French Love Vocabulary & Expressions in Emily in Paris
Florence Harang & Nicole Baptista
Netflix’s popular ‘Emily in Paris’ is overflowing with passionate romance, weird love triangles and relationship dramas. But then again, Paris is the city of love! Thankfully, season 2 offers us a lot more French than the first season, and since Valentine’s Day is just around the corner it’s useful to pick up some new French vocabulary and phrases on the theme of love- l’amour.
Let’s first take a look at some of the love stories in Emily in Paris season 2. And then, as Valentine’s Day is in a few days, I will share the French love vocabulary and expressions in Emily in Paris season 2 with is a compilation of some of the best quotations and phrases in French with the English translation on the theme of love.
Triangles and other love stories
Starting with Emily, she is involved in an awkward love triangle with her good friend Camille and Gabriel- the French guy they both like. The potential relationship between Emily and Gabriel is dangerously doomed from the start, but the passion between them is undeniable. However, Emily now has a new crush, the British banker Alfie who quickly wins over her heart. So we now have a love square rather than a love triangle. Awkward? Very.
Emily’s boss, the French, fashionable and independent Sylvie also finds herself a new love interest in season 2. Sylvie is in a relationship with a younger handsome Dutch model (Erik). Though she is shamed by Anton for dating a younger man she quickly responds that she does not give a “flying fuck” about what he thinks. Bravo Sylvie!
Finally, Emily’s best friend Mindy also finds love in this season. Her new Beau Benoît (a fellow musician) and she make a cute couple- and although they have their own struggles, they do end up together.
French love vocabulary & the best quotations in Emily in Paris season 2
Episode 1
-Camille to Sylvie regarding Gabriel:
« Je n’ai pas de liaison avec Gabriel » « I don’t have an affair with Gabriel »
Avoir une liaison avec quelqu’un : to have an affair with someone
-Gabriel to Emily regarding Camille:
“ Je ne veux pas lui faire de mal » « I don’t want to hurt her »
Faire du mal à quelqu’un : to hurt someone. Most of the time this expression is used in a moral sense.
-Gabriel to Emily :
« Je n’arrête pas de penser à toi » « I keep thinking about you »
Ne pas arrêter de faire quelque chose : to keep thinking about someone
-Matthew to Emily regarding Gabriel (he is disappointed)
« Tu as couché avec lui avant d’avoir accepté d’aller à St Tropez avec moi » « You had sex with him before accepting to go to Saint-Tropez with me »
Coucher avec quelqu’un: to have sex with someone
-Matthew to Emily regarding Gabriel:
« Tu es amoureuse de lui ? » « You are in love with him »
Etre amoureux de quelqu’un : to be in love with someone. A common mistake among English native speaker is to say “ être en amour avec quelqu’un” which is the literal translation and not correct.
-Sylvie to Emily:
« Vous allez vous envoyer en l’air avec un client histoire d’oublier le mec de votre meilleure amie française » « You will have sex with a client just to forget the boyfriend of your French best friend »
S’envoyer en l’air is an idiomatic expression which literally means to send ( envoyer) en l’air ( in the air). It actually means to have sex with someone. Sylvie uses in this scene a slightly old-fashioned expression.
Episode 2
-Emily to Mindy regarding Camille:
« J’ai peur de dire dans un brunch que j’ai fait l’amour avec son petit-ami » « I am scared to say during a brunch that I amde love with her boyfriend »
Faire l’amour: to make love
Un petit(e)-ami(e): boyfriend or girlfriend
-Emily to Mindy:
«Tout ce que je veux c’est que Gabriel et Camille se remettent ensemble » « All that I want is that Gabriel and Camille get back together »
Se remettre avec quelqu’un: To get back together - Ensemble: together
-Sylvie to Emily regarding the fact that Camille has joined Emily and Mindy in Saint-Tropez:
« Il faut accepter les conséquences de ses actes et surtout de ses infidélités » « You have to accept the consequences of your actions and especially of your infidelity»
Une infidelité (in the sens of having an affair with someone else): infidelity, affair.
Etre infidèle: to be unfaithful or to cheat on seomeone.
-Antoine to Emily:
« C’est sur un oreiller qu’on progresse dans les langues étrangère » « It’s on a pillow that you progress in speaking foreign languages ».
Antoine means here it when you have an affair (spending time making love, so in bed that your speaking skills significantly improve !!)
Episode 3
-Gabriel to Emily explaining the meaning of the idiomatic expression Love at first sight:
« On parle aussi coup de foudre » « We also speak about love at first sight »
A thunder storm gives Gabriel a good opportunity to teach Emily what a Coup de foudre is: literally a stroke of thunder which actually means love at first sight when it is related to a romantic situation. This is why Gabriel grabs this opportunity to unveil his deep feelings to Emily.
-Gabriel to Emily regarding her flirt with Matthieu:
« Tu n’as aucun sentiment pour lui » « You don’t have any feelings for him »
Avoir des sentiments pour quelqu’un : to have feelings for someone
-Camille’s friends to Emily at the Turkish baths regarding Camille’s brother
« C’est toi qui as baisé avec son petit frère ? » « Is it you who had sex with her younger brother? »
Baiser avec quelqu’un : to have sex with someone
-Camille’s friends at the Turkish baths regarding her breakup with Gabriel:
« Mais vous avez déjà rompu avant cette fois non ? » « But you already broke up before this time, right? »
-Rompre avec avec quelqu’un: to break up (relationship) Rompu is the past particle of the verb rompre. The noun is une rupture: a breakup
-Camille to Gabriel regarding his relationship with Emily:
« Alors la solution à tous nos problèmes, c’est un ménage à trois d’après toi ? » « So up to you the solution to our issues is a menage à trois?»
Un ménage à trois is an idiomatic expression which means a domestic arrangement in which three people, usually a couple and one other person, are engaged in a sexual or romantic relationship and even sometimes occupy the same household.
Episode 5
-Emily to Gabriel:
«Toi et moi c’est un fantasme » - « You and me, it’s a fantasy »
Un fantasme : fantasy
Episode 6
-Mindy to Julien and Emily regarding the fact that Etienne was dumped by his boyfriend:
« Etienne s’est fait larguer par son mec » - « Etienne was dumped by his boyfriend »
Se faire larguer par quelqu’un: to be dumped by someone
-Mindy to Antoine when Emily introduces her to Antoine:
« Vous êtes un charmeur ! » « You are a charmer ! »
Un charmeur - Une charmeuse: charmer, can be said about someone who love to seduce
Episode 7
Mindy to Emily regarding Alfie:
« Toi, tu as craqué pour lui » « you have a crunch on him » « You fell on him »
Craquer pour quelqu’un: to have a crunch on someone, to fall for someone
Episode 8
Gabriel to Emily regarding Alfie:
« Oui mais il te plait » - « Yes but you fancy him ». The order of the words in French is different to English.
Plaire à quelqu’un in a romantic meaning means to be attracted to someone, to find someone appealing.
Used in a different context, it means to like something “La robe te plait?” - “Do you like the dress?” “Mon travail me plait” -“I like my job”.
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