| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le tonnerre et la foudre | thunder and lightning | mellt a tharanau | kurun e luc’hed |
| l’éclair (m) | a flash of lightning | mellten; llucheden | luc’hed, foeltr |
| l’éclair en zigzag | forked lightening | mellt fforchog | |
| l’éclair en nappe(s) | sheet lightening | dreugiau | |
| être foudroyé | to be struck by lightning | wedi ei daro gan mellt | |
| le paratonnerre | lightning conductor | rhoden fellt/luched | diskuruner; par(a)gurun |
| la cannaberge | cranberry | llugaeronen; cryglusen | |
| le projet | plan (intention) | bwriad | raktres |
| la maison jumelée | semi-detached house | ty pâr | |
| le fer à cheval | horseshoe | pedol (y march) | houarn-marc’h |
| le serment | oath (formal promise) | llw | le |
| la brouette | wheelbarrow | berfa; whilber | chirigot |
| entraînant | catchy | cofiadwy; bachog | joudoul |
Category: Breton (Brezhoneg)
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le grand-bi (vélo) | penny-farthing (bicycle) | beic peni-ffardding; ceffyl haearn | |
| rebondir | to bounce | rhybedio; trybowndio; sboncio | adlammat |
| le gros titre | headline | pennawd | |
| la course | race (competition) | ras | redadeg |
| l’interprète | performer (musician) | perfformiwr; chwaraewr | kaner; c’hoarier |
| performe(u)r | performer (athlete) | perfformiwr | |
| originaire/natif (d’un pays) | native (of a country) | brodor | genidik |
| indigène | native (original inhabitant) | brodor | henvroat |
| le pays natal | native country | mamwlad; gwlad enedigol | mammvro |
| la langue natale | native language | mamiaith; iaith frodorol | yezh vamm; yezh e gavell |
| locateur natif | native speaker | siaradwr brodorol | komzer orin |
| c’est un français de souche | he’s a native Frenchman | brodor Ffrainc ydy o | |
| endémique | native (plant) | brodorol | brosezat |
| la (voiture) décapotable | convertible (car) | car codi; car to clwt | karr to-disto |
| terrifié | terrified | dychrynedig; mewn ofn | |
| l’épouvantail (m) | scarecrow | bwgan brain | spontailh |
| la forêt tropicale humide; la forêt pluviale | rain forest | fforest law | forest lav |
| le defaut d’élocution | speech impediment | nam ar leferydd | |
| le jour de congé; la journée libre | day off | diwrnod rhydd; diwrnod i’r brenin | |
| le briquet | (cigarette) lighter | taniwr (sigaréts) | direnn |
| le short | shorts | siorts | bragoù berr |
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le dioxyde de carbone | carbon dioxide | carbon deuocsid / deuocsid carbon | dioksidenn garbon |
| l’onduleur; l’inverseur | (electrical) inverter | gwrthröydd | gwagenner; ginader |
| l’échafaudage (m) | scaffolding | sgaffaldiau; sgaffaldwaith | chafotaj |
| le compteur [kɔ̃tœʀ] (d’électricité) | (electricity) meter | mesurydd (trydan) | konter (tredan) |
| le parcmètre | parking meter | cloc/mesurydd parcio | parkmetr |
| la coupure [kupyʀ] de courant | power cut | toriad trydan | troc’h tredan |
| passer | to flow (electrical current) | llifo | flistrañ |
| l’essaim (m) [esɛ̃] | swarm | haid | barr; hedd; taol; tokad |
| se regrouper en masse; essaimer | to swarm (bees) | heidio | adtaoleiñ; adtaoler; barrañ; flac’hediñ; hediñ; taoler hed |
| les tong (fpl) | flip-flops | fflip-fflops | soledennoù; solennoù |
| alcootest®; éthylotest; éthylomètre | breathalyzer® | alkotest; etilotest; etilometr | |
| le tonneau; le fût | cask | casgen; baril; hogsied | tonell; fust |
| la taupe | mole | gwadd; twrch daear | goz |
| tapeur; crocheteur | scrounger | chwiwleidr; crafangwr | suner; klocheder |
| l’assignation (f) à comparaître | (court) summons | gwŷs | |
| recevoir une assignation à comparaître | to be served a summons | derbyn gwŷs | |
| la déposition | (legal) statement | mynegiad; datganiad | testeni |
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le vers | verse | pennill | poz |
| le refrain | chorus | corawd | diskan |
| le réseau (électrique) | (electricity) grid | rhwydwaith (trydan) | rouedad (tredan) |
| la charrette | (horse-drawn) cart | cart; trol | karr |
| le cheval de trait | cart horse | ceffyl gwedd/gwaith/cart | kezeg tenn |
| metter la charrue avant les bœufs | to put the cart before the horse | rhoi’r cart/drol o flaen y ceffyl | |
| se concentrer sur | to concentrate on | canolbwyntio ar | en em dopliñ war |
| porter son attention sur | to concentrate one’s attention on | canolbwyntio ar | en em dopliñ war |
| la colombe | dove | colomen | koulm |
| la pensée latérale | lateral thinking | meddwl ochrol; meddwl wysg eich ochr | soñj gostez (?) |
| un vieil ami | an old friend | hen gyfaill | kamarad kozh (?) |
| les algues (fpl) | seaweed | gwymon | bezhin |
| gaspiller | to squander (money) | gwastraffu; afradu | digalzañ |
| gâcher | to squander (chances) | gwastraffu | priennañ |
| travail en retard | backlog of work | llwyth o waith yn aros i’w wneud | |
| les séquences | footage (filmed material) | ffilm | laziad |
| creuser | to dig (a hole) | palu; cloddio | kleuzañ |
| bêcher | to dig (the garden) | claddu | palat |
| taper (qch à qn) | to scrounge (sth off sb) | begera (rhywbeth gan rywun) | |
| mettre l’accent sur qch | to put emphasis on sth | pwyleisio ar rywbeth |
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| prendre des libertés | to take liberties | bod yn hy[f]; beiddio gwneud rhth | monet / mont re frank ouzh ub |
| le devis | quotation (estimate) | pris | rakpriz |
| la citation | quotation (from book) | dyfynnu | arroudenn |
| les guillemets (m) | quotation marks | dyfynodau | klochedigoù |
| les arrhes (m) | deposit (refundable) | blaendal (ad-daladwy) | arrez |
| l’acompte (m) | deposit (non refundable) | blaendal (di-ad-daladwy) | rannbae |
| hors taxes; exempté de douane | duty-free | di-doll; tollrydd | pep taos er-maez |
| le chargement | load (things carried) | llwyth | fard |
| il pleuviote | it’s spitting (with rain) | mae hi’n pigo bwrw / taflu dafnau | pleuvasser a ra |
| la bruine; le crachin | drizzle | glaw mân; gwlithlaw; manlaw; brithlaw | ailhenn |
| éthique; moral | ethical | ethic | buhezegezh; divezel |
Archerien
An interesting word that came up in my Breton lesson today is archerien, which means police. It caught my attention because it has no obvious connection to the word police, and because it is completely different to the equivalent words in other Celtic languages:
– Welsh: heddlu (“peace force”)
– Cornish: kreslu (“peace host”)
– Irish: gardaí (síochána) (“guards of peace”); póilíní
– Manx: meoiryn shee (“peace keepers/stewards”); poleenyn
– Scottish Gaelic: poileas
The English word police comes from the French police (public order, administration, government), from the Latin polītīa (state, government), from the Greek πολιτεία (politeia – citizenship, government, administration, constitution). It is shares the same root as policy, politics, politician and various other words [source].
Many languages use variants on the word police, e.g. Politsei (Estonian), პოლიცია (polits’ia – Georgian), Polizei (German), पुलिस (pulis – Hindi), پلیس (pulis – Persian), Booliis (Somalia), Policía (Spanish), Pulis (Tagalog), but some do their own thing:
– Bavarian: Kibara
– Chinese: 警察 (jǐngchá); 公安 (gōng’ān)
– Faroese: Løgregla
– Greek: Αστυνομία (Astynomía)
– Hungarian: Rendőrség
– Icelandic: Lögregla
– Japanese: 警察 (keisatsu)
– Korean: 警察 (gyeongchal)
– Thai: ตำรวจ (tảrwc)
Are there other examples of languages with a word unrelated to police for police?
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| imperméable | waterproof | diddosi | didreuz |
| barboter; faire trempette | to paddle (in water) | slotian; padlo; ffritian | bourbouilhañ |
| pagayer | to paddle (a kayak/canoe) | rhwyfo; padlo | roeñvat |
| la pataugeoire | paddling pool | pwll padlo | poullig patouilhañ |
| patauger | to wade/splash about; flounder | sblasio; fflatsio; slotian; ymdrochi | papouilhat |
| décrocher | to go cold turkey | gwneud triniaeth croen gwydd | diskregiñ |
| tailler | to sharpen (pencil) | rhoi/gwneud blaen (ar bensel); hogi, miniogi | krennañ |
| le taille-crayon | pencil sharpener | peth gwneud min/awch ar bensel | beger-kreionoù |
| aiguiser | to sharpen (blade/appetite) | hogi; rhoi min ar | lemmañ |
| le coquelicot | poppy (wild) | llygad y cythraul; llygad y bwgan; bochgoch | roz-aer |
| le pavot | poppy (cultivated) | pabi | roz-moc’h |
| les soins intensifs (m) | intensive care | gofal arbennig; gofal dwys | prederioù askoridik |
| les menottes (f) | handcuffs | gefynnau (llaw) | kefioù-dorn; grizilhonoù |
| menotter | to handcuff | gefynnu; rhoi gefynnau (ar) | grizilhonañ |
| avoir les menottes aux poignets | to be handcuffed | bod mewn gefynnau |
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| la cuisinière | cooker | cwcer; popty; ffwrn | keginerez; fornigell |
| la cusinère à gaz; la gazinière | gas cooker | popty/ffwrn nwy | keginerez dre c’haz |
| la cuisinère électrique; le four électrique | electric cooker | popty trydan; ffwrn drydan | keginerez-tredan |
| l’autocuiseur (m) | pressure cooker | sosban bwysedd/frys | primgaoter |
| le panneau solaire | solar panel | panel haul | panell-heol |
| le panneau photovoltaïque | photovoltaic (PV) panel | panel ffotofoltäig/ffotofoltaidd | panell-fotovoltaek |
| la courbe | curve | cromlin | krommenn |
| courbe; arrondi | curved | crwm; crom | kromm |
| l’accordéon (m) | accordion | acordion; cordion | akordeoñs |
| l’accordéon à touches | piano accordion | piano-acordion | akordeoñs piano |
| le concertina | concertina | consertina | koñsertina |
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le macadam (goudronné) | tarmac | tarmac | makadam |
| goudronner | to tarmac/asphalt | tarmacio; coltario | koultronañ |
| les bons et les méchants | goodies and baddies | dynion da a dynion drwg | an tud vat hag an tud fall |
| un sachet de petits cadeaux | a little bag of goodies | bag bach o dda-da | |
| [petit sac pour emporter les restes après un repas au restaurant] | doggie/doggy bag | bag sborion | |
| clair comme de l’encre | as clear as mud | annealladwy; fel tatws llaeth | |
| clair comme le cristal / comme de l’eau de roche | as clear as day/crystal | mor olau a’r dydd; clir fel grisial | |
| le champ de foire | fairground | cae ffair | marc’hallac’h |
| le typhon; l’ouragan | typhoon | gyrwynt; corwynt; teiffŵn | tifon |
| la monnaie; la devise | currency | arian (treigl/cyfredol) | moneiz; teulenn |
| les devises étrangères | foreign currency | arian tramor | moneiz estren (?) |
Les mots de la semaine
| français | English | Cymraeg | Brezhoneg |
|---|---|---|---|
| le linge | laundry (clothes) | dillad golchi; y golch | lien |
| la blanchisserie | laundry (shop, place) | golchdy | gwennerezh; kannerezh |
| la laverie (automatique) | laundrette | laundrette | gwalc’herezh; kanndi |
| la guérison | curing, healing, recovery | iachau; iachâd | pare; gwelladeg |
| la gueule de bois | hangover | pen mawr/clwc; salwch bore drannoeth; salwch ar ôl y ffair | poan vlev |
| joindre les deux bouts | to make ends meet | cael deu ben llinyn ynghyd | |
| avoir beaucoup de mal à joindre les deux bouts; tirer le diable par la queue | to stuggle to make ends meet | cael yn anodd i gael dau ben llinyn ynghyd | |
| l’influence (f) de l’entourage; pression exercée par les autres | peer pressure | pwysau cyfoedion | |
| le loup de mer | old seadog; sea bass | hen forwr; ysbinbysg y môr | bleiz mor; ki mor |
| farcir | to stuff (food) | llenwi; stwffio | farsañ |
| le fenouil | fennel | ffenigl; ffunell | fanouilh |
| malveillant | evil (person) | drwg; drygionus; dihiryn | maliset |
| branlant | wobbly (chair/table) | sigledig; siglog; woblog | brall; divrall |
| tremblant | wobbly (voice/jelly) | crynedig | krenedik |
| avoir les jambes flageolantes | to feel wobbly | teimlo yn sigledig / siglog / woblog | sentet trabidellus |
| Je ne te reproche pas | I don’t blame you | ni welaf i ddim bai arnat ti | |
| une motte de gazon | sod; piece of turf | darn o dywarchen | moudenn leton |
| brouter | to graze (on grass) | pori | peuriñ |
| mouchard | grass (informer) | prepiwr; hen brep; clep; clepgi | to(u)pin |
| donner qn | to grass on sb | prepian am/ar rywun | kelaouiñ da unan bennak |
| la flottabilité | buoyancy | hynofedd | flotuster |