail, c’est accablant. (I have too much work; it’s overwhelming.)
A strong majority → Il y avait un soutien écrasant. (There was overwhelming support.)
Exciting →
Passionnant (for things) / Excité (for people, but be careful—it also means “aroused” in French 😅).
Embarrassing →
Gênant (awkward) / Embarrassant (mildly uncomfortable).
Complicated
→ Compliqué (in structure) / Difficile (hard to manage).
spend money
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