# C'est la vie



## superann

Moderator Note: Several threads have been merged to create this one.

I know literally _C'est la vie_ means "It's life."
But, I was told by a Dutch friend who studied French for nine years that the phrase means something like "You have your own way to do things, so do I. We have to accept different perspectives of life from others"

What does the phrase exactly mean to you?

Merci.


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## DearPrudence

I don't know exactly when you use "that's life" in English, but I stronlgy disagree with your Dutch friend. Even though I'm not completely sure when you use "that"s life" in English, I think that the French meaning is very close to it.
For instance, if you're complaining about something, someone can tell you: "c'est life"= ok, it's bad, but there's nothing you can do against it.
But while writing that I've just realized that you don't use it much in France. So I think that most people saying that phrase are foreigners actually.


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## whatonearth

In BE it is used to mean "that's the way things are" (i.e. they can't be changed/can't be helped) - that kind of thing


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## James Stephens

I am not a French speaker.  We use in AE the French expression _chacun as son gout _to express the idea that your Dutch friend was describing.


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## Danse Macabre

"C'est la vie" can also be used to mean "Shit happens".


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## The Ho

_C'est la vie_ is not very often used in France. When someone says it, I understand "we may bewail (_whatever_), that's the way it is, that's our fate", "there's nothing we can do about it".


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## superann

Thank you all very much.
But, here is another question.
C'est la vie seems to be negative.
When _good_ things happen, can we also use C'est la vie?
For example, I hit the jackpot and my familiy were overjoyed. Then, my brother said to me "C'est la vie."

Does it make sense?


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## The Ho

superann said:
			
		

> Thank you all very much.
> But, here is another question.
> C'est la vie seems to be negative.
> When _good_ things happen, can we also use C'est la vie?
> For example, I hit the jackpot and my familiy were overjoyed. Then, my brother said to me "C'est la vie."
> 
> Does it make sense?


Not really, IMHO.


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## la reine victoria

Not really.  Your brother would be more likely to say 'Quelle bonne chance'.

In my experience 'c'est la vie' or 'that's life' does have negative connotations.  We usually say it on hearing bad news.


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## Danse Macabre

"C'est la vie" can also be used in a positive way. For winning the jackpot, it would mean that life can bring good things sometimes.

In fact "C'est la vie" means "sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, and you have no control over it" so it can be used in both positive and negative ways.


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## ampurdan

Vous rappelez-vous de la chanson de Frank Alamo "Sing c'est la vie"?

Sing c'est la vie
Tu pleures ou tu ris
Tu n'as pas choisi
Tout ça c'est la vie

C'est vrai. Les étrangers sommes ceux qui l'utilisent plus souvent cette expression.


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## DearPrudence

Danse Macabre said:
			
		

> "C'est la vie" can also be used in a positive way. For winning the jackpot, it would mean that life can bring good things sometimes.
> 
> In fact "C'est la vie" means "sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, and you have no control over it" so it can be used in both positive and negative ways.


 
I'm sorry but I politely disagree with you. "c'est la vie" is not the kind of thing you would say if you're happy. Maybe (and maybe), you could say: "*c'est la BELLE vie*" (and not even sure) ou "*elle (n')est pas belle la vie?"* (well, I know, it sounds like an ad  (and it is actually)).

p.s.: just a minor correction:


			
				ampurdan said:
			
		

> C'est vrai. Les étrangers sommes sont ceux qui utilisent le plus souvent cette expression.


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## Danse Macabre

And I will politely answer you that I do use it in both ways, even if I mostly use it in the negative one 

As for an exemple, I would use it in the context of a particular  unbelievable luck, meaning that sometimes life can bring good things.


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## Nenita84

For me this expression has a negative sense, i´ve always used it to express a stoical conformity. 

_Je dois retourne avec mon mari à l´Espagne  et laisser à mon amour ici, c´est la vie!!

_By the way, I´ve heard it from Swiss people.


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## anangelaway

Je suis plutôt d'accord avec DearPrudence: j'utilise souvent ''Elle est pas belle la vie?!?'' dans le sens positif et ''C'est la vie'' dans le sens négatif.

Je pense, _à mon avis_ que ''c'est la vie!'' est tout de même bien plus utilisé dans un sens nègatif que positif (bien qu'il soit possible de l'utiliser dans un sens positif je le conçois).

"C'est la vie'' est une expression que j'emploie assez souvent, surtout quand je parle avec mes soeurs adolescentes et qu'elles se plaignent de choses et d'autres. Je leur dis très souvent (l'une ou l'autre - elles sont 4): Hé oui, ma chèrie! C'est la vie! Elle est pas facile, rien ne tombe du ciel tu sais!!!


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## Danse Macabre

Certes, mais le fait que "c'est la vie" soit la plupart du temps utilisée avec un sens négatif n'empêche pas qu'elle soit aussi utilisée avec un sens positif, même si effectivement cet emploi est beaucoup plus rare.

Un exemple :
- Tu te rends compte? Il trouve une pièce de 2 euros par terre, il entre dans un bureau de tabac, achète un jeu et gagne 10 000 euros. Tu le crois ça?
- Et oui. C'est la vie!


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## anangelaway

Danse Macabre said:
			
		

> Certes, mais le fait que "c'est la vie" soit la plupart du temps utilisée avec un sens négatif n'empêche pas qu'elle soit aussi utilisée avec un sens positif, même si effectivement cet emploi est beaucoup plus rare.
> 
> Un exemple :
> - Tu te rends compte? Il trouve une pièce de 2 euros par terre, il entre dans un bureau de tabac, achète un jeu et gagne 10 000 euros. Tu le crois ça?
> - Et oui. C'est la vie!


 
Oui tout à fait! Tu as raison, et ton exemple est parfait.  

Quoique je dirais qu'il a _une chance de cocu_, mais nous n'allons pas revenir la dessus!


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## srsh

I´ve sometimes heard that phrase translated into english as "such is life", and I think that translation keeps the original meaning of the phrase, dont you think?


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## The Ho

srsh said:
			
		

> I´ve sometimes heard that phrase translated into english as "such is life", and I think that translation keeps the original meaning of the phrase, dont you think?


  I second this.


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## LV4-26

_That's the way the cookie crumbles_
(I like that one )


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## Idaho-Ron

I'm a song writer... and that word might be used in a lyric... I just wanted to know the meaning of the phrase, so that I'm using it properly or in the right context.  Thanks
Ron


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## mickaël

Hello and welcome,

It's _"c'est la vie !"_ = It's the life (literally)

It means something like, _things are like they are._


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## wasabi.nn

First please spell it "C'est la vie." Meaning basically "that's life" with the idea that you need to accept things as they come, good or bad.
WB


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## Idaho-Ron

Thank you all for your help.  I have corrected the spelling.  The meaning goes hand in hand with the song.  You have been a tremendous help.  Thanks so much
RG


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## texasweed

C'est la vie. That's what life's made of, take it or leave it (NO! I am NOT suggesting suicide here! Yikes!  ) Heard it in spoken AE many times under the French version.

Welcome on the forums, Ron!


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## FrançoisXV

Remember the bilingual song "c'est la vie" from Krystol on the album "talk of the town", back around mid 80' as far as i remember  "...c'est la vie, that's what life is meant to be..."


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## Pur Esprit

Yes ! But "C'est la vie" refers also to "Rose Selavy", a fictional character which was created by the french painter Marcel Duchamp in 1920. From then it was portraited by Man Ray and later by the french poet Robert Desnos, becoming an icon of the surrealist movement.


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## Clayjar

In Canadian English, the expression used would be "That's life," but we actually say "C'est la vie" as well. 

(It's part of the non-francophone French vocabulary: Bonjour, Au revoir, Merci, SVP, and C'est la vie.)


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## vince

Yeah but it's not accepted as English vocabulary and would be considered a French saying. If you were to quote someone saying that, you would have to write it in italics: 
"I told him, _c'est la vie_!". Whereas words like rendez-vous, serviette, and creme brulee are somewhat assimilated and don't need that.


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## Vantalle

srsh said:
			
		

> I´ve sometimes heard that phrase translated into english as "such is life", and I think that translation keeps the original meaning of the phrase, dont you think?


 
Such is life is how I had always thought of it.  My sister says it means That's life, which to me is the same thing I think....I am not sure that I see it as negative, but yes I can see how it is used that way as I do catch myself saying it when things don't necessarily go my way (oh wait, that is ALWAYS!!!  C'est la vie!!)

C'Est La Vie is the name of a young TB (racing potential) horse as well, this is a name I have been considering for my 2007 foal, but am not sure if I should use it due to the negative connontation that all are insinuating. However, in the horse world we know that things happen, both good and bad, weather it is winning a horse show or losing, so I may very well re consider C'est La Vie as a name....
Thank you for all of this insight.
Vantalle


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## matineeidol

I just watched le mépris, and brigitte bardot says it  to her on screen husband as he's asking her why she's changed her feelings for him, she shrugs and says "c'est la vie" and walks off.

   Idon't know what this is supposed to add to this discussion, but i thought i'd point it out for an idea of context!


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## polaire

James Stephens said:
			
		

> I am not a French speaker.  We use in AE the French expression _chacun as son gout _to express the idea that your Dutch friend was describing.



Or, "different strokes for different folks."  That's a more familiar way of putting it.

Another equivalent for "C'est la vie" in English would be "Life isn't fair," or "No one said that life was fair."

A while back I heard that the French sometimes used "C'est ecrit" for "C'est la vie."


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## srg1547

I disagree with "different strokes for different folks" - that expression is more along the lines of "to each their own". C'est la vie or "such is life" refers to a situation when something somewhat surprising happens that you had little to no control over. It is normally used in a negative context, but can also be used in a positive context in an ironic tone when when something good finally just randomly happens and everyone enjoys the irony of the situation . . .


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## polaire

srg1547 said:


> I disagree with "different strokes for different folks" - that expression is more along the lines of "to each their own". C'est la vie or "such is life" refers to a situation when something somewhat surprising happens that you had little to no control over. It is normally used in a negative context, but can also be used in a positive context in an ironic tone when when something good finally just randomly happens and everyone enjoys the irony of the situation . . .



That's what I was saying -- that "different strokes for different folks" was a more familiar way of saying "chacun son gout."


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## vegangirl

J'ai traduit cette phrase en anglais. Vous pouvez corriger les fautes s'il vous plaît ?

phrase : C'est la vie.
traduction : It's just a fact of life.


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## cropje_jnr

Oui, s'il s'agit bien d'un _fact. _Sinon, tu peux dire "_that's life" _ou encore "_such is life_" tout simplement.


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## maybe4ever

Je pense que "That's life" est plus correct et le plus simple.


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## hamlet

What are the English equivalents to those phrases?


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## lady_byron

*That's life!*
*Such is life!*
That's the way it is!
Plus familier et imagé, mais j'adore cette expression:
*That's the way the cookie crumbles!*


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## cycloneviv

In English (in my variant of English, at least), it is not uncommon to say "C'est la vie" to roughly mean "that's the way it goes", in an expression of mild disappointment.

For example, if I hoped to buy tickets for a concert on a particular date and found that they had sold out I might say: "Oh well, c'est la vie. Are there any tickets available for the other dates?"

I was wary of using "c'est la vie" in this manner when visiting France, as I didn't hear/notice it used by people in France and feared that it was one of those terms that have subtly changed meaning and usage on passing from French to English. Would it be used in such a situation in French? If so, is it commonly used?

Merci d'avance !

EDIT : I belatedly thought to do an internet search of French websites, and have not found one example of "c'est la vie" used in the manner I described in the first ten pages of results, which suggests to me that I was right to avoid it!


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## carolineR

it still exists, and retains its original meaning  ("Oh, well, that's the way it goes") only it has probably become a bit old-fashioned.
Its current equivalent, I think, could be "Elle est pas belle, la vie ?" - a tongue-in-the-cheek rhetorical question.


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## cycloneviv

Ah! Merci beaucoup, carolineR.

That explains why I didn't hear it used. And thank you very much for the suggested alternative.


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## DearPrudence

I wouldn't be shocked to hear (well, I think I do say it actually)
*"Bah, c'est la vie"*
You could also say:
*"Bah, c'est comme ça !"* (with a shrug )

As for
"*elle est pas belle, la vie*", even with a lot of irony I don't think it can work.
It's rather something I would say if I were on a heavenly island, lying on a hamac while having a drink  (= that's the life)

And I must admit that this is only reinforced by an ad for a ham that uses it as its slogan... 
I could only use it in a positive context


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## cycloneviv

Merci DearPrudence !

I'm making a list of your wonderful suggestions for use when I next visit France. I'll have to practice my shrug to go with them.


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## carolineR

DearPrudence said:


> As for
> "*elle est pas belle, la vie*", even with a lot of irony I don't think it can work.
> It's rather something I would say if I were on a heavenly island, lying on a hamac while having a drink  (= that's the life)
> I could only use it in a positive context


Funny ! Granted, this was originally a phrase I heard in the sort of situation you decscribe (heavenly beach- paradisiac island- gorgeous chick etc) I seem to only hear it used ironically these days : 
petrol prives have just gone up again. Elle est pas belle la vie ? 
The wife has left me, my kids are lousy, my job sucks, Elle est pas belle la vie ?


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