In an earlier blog post, I introduced my tacky concept of Lampposts for Drunks: phrases that stick out of a stream of spoken French, allowing one to grab ahold and, with luck, right oneself. Here are some more.
Parce que. This is the conjunction "because," and, to Anglophone ears, it sounds like "Pass kuh." (Strictly speaking, the phlegmy French r occurs before the s sound in there, but it is not prominent.)
Maintenant. "Now." Sometimes it's said with two syllables ("mahnt-nahnt"), and sometimes with three ("mahnt-uh-nahnt"). Nevertheless, distinctive.
D'accord. "OK." Resist the temptation to say D'accord all the time. It is easy, but can get you into trouble.
To continue another theme from earlier in the blog: I love how so many perfectly colloquial French expressions translate literally into rather grandiose English utterances. Parce que is literally "by means of this, that...". Maintenant: the time that one takes or holds (tenant) in one's hand (main). And d'accord means "of agreement." No wonder diplomats used to use French for all international treaties. All you have to do is crack a dictionary, and diplomatic language spills out like chantilly.
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