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.

Author
Bruyere

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
177,358

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
8 / 10

Plays
4312

Awards
Top 20% Quiz

Last 3 plays: Trevor67 (3/10), nmerr (7/10), Jennifer5 (8/10).

This quiz has 2 formats: you can play it as a or as shown below.
Scroll down to the bottom for the answer key.

1. Si les acheteurs de tableaux de Marcel de Simiane savaient qu'il �tait chimpanz� en r�alit�, ils seraient outr�s. Hint

If the clients at tables at Marcel de Simiane's restaurant knew he was really serving fake champagne, they'd been appalled.

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

If the purchasers of paintings by Marcel de Simiane were chimpanzees, they'd be shocked to know they were out of a lot of money.

If the purchasers of paintings by Marcel de Simiane knew he was out of his mind, they would ask more for them when they sold them.

NEXT>

2. Pour financer ses �tudes, Maurice vendait de la barbe � papa au cirque.

Hint

To finance his artist's studio, Maurice grew a beard and painted the circus performers.

Becoming an international financier after his studies, Maurice left his father to join the circus.

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

To pay for his studies, Maurice asked his father to grow a beard and become circus performer.

NEXT>

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

Come to my house tonight, I live with my boyfriend.

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

Vienna in the evening is lovely with its barges.

Tonight tonight won't be just any night.

NEXT>

4. Veuillez m'excuser messieurs, mais vous allez ab�mer vos baskets sur les sales bancs du Metro. Hint

I'm terribly sorry gentlemen, but your shopping baskets are full of dirty white laundry from the Metro.

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

I'm terribly sorry gentlemen, but you are going to damage your shopping baskets on the white benches of the Metro.

I'm terribly sorry gentlemen, but your tennis shoes are going to dirty the Metro benches.

NEXT>

5. Honn�tement, je pr�f�rerais nettoyer ma salle de bains et me laver les cheveux ce soir plut�t que de sortir avec lui. Hint

Honestly, I'd prefer cleaning my bathroom and washing my hair and gazing at Pluto rather than go out with him.

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

Honestly, I preferred netting goldfish in the bathtub and riding horses last night rather than going out with him.

Honesty is what I'd prefer to pretending to clean my bathroom, washing my horse, and going out with him tonight.

NEXT>

6. � Dessine-moi un papillon �, dit le Prince au mouton. � Sire, si seulement je pouvais. � Hint

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

"Guess which butterfly I am.", said the Prince to the sheep. "Sire, I fear I cannot."

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

"Draw a butterfly for me," said the Prince to the sheep. "Sire, I only draw sheep."

NEXT>

7. Moi qui avais toujours r�v� devenir pompier, me voici pompiste. Hint

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

Me, the person who'd always loved high heels, here I am in flats.

Me, the person who'd always dreamt of becoming a painter, here I am a firefighter.

Me, the person who'd always dreamt of becoming a funeral director, here I am a painter.

NEXT>

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

Pardon me, but did you know that there was a bee in your bonnet?

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

Pardon me, but did you know there was once an abbot with a beautiful nose here?

Pardon me, but did you say there was an abbey here that kept bees?

NEXT>

9. Un nuage de corbeaux s'est envol� de la corbeille � papiers. Hint

A cloud of papers flew out of the hearse.

A crowd of crows flew out of the fruit basket.

A cloud of crows stole the wastepaper basket.

A cloud of crows flew out of the wastepaper basket.

NEXT>

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

Therefore I understand Giselle would like to leave me to join you in the convent? Is there anything I can say?

So though I understood Giselle so well, she wished to leave me to go live in a convent. It must have been something I said.

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

Then, if I understand you correctly Giselle, you'd like to leave me to go become an undercover agent? Was I just another informant for you?

(Optional) Create a Free FunTrivia ID to save the points you are about to earn:

Select a User ID:

Choose a Password:

Your Email:

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Si les acheteurs de tableaux de Marcel de Simiane savaient qu'il �tait chimpanz� en r�alit�, ils seraient outr�s.

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

Un tableau = painting. Chimpanz� is chimpanzee of course. Outr� means shocked, appalled.

2. Pour financer ses �tudes, Maurice vendait de la barbe � papa au cirque.

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

"La barbe � 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. P�niche is a barge on the river. Vienne is Vienna in French, but Wien in German.

4. Veuillez m'excuser messieurs, mais vous allez ab�mer 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, 'l�che-moi les baskets, veux-tu?' L�cher meaning let go. Un panier is a basket, or perhaps un filet for the little net bags that are handy to have.

5. Honn�tement, je pr�f�rerais nettoyer ma salle de bains et me laver les cheveux ce soir plut�t 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 r�v� 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 envol� de la corbeille � 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, arr�te de faire cela � 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.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Most Recent Scores

Mar 08 2023 : Trevor67: 3/10
Mar 04 2023 : nmerr: 7/10
Mar 03 2023 : Jennifer5: 8/10
Feb 08 2023 : ThickFingers: 7/10
Feb 02 2023 : winston1: 3/10
Jan 26 2023 : Guest 174: 0/10
Jan 25 2023 : Guest 99: 9/10

Score Distribution