Toothy paste
While on holiday in France, I ran out of toothpaste. Being fairly confident with my grasp of the language, I popped into the local shop and asked if they had any pâté de dents. Seeing the poor girl's confused look, I tried again, but ended up going back to the hotel without my toothpaste. I later learned I've asked for a "paste of teeth", and the word I wanted was le dentifrice. Still, live and learn ...
Sent by: Katherine
Comments
I was in France a few years back and was asking for milk - le lait - and the different shop workers kept showing me the vegetables. I was totally confused until I realised they were pointing me towards the garlic cloves which is l'ail! I think it sounds the same.
Editor's note: In fact, it does not sound the same here. The ai in ail sounds like the "i" in English and we do pronounce the l at the end of ail.
I also could not remember the word for "toothpaste", but solved the problem by asking for la chose qui va avec la brosse à dents" - "the thing that goes with the toothbrush". The shop assistant(smiling), produced both the article and the word... which I have never forgotten since!
The same thing happend to me. The word dentifrice escaped me and I asked for savon de dents.
Actually, if you're ever in Quebec (Canada) and ask for dentifrice, people will look at you funny. That's because they call it pâte à dent.
Sorry to say that, but is it not easier to go to the supermarket to get it and then learn that word? That's what I did with the razor, I don't throw the package straight away.
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