How iz your accent now after living this long over there?
Are you told you still sound French?

@Kirsten – The trash cans are sealed because of the “plan Vigipirate”, the anti-terrorism plan. France had quite a lot of terrorism in the 90s, with several bombs in the subways and I guess some in trashcans.

Now, the sealing is kind of stupid because people pile up garbage around the trashcans but…

@Seraphine – Damn! See, I’m never getting it right! In French, maths is always plural. Why, I don’t know.

@fly in the web – Ball trap? Now, I’ve never seen that!

@Seb – The entrée thing is silly, I wish someone would tell the restaurants

Classic!!! hahaha, love it. I’m still confused by the entree thing, glad you cleared that up for me.
Seb´s last blog ..More Alphabetic Misadventures: P is for Persuasive

There will always be language barriers, no matter how well we think we know a language. Regional differences are big here. I always trip people up when I ask for an elastic or tonic, then I have to clarify myself and ask for a rubber band or soda. I get into discussions with my husband all the time about my Massachusetts English vs. his California English.
Kirsten´s last blog ..Cuts Like a Knife

@Bluefish – Yes, it’s the same in Ottawa, French and English are easily mixed. Like people “take” decisions instead of “making” them.

@barbara – I’m not crazy about some franglais words, especially at the office. I like “gestion” more than “management” and I hate the way some French just try to be cool by speaking franglais. This is often the case in some fields, such as advertising.

@the writer – Thank you so much!

@Final_Transit – I used a lot of UK English words when I first came because it is the English most widely taught in Europe. But I switched to US English when I realized people didn’t understand me Although I do find a lot of older people in Canada use UK English.

@Max Coutinho – I know, in most Latin countries, loitering is just… somthing fun to do!

I really did stay away from beavertails. Well, at least one fat food I didn’t love right away!

I don’t know why North American think “entrée” is the main course. A case of lost in translation I guess…!

@Soleil – I didn’t think about these words at all when I was in French, I only realize they didn’t mean anything once I moved to Canada. And I tried to explain my friends back in France but no one believes me! If it ends in “ing”, it must be proper English

@Eileen – Most of the loitering signs I have seen in Canada were in Tim Hortons or other fast food. A couple at the food court at the mall as well… I saw some in phone booth in NY state, I remember I found it weird!

@Khengsiong – And a “guru” is a “gourou” in French, but it’s a bit derogatory. Usually used for cult leaders

@Beth – And even within Quebec, there are a lot of differences. I can understand franco-ontariens and Quebecers from Montreal no problem, but the more I go North, the more difficult it gets

@Linguist-in-Waiting – For a guy, yes, it may be very embarrassing (not to mention strange) I think I knew about that one, so hopefully I never told anyway I was “pregnant”

@kyh – Love the article: so true! All these prepositions, up, down, out, in etc. drove me crazy at first. Was I supposed to look at the window, to the window, through the window, by the window…?

Come to think of food terms… “Maître d’” is a weird one for French, because the proper word is “Maître d’hôtel”. So why did English cut the “hotel” part of it???