French | Mama Lisa's World Blog: Recent Episodes
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Here are some French riddles with English versions that were shared by Monique in France. Answers can be found by scrolling down…
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For me, yesterday comes after today, what am I?
In French: Pour moi, hier vient après aujourd’hui, que suis-je ? -
What can you catch and never throw?
In French: Qu’est-ce qu’on peut attraper et jamais lancer ? -
What can you hold in your left hand but never in your right hand?
In French: Qu’est-ce qu’on peut tenir dans sa main gauche mais jamais dans sa main droite ? -
What can be found once in a minute, twice in a moment but never in an hour?
In French: Qu’est-ce qu’on trouve une fois dans une minute, deux fois dans un moment mais jamais dans une heure ?
Scroll Down for Answers
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Answers:
- A dictionary (Un dictionnaire)
- A cold (Un rhume)
- Your right elbow (Notre coude droit)
- The letter M (La lettre M)
Many thanks to Monique Palomares for sharing these riddles with the English versions! Monique works with me on the French and Spanish versions of Mama Lisa’s World.
Enjoy!
-Mama Lisa
The post Some Riddles in French and English first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Roger Greiner wrote asking for help with a French Belgian children’s song. Here’s his email:
“I write to you in the hope of finding out if you know of a children’s song that my grandmother (born, Milene, Belgium) use to sing to me and my cousins as little children. Please bear with me as I try to write the lyrics, which – phonetically – go something like…
Ye, ye, da, da, da,
Seta a cheval grandpa-pa,
Grandpa-pa ne pa sai sei,
Le pac tee,
Ya pari,
No, no, eh la pa tee seeeee!
I have also attached a recording of my aunt who remembers the song as such. You can listen to it here.
I write this email as well because I am in an MFA program and one of the projects is to design a children’s book, of which I am to do about this song sung to me as a child.
Thank you so much in advance.
Sincerely,
-Roger Greiner
Monique, who works with me on the French and Spanish versions of the site, worked out the following spelling with me:
In French:
“Hi, hi, à dada
Sur le cheval est grand-papa (We’re not sure of this line in the recording)
Grand-papa n’est pas ici,
Il est parti à Paris.
Non, non, il est ici.”
In English
“Ya, ya horsie!
Grandpapa is on the horse.
Grandpapa isn’t here,
He’s gone to Paris.
No, no, no, he’s here.”
Is anyone familiar with this song? If so, please help us out with any info by commenting below.
Thanks in advance!
-Mama Lisa
The post Can Anyone Help with this Belgian French Song? first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Elisabeth is looking for a French song her grandmother used to sing to her. She can’t find it anywhere and we can’t either. It starts with “Dodo dinette, ma p’tite poulette” as a refrain, then continues as: “Dans la rue des trois cailloux, j’ai rencontré un p’tit bossu Qui voulait vendre sa bosse Pour aller en carrosse…” […]
The post Question about a French Song That Starts with “Dodo dinette, ma p’tite poulette” first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
In the US, when children play a game of tag, there will be one kid who’s “It”. That means they’re the one who has to run around and tag people. There are many different games where one person will be “It”. Being “It” could be good or bad depending on the game. It seems the term […]
The post What Do You Call The Person Who’s “It” in Your Country? first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Gilles Diss sent us this French song about hand-washing to share. Below you’ll find the French lyrics, followed by an English translation and a video. Enjoy! Frotte, frotte ©Gilles Diss Il faut bien se laver les mains Pour chasser les microbes Il faut bien se laver les mains En frottant lentement, Il faut bien se […]
The post A French Song about Handwashing – Scrub, Scrub! first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Monique Palomares grew up in the south of France in the 1950’s and 60’s. When Monique was young she took part in the grape harvesting with her dad and the rest of her family. She shared this poem with us with the following note… “My late father used to recite this poem to us. That’s […]
The post A French Poem about Grape Harvesting called La vendange first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Father’s Day was started in France in 1950 by the Flaminaire lighter company. They were inspired by the American Father’s Day holiday which already existed. Flaminaire did it as a marketing ploy to help launch their new gas lighter. The campaign slogan was, “Nos papas nous l’ont dit: pour la fête des pères, ils désirent tous un Flaminaire” […]
The post About Father’s Day in France with a Song! first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
By Monique Palomares Bastille Day takes place on July 14th in France. It’s known as “le 14 juillet” (the 14th of July) in French. It commemorates the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, and the celebration of the Federation and the union of the nation exactly one year later in 1790. A law was […]
The post Bastille Day in France first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Here’s the French poem “Le chat” by Guillaume Apollinaire (1880 – 1918) from his book called “The Bestiary”. Below you’ll find the French text, following by an English translation and a video with a musical rendition… Le chat Je souhaite dans ma maison: Une femme ayant sa raison, Un chat passant parmi les livres, Des […]
The post Le Chat (The Cat) – A French Poem first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
“Everybody Loves Saturday Night” is a catchy song from Nigeria that’s sung around the world in many languages. There are multilingual versions where it’s sung in English, French and various other languages. Here are the lyrics in some languages followed by multilingual YouTube videos of the song… English: Everybody loves Saturday night, Everybody loves Saturday […]
The post Everybody Loves Saturday Night – A Multilingual Song first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Kimberlee Hicks wrote asking for help finding a record from her childhood. Here’s her email: In the early 80’s, my mother checked a record out of the library that had songs with both French and English lyrics. There were two voices, male and female. Some of the songs I remember include (and forgive me if […]
The post Can Anyone Help Find a French/English Kids Album? first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian (1755-1794) was a French poet and romance writer. Nowadays, he’s chiefly known for his pretty fables for children. We present to you a recording of Florian’s fable called “Le perroquet” (The Parrot), along with the original French text and an English translation… MP3 Recording of Le perroquet by Florian Le perroquet […]
The post Le perroquet – The Parrot – A French Fable by Florian with Recording first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Geneviève wrote asking for help with a French nursery school song. Here’s her note: I’ve been desperately searching for a song that my cousin was taught in maternelle in 2009/10. I’ve tried googling, but have come up completely blank. The lyrics I remember are: Moi, j’aime changer les mots des chansons, Dire des bêtises, des trucs […]
The post Does Anyone Know a Kids French Song that Starts, “Moi, j’aime changer les mots des chansons”? first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
We recently posted a page of Frère Jacques Versions from over 100 Countries around the World with translations. While we were researching different versions, we came across this fun video of Frère Jacques sung in 17 languages… You can access all of the lyrics here with English translations. Click the Fr button on the bottom […]
The post A Video of Frère Jacques in 17 Languages first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Frère Jacques was the first foreign language song I learnt as a young child. It opened whole new possibilities about the human experience to me…. there was a place in the world where people said “frère” for brother. Instead of asking “Are you asleep?” They said, “Dormez-vous.” It felt like a secret code that I was […]
The post Frère Jacques stirs an Interest in Foreign Languages first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Here’s a French poem called “Bonne Année” (Happy New Year) by Tristan Derème (1889-1941). Below you’ll find an mp3 recording of the poem with the original French text and an English translation. MP3 Recording of Bonne année Bonne année Par Tristan Derème Voici la nouvelle année Souriante, enrubannée, Qui pour notre destinée, Par le ciel nous […]
The post Bonne Année (Happy New Year) – A French Poem with a Recording first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Did you know there’s a spoof version of Frère Jacques in France? It’s a good song for when you’re trying to teach (or learn) the names of fruits and vegetables in French. It’s also helpful for pronunciation. Below are the lyrics with an English translation and an MP3 recording. I tried to keep the translation playful. […]
The post Spoof Version of Frère Jacques from France first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
I’m always trying to improve my French. One way is by watching French movies, ideally with French subtitles to help comprehension. Then you’re not always translating in your head by reading subtitles in your own language. Yesterday I discovered that Netflix added subtitles in different languages to some foreign movies and shows. I was able […]
The post Netflix Movies in French with French Subtitles first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Mama Lisa’s World has an extensive collection of Christmas Carols from Around the World. For each song we provide the original language lyrics, with an English translation. Most have recordings, YouTubes and sheet music. You can also check out our Christmas Carols with French Translations (Chansons de Noël). And Christmas Carols with Spanish Translations (Canciones […]
The post Christmas Carols around The World first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Certain sounds are difficult to pronounce in French. The vowel combination "ui" can be a tricky one for English speakers. To pronounce "ui", you should pucker your mouth like you’re going to say "u" but quickly say "we" instead. Monique from France has recorded some words with the "ui" combination for us. You can listen […]
The post How to Pronounce "ui" in French first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Monique from France recorded a few words for us in French that are difficult to pronounce. You can find the words below with their meanings followed by a recording. 1. Bouilloire – Kettle 2. Accueillir – To welcome or greet 3. Serrurerie – Ironwork 4. Verrerie – Glasswork 5. Cueillir – To gather, pick or […]
The post Some French Words with Difficult Pronunciation with Recording first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.
Home Language has some great videos for intermediate to advanced students to help you improve your French. Patricia from the site Parlez-vous Français covers tricky aspects of the French language such as when to use the subjunctive tense, which idiomatic expressions are widely used, when to use en versus y. The list goes on… As […]
The post YouTube Videos to Help Improve Your French first appeared on Mama Lisa's World Blog.