# je m'en fous & je me fous de



## haz

*Moderator note: *multiple threads merged to create this one.  See also 
[...]
I don't care.


I don't know if I have got the spelling right? Would like to know what this phrase means.


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## Starcreator

It's je m'en fous. And it's the equivalent of, excuse my language, "I don't give a fuck". A little harsher than "je m'en fiche", I think.


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## haz

ok just seen another question posted on your forum and got the meaning of the phrase. what's the french phrase for "I don't care".


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## anangelaway

haz said:
			
		

> ok just seen another question posted on your forum and got the meaning of the phrase. what's the french phrase for "I don't care".


 
Hello Haz!

I don't care means Je m'en fous. 

Now depending on the intonation of your voice, you could say ''J'en ai rien à foutre!!!'', which could be the équivalent of what Star has suggested.


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## Kelly B

As starcreator mentioned, "je m'en fiche" is a milder phrase that means I don't care; or "ça m'est égal" -- it's all the same to me/I don't care.


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## anangelaway

Personnellement, ''je m'en fiche'' ou ''je m'en fous'' sont tous deux synonymes, et pour moi, l'un ou l'autre means ''I don't care''. They're both milder, but some parents will say that ''je m'en fous'' is not so polite, and won't mind ''je m'en fiche'', problably the second by ear sounds nicer, smoother... humm... 

Now, if someone says: Vraiment, je m'en fou comme de l'an 40!!! Or use the verb ''s'en foutre'' in this context, '' Je n'en ai absolument rien à foutre'', to me is it way more than just ''I don't care''... sweety!


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## Amityville

This complicates things, ana - how about foutu ? Say the brakes on a car aren't working, would you say they were foutus politely ?
 "Ou est-ce que j'ai foutu ce machin-là." (or something like) - is that ok ? Or is it just 'je m'en fous' that is so widespread as to be unremarkable ?


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## le chat noir

the original meaning of "foutre" is actually "to fuck".
The only expression where it keeps this meaning is "va te faire foutre" (get fucked!), which is still quite strong an insult. However, in other contextes it has lost most of its strength.

I would say "je m'en fous" is just colloquial, maybe the equivalent of "I don't give a damn". "m'en fous" or "rien à foutre" are just as frequent.
"je m'en fous comme de l'an 40" is just a funny way of stressing the lack of concern or interrest. It is very widely used.

"foutu" as an adjective usually means "ruined", "beyond all repair" or "finished" if used for a person.
"cette caisse[voiture] est foutue" -> "this car is a pile of junk"
"s'il me voit, je suis foutu" -> "if he notices me, I'm history"

as a verb, "foutre" is a coarser equivalent of "faire" or "mettre" :
"Qu'est-ce que tu fous" -> "what the hell are you doing ?"
"fous ça dans un coin" -> "just dump it in a corner".

"fiche" (verb) or "fichu" (adjective) are milder equivalents. "fichu" is often used, but "fiche" is very rarely spoken.
I hardly ever heard anyone use "je m'en fiche", it's just a milder fom only used in writing.


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## zazie

I think that a good English equivalent for "foutre" in all these expressions is "screw."  Like "foutre," "screw" has sexual origins/connotations, but in slang expressions (like "I'm screwed" or "I screwed up") it's quite mild.  And like "va te faire foutre," "screw you!" is more offensive (although probably not as much as "va te faire foutre").


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## Starcreator

anangelaway said:
			
		

> Personnellement, ''je m'en fiche'' ou ''je m'en fous'' sont tous deux synonymes, et pour moi, l'un ou l'autre means ''I don't care''. They're both milder, but some parents will say that ''je m'en fous'' is not so polite, and won't mind ''je m'en fiche'', problably the second by ear sounds nicer, smoother... humm...
> 
> Now, if someone says: Vraiment, je m'en fou comme de l'an 40!!! Or use the verb ''s'en foutre'' in this context, '' Je n'en ai absolument rien à foutre'', to me is it way more than just ''I don't care''... sweety!


 
But Je n'en ai absolument rien à foutre isn't really an application of s'en foutre - for s'en foutre one would have to say Je ne m'en ai absolument rien à foutre, n'est-ce pas?


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## Benjy

faut pas confondre les deux trucs 

j'en ai rien à faire/secouer/foutre/battre/péter....

mais

je m'en fiche/fous/bats les../torche/tape/balance...  

tu vois?


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## LV4-26

le chat noir said:
			
		

> "foutu" as an adjective usually means "ruined", "beyond all repair" or "finished" if used for a person.
> "cette caisse[voiture] est foutue" -> "this car is a pile of junk"
> "s'il me voit, je suis foutu" -> "if he notices me, I'm history"


There are more direct translations in English, aren't they ?
This car is fucked (up).
If he notices me, I'm fucked.

Note that, in this sense, the French tend more and more to use "niquer" (which is another direct translation for fuck).
Ma caisse est complètement niquée. (it's completely ruined).
Je me suis niqué le doigt (slightly different = I've hurt my finger)
Less frequent for a person, though. ("S'il me voit, je suis niqué" wouldn't be used much). In this case, "je suis foutu" would be more likely, together with "je l'ai dans le baba" or "je l'ai dans le coucougnousse". The latter is very rare (only heard it once, actually) but sounds charming, methinks


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## kathy_wylie

foutre means 'to f**k'?!

but there's a little elderly lady who talks to me. she has said 'je m'en fous' to me so many times. isn't this a bit rude??


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## le chat noir

Starcreator said:
			
		

> But Je n'en ai absolument rien à foutre isn't really an application of s'en foutre - for s'en foutre one would have to say Je ne m'en ai absolument rien à foutre, n'est-ce pas?


You're right, in "j[e n]'en ai [absolument] rien à foutre", "foutre" is just a synonym of "faire" ("there is nothing I do with that", in the sense "I have no use for it").
In "je m'en fous", the construct is literally "I f*** myself with that", although the original meaning is considerably weakened.

One can say "je n'en ai rien à faire", although this is a bit too mild for swearing, and consequently rarely used .


			
				kathy_wylie said:
			
		

> foutre means 'to f**k'?!
> 
> but there's a little elderly lady who talks to me. she has said 'je m'en fous' to me so many times. isn't this a bit rude??


 As it has been pointed out, "foutre" has lost most of his virulence over the centuries. To be precise, as a noun it means "sperm" and as a verb it means "copulate". This meaning was used literally maybe in the 18th century, although it is still known today by every native French speaker.
However, used in very mild swearing like "je m'en fous", the original sense does not even come to mind. Just an idiomatic expression with no implied profanity, really .


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## kathy_wylie

thanks for the clarity lechat noir


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## alain larochelle

Hi, to the best of my knowledge:
‘Je m’en fiche’ is not so rare, and not very used in writing… ‘Qu’est-ce que tu fous’ can be quite mild, and just mean: qu’est-ce que tu fais, like le chat noir has already noted.
 
So why do I even bother to write? Well, here’s something.
Did everyone know that ‘je m’en fous comme de l’an 40’ comes from ‘je m’y connais (ou je m’en fous) comme de l’Al-Qoran‘?

Here’s some other ones, from Québec probably:
 ‘noir comme dans le cul d’un ours’ … It comes from ‘noir comme dans l’antre d’un ours’, a bear‘s den, wich became ‘le ventre d’un ours’. Then the bear digested, and now its black as in his ass…
 And also ‘se faire enfirouaper’ means ‘se faire berner, tromper’ to be deceived (deceited?). It comes from bootleggers sticking bottles in their peltry, to sell it to the ‘Amérindiens’. The bottles where: in fur wrapped, enfirouapées… 
 (BTW amérindien is translated ameridian by other dictionaries, while WordReference only says American Indian… who should I report this to?)


I know I have a few of these fun facts somewhere in my mind, maybe they’ll come up sometime soon.
-Bonne journée


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## Cath.S.

> So why do I even bother to write? Well, here’s something.
> Did everyone know that ‘je m’en fous comme de l’an 40’ comes from ‘je m’y connais (ou je m’en fous) comme de l’Al-Qoran‘?


Passionnant, Alain, merci (je suis une mordue d'étylmologie).
Je m'étais toujours demandé, aussi, ce que l'an 40 avait de plus inintéressant que l'an 138, par exemple.!
En revanche, s'il te plaît, essaie de ne pas faire de hors-sujets, même (et surtout, en fait) s'ils sont dignes d'intérêt.
S'il le faut, commence de nouveaux fils.
Merci d'avance ! 
Il est dommage que nous n'ayons pas de forum "français seulement", à ce propos. Je crois que je vais suggérer à Mike d'en créer un.


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## Ninon

Bonjour, Est-ce qu'il y a une difference entre les deux phrases. Le sens de "Je m'en fous" je connais bien. "Je me fous du passé" vien de la chanson "Non, je ne regrette rien" de Piaf.

Merci!


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## foudie le rouquin

*Je me fous* is incomplete and needs to be followed by *de + noun. *
*Je m'en fous* is complete and means "I don't give a damn about it". The *en *replaces the de.


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## pieanne

I don't give a damn about the past

"En" is a pronoun, and should refer to the thing you don't give a damn about


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## Ninon

Oui, mais je veux savoir si "je me fous du passé" veut dire "I don't give a damn about the past" ou "I'm crazy from the past."


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## ymc

it means you don't care about it.


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## lutti

Non je ne regrette rien signifie qu'elle aurai agit de la même façon si elle aurai pu revivre sa vie.

Oui pour moi je me fous du passé signifie la même chose que je m'en fou


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## pieanne

Ninon said:


> Oui, mais je veux savoir si "je me fous du passé" veut dire "I don't give a damn about the past" ou "I'm crazy from the past."


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## Ninon

Alors, c'est ça qu j'ai pensé, mais j'ai vu un traduction que dit "I'm crazy from the past."


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## pieanne

Eh bien c'est une erreur!  



Ninon said:


> Alors, c'est ça qu j'ai pensé, mais j'ai vu un traduction que dit "I'm crazy from the past."


 
Ce serait dans le genre "le passé me rend/m'a rendu fou"


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## Ninon

Merci tout le monde!


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## Canard

Est-ce qu'on ne garde pas le "en" même quand c'est précisé après, comme dans "en avoir marre *de* ça...", donc "je m'*en* fous *de* ta sale gueule" ?

Merci


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## foudie le rouquin

Je dirais que oui. C'est une expression figée car si on dit "Je me fous de ta sale gueule", ça veut dire qu'on se moque de ta sale gueule.


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## pieanne

Canard said:


> Est-ce qu'on ne garde pas le "en" même quand c'est précisé après, comme dans "en avoir marre *de* ça..." I'm fed up with ..., donc "je m'*en* fous *de* ta sale gueule" ?= I don't care if you're ugly
> 
> Merci





foudie le rouquin said:


> Je dirais que oui. C'est une expression figée car si on dit "Je me fous de ta sale gueule", ça veut dire qu'on se moque de ta sale gueule.


Could mean either 1) "I don't care about whether you're pretty/handsome or not" or 2) "I'm laughing about you".

Once there's an adjective describing the "gueule", we tend to understand it as 1)


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## korean_fabio

Hi, everyone.  Merci d'avance!

What is the difference between "je me fous de qqch" versus "je m'en fous de qqch".  Is the second one even possible?

For some background--I've been to France several times and I'm certain I've heard both.  Also, more than one person has told me that if you say "je me fiche de toi," that means "I'm teasing/making fun of you".  But I'm still not certain, and I'd HATE to say "je me fiche de toi" and have them interpret it as "I don't care about you" when I'm really trying to say "I'm teasing you."

Merci d'avance!


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## quecumber

Yes, I'd be interested to hear the answer to this one too as I've heard them around.

I don't think "je m'en fous *de qqch*" is possible because the "de qqch" has already been said with the "en".

Also, what are the varying levels of politeness (or impoliteness) for each of 
je me fous de qqch
je m'en fous
je me fiche de qqn
je m'en fiche?

Thanks.


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## francais_espanol

you could maybe use « je te taquine » to avoid any misunderstandings!


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## david314

I believe that I've heard _Je me fiche de qqch_, but not such a construction with _foutre_.  "  _*I don't give a sh-t, hang, rats ass* about such and such._ "


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## Arrius

It may be of interest to* korean fabio* that there exist the derivatives *un je m'en foutiste* which means _someone who couldn't care less, an apathetic per_son, and the abstract noun *je m'en foutisme*. *And welcome to the forum!*


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## Stéphane89

As _quecumber_ said, *je m'en fous de qqch* is basically wrong (as long as something can be considered wrong in slang) because the *qqch* has been said in *en*.

So you can say: *Je me fous de faire des fautes* or *Faire des fautes, je m'en fous.*

Also, if I had to "rank" the different expressins from the least "impolite" one to the most impolite one, here is how it'd be:

Je me fiche de qqn
Je m'en fiche?
Je me fous de qqch
Je m'en fous

But I have to say that *je me fous de qqch* doesn't sound that natural to me. I'd rather say *j'en ai rien à faire/foutre/... de qqch.* Here, there is also that *en* which is basically wrong but which is used all the same.

As for *Je me fiche de toi*, it's true that it's a mid-rude mid-laughing way to mean _I'm kidding you_ and I doesn't mean _I don't care about you_ (which we say *je m'en fous de toi* or *j'en ai rien à foutre de toi *or* je m'en fiche de toi*...).

Well, I hope this is clear enough for you to understand. I hope I've helped you anyway.


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## Blootone

"Je me fous de ta gueule" may be the expression you're thinking of, meaning "I'm taking the piss out of you".


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## pieanne

[...]

Please note it's "je m'en fou*s*"


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## Stéphane89

pieanne said:


> Please note it's "je m'en fou*s*"


 
oh, how careless I am!!  Sorry!


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## smeersmudge1

hello all,
How strong is the expression, "je m'en fous?"  Is it something you would teach your children to avoid saying?  And instead stick with a milder "ça m'est égal?" I don't want to make a faux pas!  

Thank you!


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## jemi

il y a aussi "je m'en tape" mais je ne peux pas dire que je laisserai mes enfants le dire aussi


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## Dr. Baha'i

"Je m'en fiche" means the same thing but is less crude. 

"Je m'en fous" can mean, roughly, "screw it," while "ça m'est égal" means "it's all the same/it doesn't matter to me." At least, that's how I read it.


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## pastrygirl

Would you say that the difference between "je m'en fiche" et "je m'en fous" is roughly the difference between "I don't give a damn" (ficher) and "I don't give a shit" (foutre)?  I know that you wouldn't use either of them in the company of, say, your respected professor.


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## Dr. Baha'i

I think you've got that about right. I don't really know if "fiche" is milder than "damn." If we're not talking about actual translation here, there are probably many other ways to express the sentiment in such a way as not to offend the teacher.


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## Nothing-is-impossible

Bonjour,

What does it mean when one says: "*JE M'EN FOU*!!"

merci merci


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## cropje_jnr

It's _je m'en fou*s*._

Meaning may vary, generally one of:

_I don't care!_
_I don't give a stuff/crap/shit/hoot!_
_To hell with it!_


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## LARSAY

_I don't care _is less popular language than _je men fous, _and _I don't give a shit (or a crap) _is more. One would normally translate by _I don't give a damn_


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## November87

I think "je m'en fous" is a little like "I don't give a crap" in English.  It's not exactly polite, but not vulgar either.


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