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Quiz about Absurd French 771
Quiz about Absurd French 771

Absurd French 771 Trivia Quiz


Here's another French quiz for those Francophones at Quizzyland who wish to know how to use French in more unusual situations than previously encountered. Dedicated to all of our Canadian friends here.

A multiple-choice quiz by Bruyere. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
Bruyere
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
177,358
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
4395
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 80 (9/10), Guest 86 (9/10), Rudd13 (10/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. Si les acheteurs de tableaux de Marcel de Simiane savaient qu'il était chimpanzé en réalité, ils seraient outrés. Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Pour financer ses études, Maurice vendait de la barbe à papa au cirque.

Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Viens chez moi ce soir, j'habite chez mon caniche. Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Veuillez m'excuser messieurs, mais vous allez abîmer vos baskets sur les sales bancs du Metro. Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Honnêtement, je préférerais nettoyer ma salle de bains et me laver les cheveux ce soir plutôt que de sortir avec lui. Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. « Dessine-moi un papillon », dit le Prince au mouton. « Sire, si seulement je pouvais. » Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Moi qui avais toujours rêvé devenir pompier, me voici pompiste. Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Pardon, mais saviez-vous qu'il y avait une abeille dans votre beau nez? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Un nuage de corbeaux s'est envolé de la corbeille à papiers. Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Donc, si je vous comprends bien Giselle, vous voudriez me quitter pour aller vivre dans un couvent? C'etait quelque chose que je vous ai dit ? Hint



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Most Recent Scores
Mar 25 2024 : Guest 80: 9/10
Mar 21 2024 : Guest 86: 9/10
Mar 20 2024 : Rudd13: 10/10
Mar 18 2024 : SilverMoonsong: 10/10
Mar 13 2024 : Guest 216: 9/10
Mar 12 2024 : miranda101: 9/10
Mar 06 2024 : 1e123213: 7/10
Mar 05 2024 : skatersarehott: 0/10
Mar 02 2024 : IM_Stupid: 2/10

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Si les acheteurs de tableaux de Marcel de Simiane savaient qu'il était chimpanzé en réalité, ils seraient outrés.

Answer: If the purchasers of paintings by Marcel de Simiane knew he was a really a chimpanzee, they'd be appalled.

Un tableau = painting. Chimpanzé is chimpanzee of course. Outré means shocked, appalled.
2. Pour financer ses études, Maurice vendait de la barbe à papa au cirque.

Answer: To pay for his studies, Maurice sold cotton candy at the circus.

"La barbe à papa" is cotton candy. Une barbe is of course a beard. Le cirque is of course the circus. 'Barbant' is boring and 'la barbe' with a grating on the cheek means 'what a bore.'
3. Viens chez moi ce soir, j'habite chez mon caniche.

Answer: Come to my place tonight, I live at my poodle's.

Le caniche is a poodle. Now for some trivia, remember the old joke about stepping in a poodle when it's raining cats and dogs? Well, turns out that poodle does share roots with puddle or puddle, as in German it was a dog associated with water. This is according to some etymologists. Péniche is a barge on the river. Vienne is Vienna in French, but Wien in German.
4. Veuillez m'excuser messieurs, mais vous allez abîmer vos baskets sur les sales bancs du Metro.

Answer: I'm terribly sorry gentlemen, but you are going to damage your tennis shoes on the dirty Metro benches.

This is a clever ploy to indicate that the young people with their feet on the benches or seats in the Metro or subway are out of order by making them think they'll dirty their shoes on the seats. I personally wouldn't try it. Les baskets is a general term for trainers, tennis shoes, or track shoes. One of my favorite 'get off my case' phrases in French is, 'lâche-moi les baskets, veux-tu?' Lâcher meaning let go. Un panier is a basket, or perhaps un filet for the little net bags that are handy to have.
5. Honnêtement, je préférerais nettoyer ma salle de bains et me laver les cheveux ce soir plutôt que de sortir avec lui.

Answer: Honestly, I'd prefer cleaning my bathroom and washing my hair tonight rather than going out with him.

Lots of people mix up cheveu(x) and then cheval-chevaux when learning French. French children get the cheval and chevaux mixed up but not the others. Goldfish are 'poissons rouge' and 'la baignoire' is bathtub.
6. « Dessine-moi un papillon », dit le Prince au mouton. « Sire, si seulement je pouvais. »

Answer: "Draw me a butterfly", said the Prince to the sheep. "Sire, if only I could."

Un papillon is a butterfly. This is a tribute to St. Exupery's well-known 'Le Petit Prince' if you hadn't guessed already. "Dessine-moi un mouton." is what we heard there though.
Deviner is to guess.
7. Moi qui avais toujours rêvé devenir pompier, me voici pompiste.

Answer: Me, the person who'd always dreamt of becoming a firefighter, here I am a service station attendant.

Le pompiste is the guy pumping gas or petrol. There aren't too many of them around any more though in France as the gas is about four times as high as it is in the United States so most people do it themselves. You need to tip him or occasionally her if in a small town and it's a mom and pop operation. Pompier is firefighter and there are many variations on this, military, paramilitary outfits and volunteer.

They do a great job and are highly skilled. Pompier is what artists doing Neoclassicist spinoffs were in the nineteenth-century as they had the Roman helmets that resembled the firefighter's helmet on.

It's a derogatory term, yet recent shows of 'Art Pompier' have been successful.
8. Pardon, mais saviez-vous qu'il y avait une abeille dans votre beau nez?

Answer: Pardon me, but did you know that there was a bee in your beautiful nose?

"Une abeille" is a bee of course. "Une abbaye » is an abbey. Votre beau nez and votre bonnet, are pronounced the same. Un apiculteur is a beekeeper and les ruches are beehives.
9. Un nuage de corbeaux s'est envolé de la corbeille à papiers.

Answer: A cloud of crows flew out of the wastepaper basket.

Le corbeau is a figure who appears in many tales and also means someone who is an informant. La Fontaine probably did the crow the best with the 'Corbeau et le Renard'.
Le corbillard is the hearse. La corbeille is what is on Windows for the trashcan or recycle bin on your desktop.
10. Donc, si je vous comprends bien Giselle, vous voudriez me quitter pour aller vivre dans un couvent? C'etait quelque chose que je vous ai dit ?

Answer: So, if I understand you correctly Giselle, you would like to leave me to go live in a convent? Was it something I said?

The word donc is rather hard to translate for non natives, but I assure you, it occurs frequently in conversations and is used in everyday speech. Tired mother in shopping center : 'Dis donc toi, arrête de faire cela à ta soeur!' It's translated as therefore literally, but is a very common interjection. Le couvent is the convent. The use of vous between couples is not common and indicates the aristocracy. If you watch 'La Cage aux Folles', you'll notice the stuffy couple uses it.
Source: Author Bruyere

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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