Ever wondered what Quebecois expressions like: “Attachez vos tuques,” “En avoir plein mon casque,” “Parler a quelqu’un dans le blanc des yeux et donner l’heure juste a quelqu’un,” mean?
One John Molson school of business graduate, Nicole Duchastel, had a rather revealing experience with Quebecois expressions on a trip.
While on an exchange program in Monterrey, Mexico to finish her MBA, Duchastel shared an apartment with French (from France) counterparts who didn’t always understand what she was saying.
“As you can imagine, they thought my French was hysterical and even made a list – turned out to be a long list- of my expressions. They called it the Niconneries which is for Nicole’s conneries. It was a funny experience,” explained Duchastel.
Duchastel works for JED new media, her mom’s company, which produces online business tutorials but also writing enhancement tutorials.
Duchastel said her mother had the idea of creating an online French Quebecer expression translation tutorial after “one of her good friends came back from a project he was doing with a French firm and had commented on how difficult it was to communicate with them.
“He made mention that it was especially the Quebec expressions which weren’t shared (and not understood) by his French counterparts.”
As luck would have it, Duchastel had expressed the same concerns to her mother while in Mexico.
Duchastel explains the tutorial is good for international students but also for out-of-towners or even Montrealers.
The tutorial allows students to “understand the meaning of French Quebec as well as better appreciate Quebec’s people and heritage. It may eventually help students get work within a French speaking company or may help them feel more confident in their relationships with French Quebecers.”
The tutorials are called JEDlet. The Expressions Quebecoises tutorial teaches by going through real life situations you can experience walking down the street or when taking the bus.
The cost? Fifteen dollars will give you a three month access to the online tutorial.
To learn more about this tutorial, you can go visit the website at: www.jedlet.com.