French Expression of the Day: Ça passe ou ça casse
ça passe ou ça casse
?
Because it's useful to emphasise when an event - whether it's your French citizenship interview or a global summit - is really very important.
What does it mean?
Ça passe ou ça casse
– usually pronounced sah pass oo sah kass – literally translates to 'it goes or it breaks.'
In practice, this French phrase has several equivalent English expressions (maybe anglophones really like living on the edge): 'Make or Break,' 'Sink or Swim' and 'Do or Die.'
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It's used to describe a situation where everything feels like it is hanging in the balance, with the potential outcome being uncertain, but very important.
You might see this phrase in newspapers when an important summit or parliamentary vote is approaching, but it's more commonly a phrase that you'll hear spoken aloud, especially in sports commentary.
It's slightly colloquial but not offensive and there are few situations where it would be inappropriate.
It's even the title of a few popular French songs, including the title of an album by the French singer Frédéric Lerner.
Use it like this
Je prépare mon examen de conduite depuis si longtemps, et c'est la seule date disponible pour passer l'examen au cours des prochains mois. Ça passe ou ça casse.
– I have been preparing for my driving test for so long, and this is the only date available for months to come. It's do or die.
Ils négocient les propositions sur la crise climatique depuis des mois, sans succès. Ce sommet sera une affaire de "ça passe ou ça casse".
– They have been negotiating the propositions for the climate crisis for months to no avail. This summit is going to be a make or break situation.
A l'approche des Alpes, ça passe ou ça casse pour Jonas Vingegaard
- As they approach the Alps, it's make or break for Jonas Vingegaard
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READ ALSO : SIDA to IRM to RIB: Everyday French initials and acronyms to know Chômage - unemployment/unemployment benefits. Chômage simply means unemployment, so it's used to talk about unemployment levels within a country, but it's also widely used as a shorthand for unemployment payments/benefits. So you can casually say 'he's on chômage' to mean that someone isn't working but is registered with the French unemployment office to seek work, and for the moment is living off unemployment benefits. Although it can be used negatively, it somehow feels less stigmatising than saying someone is 'on the dole' on 'on benefits'. France's generous unemployment system in which people are paid a percentage of their former salary for up to 18 months, means that chômage is sometimes more of a career goal than a catastrophe. READ ALSO : How generous is France's unemployment system? Controlled - stopped by police/inspectors for a check. Another piece of elegant French simplicity, if you were stopped by police for an ID check, if you were pulled over while driving for a vehicle check or if the conductor came round to inspect your ticket, you were 'controlled'. In French that kind of official stop and check is un contrôle and the past tense verb form is contrôlé . Do you find French words creeping into your English? If so, share which ones in the comments section below
