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FRENCH WORD OF THE DAY

French word of the day: Saison blanche

Even beginners know that blanc/blanche means white, but the word has a lot more meaning than a literal description of colour.

Published: 21 January 2021 13:59 CET

French word of the day: Saison blanche

Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

Why do I need to know blanc?

Because when certain items have 'white' added to them, it gives them a whole new meaning.

What does it mean?

When the French government announced that ski resorts were looking at a saison blanche (white season) they were not talking about the weather reports looking particularly promising for snow.

Here, blanche meant 'write-off'. Ski resorts might not get to reopen at all this year, the government said.

Une saison blanche is a season that is void or a write-off.

And a season is not the only thing you can make white in French.

Nuit blanche (white night) means a night of no sleep (and is also the name of a very popular cultural all-night festival in Paris).

Une année blanche (a white year) is a term used about a specific tax mechanism that occurred in 2019 to prevent tax payers from being charged double on their income tax. This is a complicated one, but the only thing you need to understand for the purpose of this article is that, again, blanc referred to the fact that 2019 was 'tax free'.

Une année blanche can also mean 'a gap year', a year of pause to think or plan a project before embarking on a university degree, a new job or starting a company.

Use it like this

Elle a pris une année blanche pour voyager. – She took a gap year to travel.

Une saison blanche sera très dûre pour le secteur de sport d'hiver. – A write-off of the season will be very tough for the winter sport sector.

J'ai fait une nuit blanche pour finir cet article, je suis crevé. – I stayed up all night to finish this article, I'm dead.

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French Phrase of the Day: Faire sa toilette

Why do I need to know faire sa toilette?

Because this expression might come up when discussing your pet’s daily habits.

What does it mean?

Faire sa toilette – roughly pronounced fair sah twa-let – translates as ‘to do one’s toilet’.

In reality, it does not have to do with urinating, but rather it means to ‘wash with water and soap’ or clean/groom/preen yourself.

This meaning may ring a bell for those familiar with old-fashioned English phrase ‘to be at one’s toilette’ – which can found in novels by authors ranging from Jane Austen to Agatha Christie.

Although the English phrase has largely fallen out of use, the French expression – sometimes shortened to faire toilette – is still used, though it is a bit traditional, and thus more likely to be used by older people.

Instead, you might hear people use se laver (to wash) or prendre une douche (to take a shower).

As for the origins of the expression, we can look to the original meaning of the word toilette (which eventually led to the English word ‘toilet’).

In the mid-16th century, a toilette was a ‘cloth or wrapper’, initially used as a “cloth cover for a dressing table”. Later, it went on to refer to washing oneself, and by the 19th century it referred to a dressing room or washing area.

These days you are most likely to hear faire sa toilette when referring to animals (particularly cats) grooming or cleaning themselves.

Similarly, the expression toilettage means ‘grooming’ for cats and dogs, so if you want to have your animals’ fur professionally brushed or trimmed, then you would pay for a toilettage.

This comes from the verb toiletter, which nowadays is used when discussing the cleaning or brushing of domestic animals. It has a second, colloquial meaning too. You might see toiletter used when discussing a slight modification to a law or legislative text.

Use it like this

Maman doit faire sa toilette avant l’arrivée des invités. – Mum needs to freshen up before the guests arrive.

Le chat fait sa toilette tous les matins. – The cat grooms himself every morning.

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