He’s Shocked When He Sees The Baby Sitter
A misunderstanding about who is coming to baby sit the couple's child leads to a humorous introduction when Clara, Claudine's attractive young niece, arrives late due to subway issues. Her arrival diffuses the initial frustration and is warmly welcomed by Alain, who is eager to make her feel at home.
Watch this short clip in French. The clip starts at 8:40 (in case it doesn't automatically start there). I highly recommend you first watch it at 0.75x speed.
- 30 minutes de retard, je vais quand même lui dire deux mots à la grosse!
- Je t'ai dit que c'est pas la grosse!
- Bonsoir! Je suis Clara, la nièce de Claudine.
- Ah bon? Vous êtes la nièce de la...
- Je suis désolée je suis en retard, c'est euh... C'est le métro... J'ai mal calculé, en fait il y a trois changements mais euh... ma ligne ne marche pas à cause des grèves...
- Oui mais, pas de problème, attends, nous on est relax, ça va hein! On est pas pressés, enfin on n'est pas sur les horaires, quoi. On est jeunes hein!
Eh ben rentrez, rentrez!
- Merci
- Je ne me suis pas présenté, Alain, le papa.
Bon bah je vais vous déshabiller, enfin, je vais prendre vos affaires...
English version
- 30 minutes late! I'm going to give her a piece of my mind, that big girl!
- I told you it's not the big girl who's coming!
- Good evening! I'm Clara, Claudine's niece.
- Oh really? You're the niece of the...
- I'm sorry I'm late, it's uh... the subway... I miscalculated, actually there are three connections but uh... my line isn't working because of strikes...
- Yes, but no problem, hey, we are cool, it's okay! We're not in a hurry, well we're not on a schedule, you know. We're young, right! Well, come in, come in!
- Thank you
- I haven't introduced myself, Alain, the father. Well, let me undress you, I mean, I'll take your things...
Dire deux mots à quelqu'un
This phrase means to talk to someone because you are upset with them. It means you have a short, serious talk.
"Il a encore oublié de fermer la porte, je vais lui dire deux mots!"
He forgot to close the door again, I'm going to have a serious talk with him.
A related phrase is "j'ai deux mots à te dire!"
"J'ai deux mots à te dire! Pourquoi as-tu utilisé ma voiture sans me demander?"
I have a few words for you! Why did you use my car without asking me?
La grosse
"La grosse" (the big girl) is a colloquial and mocking term referring to a person based on their physical appearance.
In the French culture, it's often considered witty and humorous to refer to someone based on a physical characteristic e.g. "le gros", "le grand", "le petit", "le chauve" (the bald one), "le vieux", "la moche" (the ugly one)...
People from English speaking cultures are often shocked or offended by this habit.
"Ne t'en fais pas, la grosse arrive bientôt."
Don't worry, the big girl is coming soon.
Ça va hein
This is a casual French expression used to reassure someone that things are okay, and that there's no problem. It's often used to diffuse a mild concern.
"Tu es un peu en retard, mais ça va hein."
You're a bit late, but it's okay, no problem
Note that the phrase is also used in a different way. In some contexts, "Ça va hein" can be translated as "Alright, that's enough" or "give me a break." It's used to express irritation or to tell someone to stop saying or doing something that's annoying or excessive.
"Tu n'as pas beaucoup travaillé cette semaine"
"Bon ça va hein, tu sais très bien que j'ai eu des problèmes."
You didn't work much this week.
Give me a break, you know very well I had problems.
Eh ben rentrez, rentrez
This phrase is an informal way of inviting someone to enter a place, often said with enthusiasm or impatience. It's like saying "Well, come in, come in!"
Note that the correct word here should be "entrez" as "rentrez" means "to return" or "to go back inside." It's normally used when asking someone to come back into a place where they belong or have been before. In informal talk, however, it's often use instead of "entrez".
"Il fait froid dehors, eh ben entrez, entrez!"
It's cold outside, well, come in, come in!
Je vais prendre vos affaires
This phrase means "I will take your belongings." It's commonly used for offer to help a visitor by holding or storing their items.
"Vous pouvez vous asseoir ici; je vais prendre vos affaires."
You can sit here; I will take your belongings.
"Je vais vous déshabiller": the phrase can sometimes be used in a playful or casual way to offer to take a guest’s coat. However, it literally means "May I undress you?"be careful using it to make sure it doesn't cause confusion.
The guy in the video quickly corrects himself after saying 'je peux vous déshabiller?' (revealing his real thoughts) and adds "enfin, je peux prendre vos affaires?"