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English, Arabic, Chinese ... Do you know the origin of the words you use every day?

2020-03-14T06:28:27.006Z


QUIZ - "Zen", "tiramisu", "stutterer" ... Do you know the story behind these words? Le Figaro invites you to discover it in a short test.


Did you know? "Chestnut" comes from Arabic and means "the fox". Indeed, "the fox's coat and the coat of the alezan have the same freckles" , specifies Marie Treps in her rich work Les mots travelers: little history of French from elsewhere (Points). "Vacarme", meanwhile, is originally a Dutch interjection (Wacharme!) Which means "alas, poor of me!"

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The French language has traveled, borrowed from all over the world. "Cachalot" comes from Portuguese and means "big head"; "Yogurt" comes from the Turkish yogurt before being borrowed by the Bulgarian in the form jaurt or jugurt .

Will you recognize the origin of these words that we use on a daily basis? Le Figaro invites you, thanks to Marie Treps' book, to discover it in a short test.

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Source: lefigaro

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