False friendFood & Body
French
Blesser
Meaning: Actually means 'to wound' or 'to injure'. Je suis blessé = I am injured — not blessed.
Looks like: Bless
Origin: From Frankish blaitijan, 'to bruise' — unrelated to English 'bless', which comes from Old English blētsian, 'to mark with blood'.
More French false friends
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- Phrase Actually means 'sentence'. For a short phrase or expression, say une expression.
- Ignorer Actually means 'to be unaware of' or 'not to know'. J'ignore la réponse = I don't know th…
- Déception Actually means 'disappointment'. For deception (a trick), say tromperie.
- Monnaie Actually means 'change' or 'coins'. Money in general is l'argent.
Explore another collection: Idioms
Colorful expressions from dozens of languages, with their word-for-word translations.
- Jeter de l'huile sur le feu To make a bad situation worse.
- Faire d'une pierre deux coups To kill two birds with one stone.
- Faire d'une mouche un éléphant To make a mountain out of a molehill; to exaggerate wildly.
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