These are the poisoned Christmas presents.
Say goodbye to the little French mistakes that arise between the turkey and the Yule log.
Barbarisms, pleonasms and anglicisms can harm the harmony of a conversation.
The editorial staff offers you an anthology of these blunders of language, not to be reproduced on Christmas Eve!
Read also The newsboy, voice transmission
"
I ask for my gifts to be brought to me
"
This turn gives rise to some debate among linguists.
Some accept it when others consider it to be at fault.
Appeared recently, it is the result of a curious mixture between two constructions: "
ask that one be silent
" and "
ask to leave
".
The French Academy outlaws it by noting that "to
ask what
" is "
unnecessarily heavy
" and does not add anything to the meaning of "to
ask that
".
And to conclude: "
in terms of language, most often, between two words and phrases, it is necessary to choose the least
".
Let us thus prefer to say: "
I ask that my gifts be brought to me
".
"
He agonized me with insults
"
Family reunions sometimes turn sour. However, let us be careful not to mistreat French at the same time as his irritating brother-in-law. The formula "to
agonize from insults
" was born from a confusion: one uses "to
agonize
", that is to say "to fight, to suffer martyrdom" instead of "
to agonize
", which means "to overwhelm, to insult. ".
In addition to their different meaning, these two verbs belong to different groups (first and second): it is necessary to say "I
agonize
", "
we agonize
" to "
agonize
", and "I
agonize
", "
we agonize
" to "
agonize
".
We will therefore say: “
they agonized me with insults
” and not “
agonized
”, since it is here the verb “to
agonize
” which is used.
"
I would like you to explain your theory
"
The French are known abroad for their love of rhetoric at the table, which sometimes turns into a skirmish.
As such, the verb “to
explain
” is often used in the wrong sense.
It means, as the wise men recall it, "to write or state clearly and precisely what was implicit".
It is most often used in the field of law (“
this clause has been made explicit
”).
Be careful not to use it instead of "
explaining
", that is to say: "to make people understand, to explain with clarity" and "to make known the cause, the reasons of such or such fact".
It is thus preferable "
to explain a theory, a point, an operation
" rather than "
to explain it
".
"
Sit down, so that I can see
"
The phrases "
so that
" and "
so that
" are correct.
But let's forget the
heavy and redundant
“
so that
” phrase.
If what follows expresses the goal to be achieved, we use the subjunctive: "
Do so / so that I can see
".
On the contrary, if it expresses the result to be obtained or obtained, we use the indicative: "
he did so / so that I can see
".
We can also follow these expressions with infinitives: "
he works in such a way as to succeed
" or "
he makes sure to succeed
".
But never: "
so that
".
"
This news turned out to be false
"
The turn is tempting, although it is based on a misunderstanding.
"
To prove
" means in fact "to recognize or have them recognized as true".
We say: "
the facts are true
".
This verb also means: “
to reveal oneself in reality
” and is used in sentences such as: “
he turns out to be an excellent doctor
” or “
the investigation has proved difficult
”.
To use it in phrases such as "
the news turned out to be false
" is therefore nonsense.
Just as it is redundant to say that "
this story turned out to be true
".
