C2 · 46 words
Presenting and dodging in French
What somebody does with a statement instead of merely saying it.
Practise this list
From these 46 words, as many per round as you like — up to all of them: first what is due today, then new ones. First you choose, then you fill the gap, then you write it yourself. Mistakes come back again shortly.
More about this list
The thirty-ninth entry is tenir le crachoir, and it is the one phrase on this page that cannot be worked out from its parts. Le crachoir is a spittoon, the basin that once stood in cafés and waiting rooms, built on cracher, to spit; nothing else in the modern language keeps the object alive. What the phrase means is to talk on and on while nobody else gets a turn, so that il tient le crachoir depuis une heure describes a table that has stopped being a conversation. English reaches for quite different pictures for the same behaviour: somebody « holds » forth, or « hogs » the conversation, or leaves the rest of the company unable to get a word in « edgeways ». Two things follow for a reader of this list. The register is familiar and faintly mocking, where the neighbouring entries prendre la parole and passer la parole are neutral and belong in minutes; used of a chairman it is a judgement rather than a description, and it is not said to the person concerned. And the verb is fixed: only tenir carries the phrase, while avoir le crachoir says nothing at all.
The words
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Verb (17)
véhiculerto conveyVerbC2
Ce mot véhicule une idée fausse.This word conveys a false idea.
restituerto render (a tone)VerbC2
Le compte rendu restitue mal le ton du débat.The minutes render the tone of the debate badly.
dépeindreto depictVerbC2
Elle dépeint le quartier tel qu’elle l’a connu.She depicts the neighbourhood as she knew it.
évoquerto call to mindVerbC2
Cette odeur évoque la maison de mes grands-parents.This smell calls my grandparents’ house to mind.
incarnerto embodyVerbC2
Ce professeur incarne tout ce que l’école prétend être.This teacher embodies everything the school claims to be.
symboliserto stand forVerbC2
La porte ouverte symbolise l’accueil.The open door stands for welcome.
caractériserto be the hallmark ofVerbC2
La lenteur caractérise toute la procédure.Slowness is the hallmark of the whole procedure.
exemplifierto exemplifyVerbC2
Ce cas exemplifie bien le problème.This case exemplifies the problem well.
accentuerto heightenVerbC2
La musique accentue la tension de la scène.The music heightens the tension of the scene.
synthétiserto boil down to the essentialsVerbC2
Elle synthétise le débat en trois phrases.She boils the debate down to three sentences.
condenserto condenseVerbC2
Il faut condenser le texte de moitié.The text has to be condensed by half.
abrégerto abridgeVerbC2
L’éditeur a abrégé le chapitre pour l’école.The publisher abridged the chapter for schools.
tronquerto truncateVerbC2
La citation a été tronquée.The quotation has been truncated.
minimiserto play downVerbC2
La direction minimise l’incident.The management plays down the incident.
minorerto understateVerbC2
Le rapport minore la gravité des faits.The report understates the seriousness of what happened.
esquiverto dodgeVerbC2
Il esquive toute discussion sur l’argent.He dodges any discussion about money.
détournerto deflectVerbC2
Le ministre détourne la critique vers son prédécesseur.The minister deflects the criticism onto his predecessor.
Phrase (29)
mettre des mots surto put into wordsPhraseC2
Il n’arrive pas à mettre des mots sur ce qu’il ressent.He cannot put into words what he feels.
illustrer un proposto illustrate a pointPhraseC2
Il illustre son propos par une histoire de famille.He illustrates his point with a family story.
mettre en évidenceto bring outPhraseC2
Le tableau met en évidence les deux exceptions.The table brings out the two exceptions.
marteler un messageto hammer a message homePhraseC2
Le porte-parole martèle le même message depuis le début.The spokesman has been hammering the same message home from the start.
insister sur ce pointto press this pointPhraseC2
Je voudrais insister sur ce point avant de continuer.I should like to press this point before we go on.
s’appesantir sur un pointto labour a pointPhraseC2
Inutile de s’appesantir sur un point que tout le monde a compris.There is no use labouring a point that everybody has understood.
enfoncer des portes ouvertesto belabour the self-evidentPhraseC2
Son discours enfonce surtout des portes ouvertes.His speech mostly belabours the self-evident.
mettre à nuto lay barePhraseC2
Le rapport met à nu les failles du système.The report lays bare the weaknesses of the system.
décortiquer une idéeto take an idea apartPhraseC2
On va décortiquer cette idée ensemble.We shall take this idea apart together.
gonfler un texteto pad out a textPhraseC2
Il gonfle son texte avec des exemples inutiles.He pads out his text with useless examples.
survoler la questionto skate over the questionPhraseC2
Le candidat survole la question et passe à la suivante.The candidate skates over the question and moves to the next one.
contourner le sujetto skirt the subjectPhraseC2
Elle contourne le sujet depuis une demi-heure.She has been skirting the subject for half an hour.
éluder une questionto evade a questionPhraseC2
On ne peut pas éluder une question posée trois fois.One cannot evade a question that has been asked three times.
se murer dans le silenceto retreat into silencePhraseC2
Le témoin se mure dans le silence.The witness retreats into silence.
faire marche arrièreto backtrackPhraseC2
Après la réunion, il a fait marche arrière.After the meeting he backtracked.
revenir sur ses proposto take back what one saidPhraseC2
Elle est revenue sur ses propos dès le lendemain.She took back what she had said the very next day.
persister et signerto stand by it all the morePhraseC2
Malgré les critiques, il persiste et signe.In spite of the criticism, he stands by it all the more.
abandonner du terrainto give groundPhraseC2
La direction refuse d’abandonner du terrain sur ce point.The management refuses to give ground on this point.
céder le pasto yieldPhraseC2
La prudence cède le pas à l’impatience.Caution yields to impatience.
passer la paroleto hand over the floorPhraseC2
Le président passe la parole à sa voisine.The chairman hands the floor over to the woman beside him.
prendre la paroleto take the floorPhraseC2
Personne n’ose prendre la parole après lui.Nobody dares take the floor after him.
tenir le crachoirto hold forth at lengthPhraseC2
Il tient le crachoir pendant tout le repas.He holds forth at length throughout the meal.
énoncer une évidenceto state the obviousPhraseC2
Dire que le temps manque, c’est énoncer une évidence.To say that there is no time is to state the obvious.
poser en préalableto say at the outsetPhraseC2
Je pose en préalable que personne ici n’est expert.I say at the outset that nobody here is an expert.
y revenir plus tardto come back to it laterPhraseC2
Notons la question et convenons d’y revenir plus tard.Let us note the question and agree to come back to it later.
mettre la dernière toucheto put the finishing touchPhraseC2
Cette anecdote met la dernière touche à l’exposé.This anecdote puts the finishing touch to the talk.
mener à son termeto see through to the endPhraseC2
Il faut mener la discussion à son terme.The discussion has to be seen through to the end.
en guise de conclusionby way of conclusionPhraseC2
En guise de conclusion, je citerai une phrase de ma grand-mère.By way of conclusion, I shall quote a sentence of my grandmother’s.
en rester làto leave it therePhraseC2
Nous pouvons en rester là pour aujourd’hui.We can leave it there for today.
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This list belongs to Language, style and argument — 30 lists and 1 225 words that can also be practised as a whole.