The joy of saying ‘ooh la la’ naturally
A French friend of mine once told me she had no idea that the rest of the world did not say “Ooh la la” and that she was surprised to discover it was a stereotype of what French people say. I remember in Australia, there was a chain of fashion accessory shops called “Ooh la la”, and my friends and I pronounced it “ooooooh la la”. It turns out it’s a bit more of an “oh la la” in French, or at least, somewhere between the two. It’s a phrase that, to me, sounds cheesy when anyone but a French person says it. An American friend says it with a total American accent that sounds as wrong as the shop name in Australia, and hearing her say it was enough to prevent me from using it as anything more than a joke.
That all changed last weekend when the pistes got busy with people. I managed to use it twice when people got too close to me and it came out naturally both times. I was talking to a different French friend about how good it felt about being able to use it so naturally, and he said he doesn’t really consider it a word in French as much as a saying, like “Oh” in English. Except, of course, “Ooh la la” covers so much more. It can be used for surprise (“Ooh la la! or “Wow!”), disgust (“Ooh la la” or “What a terrible cheese”), injury (“Ooh la la” or “Ouch!”), admiration (“Ooh la la” or “The bride looks beautiful”), uncertainty (“Ooh la la” or “This big pile of paperwork might not be enough to change your address with us”) and regret (“Ooh la la” or “Damn, I’ve taken a gouge out of my skis”). There are probably plenty of other meanings to it because when I hassled my French friend about it he said: “I don’t know: it comes out so naturally that it’s hard to think of any examples”.
So, now you know: if ever you’re stuck in one of those situations where someone is speaking to you in French and you have no idea what they’re saying, just say “Ooh la la” and you’ll probably be okay.
I'm a technical author, journalist and writer from Australia who has been living in Europe since 2000 and exploring the world from there. My passions are writing, snow sports and travel.
For me oh la la is also not typically french ! M… is much more… What do you think of Ah bon ? or tu crois ?
I have to say I’m a huge fan of the saying too. The two incidents that stick in my mind most vividley were in the same day of each other last season. I was in Bourg St. Maurice hospital with a broken wrist; and when I first arrived (six hours after snapping it in two places and mushing all the carpal bones together so they now sat in a lump under the skin on the top of my hand) I asked for some painkillers. The nurse explained they couldn’t give me any MORE as I would have to have another lot before surgery, and they didn’t want to overdose me. I explained I had had nothing so far, not even a paracetamol. ‘Ooh la la!’ she exclaimed, before rushing to get me something. Despite the shooting pains and general depressing situation it still made me smile.
The second ‘ooh la la!’ came after the surgery…I was asked to stand up off the bed to have an X-ray to see how the op had gone. Now, my french is ok…better than average for most brits I’d say. However, in my limited vocabulary (‘Pete is in the kitchen. One beer please….etc.’) I didn’t know how to say “Excuse me, my dressing gown is completely open at the back, I couldn’t fasten it with my broken wrist.” Pointing and nodding my head at the situation couldn’t get me out of this one, and in the end I just stood up, turned round baring everything and pointed. I don’t know who was more mortified…me, the nurse or the X-ray machine. Needless to say the ‘Ooh la la’ she muttered was completely relevant for the situation.
Oh lala: j’avais jamais pensé à ça dis donc !!!
Touring in Brittany, ‘Ah bon’ is definitely a great one to be able to say naturally and very very French. ‘Tu crois’ just seems like ‘do you think so?’ in English to me, but ‘Mmmm’ I haven’t noticed but I have noticed ‘bof’.
Georgia, great examples from a terrible experience! I’m glad you made the most of it by flashing. I can now add to the list that ‘ooh la la’ can be applied sexually too.
Caro, mais c’est la verity, non?!