# givré



## pieanne

"Ce mec, il est givré!"

How would you translate "givré" in English? (with good connotations)


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## Negg

you can say "crazy" or "mad"


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## pieanne

Thank you, but I'm looking for something more colloquial   

Not "banana", "nuts"...


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## Aupick

That guy's one short of a six-pack.
He's completely off his rocker.


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## pieanne

"One sandwich short of a pick-nick"?


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## Negg

he's a looney? a freak?


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## pieanne

pieanne said:
			
		

> "One sandwich short of a pick-nick"?


 Sorry, it may be "picknick"...


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## pieanne

Well, to me, "givré" has a nice quality to it. You know, does unexpected things. I like "looney". Any other suggestions?


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## Aupick

He's got a screw loose.


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## Amityville

pieanne said:
			
		

> Sorry, it may be "picknick"...


 
It's picnic


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## Kelly B

He's a wild man! is sometimes used in the US, more typically with reference to a specific behavior, though - ex. look at the way he plays basketball! He's a wild man!


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## pieanne

Sorry, sorry! *picnic* !!!

But "givré" is not always crazy... It sometimes refers to unexpected behaviours, but funny &nice on the whole...


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## zam

Pour un 'givré' gentil, tu peux dire: bonkers/crackers/nuts/nutty/wacky


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## MrPedantic

Hello Pieanne!

Just to throw my 2p on your growing pile:

"Crazy" sounds a little too – crazed.

"Mad" can be used fondly and colloquially...e.g. "he's a bit mad". You have to be a certain kind of person to say it, though. (With multiple piercings and much midriff unwisely on show.) 

"Off his rocker": slightly too negative for "givré", maybe?

"Looney": quite weak and old-fashioned; a "playground" word.

"Freak": definitely too negative.

"A sandwich short of a picnic": emphasis on "something missing". Cf. "a screw loose". Doesn't have the "funny and nice" overtones.

"Bonkers": yes; a little "touched"; but inoffensively so. But it doesn't have the "engaging" quality.

"Crackers": quite old-fashioned.

"Nutty": weak and a little old-fashioned now.

"Wacky": slightly embarrassing now.

Actually...I don't know if there _is_ a match for "givré". It seems to require a "charmingly eccentric" quality. 

Could we make do with an emoticon?

MrP


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## judkinsc

I suggest:

"He's a little crazy, but such a nice old man!"


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## Aupick

How about 'fruitloop' or 'fruitcake', which haven't come up yet? They seem quite affectionate. You could even convert the 'one short of' pattern and say: 'He's one cherry short of a fruitcake'.


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## Mia Girard

eccentric?


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## pieanne

I'm overwhelmed!
Thanks to all of you for such colourful words!



			
				MrPedantic said:
			
		

> It seems to require a "charmingly eccentric" quality.
> 
> MrP


 
  It does indeed. It's like some tapdancing in the middle of an academic meeting.

Thank you for your summing-up...


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## pieanne

I learned a new one today, it's "*lunchin' *". And there's also "*to the South*", if I'm not wrong. 
How would you rate them?


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## judkinsc

pieanne said:
			
		

> I learned a new one today, it's "*lunchin' *". And there's also "*to the South*", if I'm not wrong.
> How would you rate them?


Je n'ai jamais entendu cettes phrases la, mais je pense que la premiere allerais dire: "his brain is off on lunch", et la deuxieme: "his brain is away on vacation."

Il n'y a aucune sens dans les mots a moi, mais l'usage doit indiquer quelque chose.

En francais, peut-etre: "son cerveau a pris un petit pause pour dejeuner" et "son cerveau est parti sur les vacances".


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## Isotta

pieanne said:
			
		

> I learned a new one today, it's "*lunchin' *". And there's also "*to the South*", if I'm not wrong.
> How would you rate them?


"Lunchin'"--I don't know this fish.

"To the South"--I've heard, though can't comment much on it.

Perhaps someone who "marches to the beat of a different drummer?"

At university in America we say that someone is "really intense." Used to describe a person, this is almost always positive, where as "a little off" would convey having "a screw loose" or being "one crayon short of a box."

Z.


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## pieanne

Here is "lunchin' "
B U Z Z W O R D   O F   T H E   D A Y

lunchin': Crazy or stupid. A shorter version 
of "out to lunch." "Did you see that guy shoveling 
snow in his shorts? He's lunchin'."

I really love all those expressions involving a something short of a something...


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## pieanne

judkinsc said:
			
		

> En francais, peut-etre: "son cerveau a pris un petit pause pour dejeuner" et "son cerveau est parti sur les vacances".


 
Non non, que je sache, on n'a pas de si jolies expressions en français!


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## judkinsc

pieanne said:
			
		

> Non non, que je sache, on n'a pas de si jolies expressions en français!


Quelle horreur!  Il faut que commencer les utiliser immediatement!


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## Agnès E.

Si si, on dit aussi *son cerveau a pris des vacances* !


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## pieanne

Je ne suis pas contre... "Il lui manque un oeuf pour faire la douzaine"? "Il est en pause-déjeûner"?


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## pieanne

Agnès E. said:
			
		

> Si si, on dit aussi *son cerveau a pris des vacances* !


Oui, mais est-ce que cela veut dire qu'il est "givré"?


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## Agnès E.

Euh, non, ça veut plutôt dire qu'il est stupide...


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## Isotta

Ahh, it's a play on "out to lunch," of course! Then yes, it works. You can also say that they're in "la-la land," or that they are "not quite there all the time." You could also say "dotty," though maybe it's a bit old-fashioned. Perhaps the same with "barmy." 

Z.


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## pieanne

Oh yes, dotty! It makes me think of Miss Marple!

Correct me if I'm wrong: "la-la land" and "not quite there" have the same connotations as "out to lunch"? (meaning "his brain doesn't work to its full capacity)

But "dotty" and "barmy" may have more to do with "givré"? We also say "il a un brin".


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## Isotta

pieanne said:
			
		

> Oh yes, dotty! It makes me think of Miss Marple!
> 
> Correct me if I'm wrong: "la-la land" and "not quite there" have the same connotations as "out to lunch"? (meaning "his brain doesn't work to its full capacity)
> 
> But "dotty" and "barmy" may have more to do with "givré"? We also say "il a un brin".



Well, no, "la-la land" and "not quite there" are more severe than someone who is "out to lunch," for the latter is expected to come back, so to speak.

"Dotty" would likely be more widely understood than "barmy."

You can also say someone is "quite a character."

I am not familiar with "il a un brin." How would one use it?

Z.


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## pieanne

Isotta said:
			
		

> for the latter is expected to come back, so to speak.
> 
> I am not familiar with "il a un brin." How would one use it?
> 
> Z.


 
Yes of course you usually come back from lunch...    

"Il a un brin (de folie/de fantaisie)"... 
"T'as vu? Il est venu à l'école en pantoufles!"
"Ouais, tu sais, il a un brin/un petit brin... Mais il est gentil!"


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## Agnès E.

Tiens, c'est amusant, en France on dit *avoir un grain (de folie)* !


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## Isotta

pieanne said:
			
		

> "T'as vu? Il est venu à l'école en pantoufles!"



Did you know that American university students really do this?

Z.


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## judkinsc

Isotta said:
			
		

> Did you know that American university students really do this?
> 
> Z.


They do.  (Can I say "J'y confirme"?).  Usually only the girls, but not always.


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## pieanne

Agnès E. said:
			
		

> Tiens, c'est amusant, en France on dit *avoir un grain (de folie)* !


 
Bon ben alors c'est peut-être belge, une fois... ?


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## pieanne

judkinsc said:
			
		

> They do. (Can I say "J'y confirme"?). Usually only the girls, but not always.


On dit "je confirme"


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## judkinsc

pieanne said:
			
		

> On dit "je confirme"


Donc, je confirm que les filles, et parfois les garcons, portent des pantoufles et, qui plus est, des pyjamas aux cours!

Mais, je ne pense pas qu'on dite qu'ils sont givres.   ...peut-etre indifferents.


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## pieanne

Ou pressés? Ou ils aiment leur confort!


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## fredness

This is certainly a case where French is infinitely more succinct.  In English, it's necessary to qualify your thoughts considerably to soften the negative connotations.  For example: "He's a nut job, but you can't help liking him."  That sort of thing.


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