Clé France

Festive French Phrases to get you starting a conversation this Christmas.

It's that time of year again, the Season to be Merry is here, and its the perfect opportunity to invite your French friends and neighbours for a Christmas Apéro.

You will want of course to be the perfect host, so before they arrive it might be a good idea make a good impression by brushing up on your Christmas Vocab!

So to that end, here are some keys words and phrases, it only remains for us at Clé France to say Joyeux Noël et Meilleurs Voeux!

Events:

Christmas - Noël
Christmas Day - le jour de Noël
Christmas Eve - le Réveillon de Noël
Christmas Party - la fête de Noël
Midnight Mass - la Messe de Minuit

Associated Words:

Angel - un ange
Candle - une bougie
Christmas card - une carte de Noël
Christmas present - un cadeau de Noël
Christmas tree - un sapin de Noël
Mistletoe - le gui
Reindeer - un renne
Santa Claus - Père Noël
Sleigh - un traîneau
Snow - la neige
Snowball - une boule de neige
Snowman - un bonhomme de neige
Wreath - une couronne

Foods:

Chestnut - un châtaigne, un marron
Lobster - le homard
Oysters - les huîtres (fem)
Pheasant - le faisan
Turkey - la dinde
White pudding - le boudin blanc
Yule log - la bûche de Noël

Greetings:

Merry Christmas - Joyeux Noël
Happy Holidays - Joyeuses fêtes
Best Wishes - Meilleurs voeux

What is one unusual Christmas tradition in France? 

There are lots of similarities with how Christmas is celebrated in the UK, but perhaps the biggest difference is that for some French families, December 6th is the day that presents are exchanged. This is because it is the feast day of St Nicholas, the patron saint of children, who helped inspire the figure of Father Christmas. Children leave out shoes for St Nicholas to fill with presents (but only for the good children). This is a Christmas tradition strongest in north and north-eastern France.

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