Thanksgiving in Québec: the French you’ll hear all weekend

Every line of the video, as spoken. The narration is in English.

1. Jacob « Mmm... C’est écœurant! »
2. Narrator If you learned French in school, that sounds like a disaster. Écœurant means disgusting.
3. Julie « Merci, Jacob! »
4. Narrator But at a Québec table, it can be a compliment. This weekend is full of words like that. Let’s spend Thanksgiving in Québec.
5. Narrator In French, Thanksgiving is l’Action de grâce.
6. Narrator In Canada, it’s the second Monday of October, a date Parliament set in 1957.
7. Narrator It became a yearly holiday in 1879. Long before that, Indigenous peoples celebrated the harvest every fall.
8. Narrator You’ll see it written with or without an s: Action de grâce, or Action de grâces. Both are correct.
9. Narrator In Québec, it’s traditionally celebrated less than in the rest of Canada. But the long weekend has a name of its own.
10. Narrator In France, the weekend is le week-end. You’ll hear that in Québec too, but Québec’s language office recommends la fin de semaine. Literally, the end of the week.
11. Narrator Three days off? La longue fin de semaine. The long weekend.
12. Julie « Jacob? Viens souper dimanche. Toute la parenté s’en vient! »
13. Jacob « Ben oui! Bonne fin de semaine, Julie! »
14. Narrator La parenté: the relatives, the whole extended family. And souper? Hold that thought until Sunday.
15. Narrator Saturday morning. Julie takes Jacob aux pommes.
16. Julie « Les pommes sont belles cette année! »
17. Narrator Aller aux pommes: to go apple picking. Literally, to go to the apples. It’s a common way to say it in Québec.
18. Narrator The sign at the gate says autocueillette: pick-your-own. That’s the term used frequently in Québec.
19. Narrator Apple season here runs through September and October.
20. Jacob « J’en cueille combien? »
21. Julie « Remplis le panier! »
22. Narrator Un panier: a basket.
23. Jacob « Pis ça, c’est des citrouilles? »
24. Narrator Next to the apples: pumpkins. Une citrouille is the round orange pumpkin. Une courge is the broader word: any squash.
25. Jacob « Une citrouille-lanterne, déjà? »
26. Julie « Ben oui, l’Halloween s’en vient! »
27. Narrator A carved one is une citrouille-lanterne. Carving is for Halloween, which is coming at the end of the month.
28. Narrator Back in town, the shopping.
29. Julie « Une dinde, des atocas... pis quoi d’autre? »
30. Jacob « La tarte! »
31. Narrator La dinde: the turkey. It’s feminine, la dinde. Le dindon is the male bird.
32. Narrator Des atocas are cranberries. The dictionary word is canneberges, and in Québec you’ll hear both. Atoca comes from an Iroquoian language.
33. Narrator And the pie? Pumpkin pie is a classic across Canada, but in Québec, many people prefer apple pie: une tarte aux pommes. Good thing Jacob picked apples.
34. Narrator Sunday morning, on the way to Julie’s.
35. Jacob « Ouf! Y fait frette! »
36. Narrator Y fait frette: it’s cold. In everyday speech, il fait often sounds like y fait. And frette is the familiar Québec way to say froid. It sounds like "fret".
37. Julie « Attache ta tuque! »
38. Narrator Une tuque: the knit winter hat. In English Canada, many people write it toque. Elsewhere in French, it’s un bonnet.
39. Narrator To say tuque, round your lips as if you were saying ee. In much of Québec, the t comes out with a little s: tsuk.
40. Narrator Attache ta tuque can mean just that: put your tuque on, it’s cold. But it’s also an expression: brace yourself.
41. Narrator The trees are turning, too. In Québec it’s la saison des couleurs, the colour season, and Thanksgiving weekend usually falls right in it.
42. Jacob « Mmm! Ça sent bon! »
43. Narrator Ça sent bon: it smells good. Standard French, and useful in any kitchen.
44. Julie « C’est une soupe à la courge. »
45. Narrator Remember courge? Soupe à la courge: squash soup.
46. Narrator Another Québec classic: la soupe aux pois, made with dried yellow peas and salt pork.
47. Jacob « J’peux-tu y goûter? »
48. Julie « Non! Attends le souper! »
49. Narrator J’peux-tu y goûter? Can I taste it? Y stands for it. And that little tu after the verb makes it a yes-or-no question, like in « T’as-tu été voter? »
50. Narrator Sunday evening. Le souper.
51. Narrator In Québec, déjeuner is breakfast, dîner is lunch, and souper is the evening meal. Belgium and Switzerland still say souper too.
52. Narrator In France, breakfast is petit-déjeuner, déjeuner is lunch, and dîner is the evening meal. There, souper can mean a late meal, after a show.
53. Narrator And this isn’t slang. Québec’s language office gives déjeuner, dîner and souper as the standard words here. So if you’re invited à dîner in Québec, it probably means noon.
54. Narrator Quick check. Julie says « Viens dîner demain. » When do you show up?
55. Narrator At noon.
56. Julie « Bon appétit, tout le monde! »
57. Jacob « Santé! »
58. Narrator Bon appétit before you eat. Santé when you raise your glass: to your health.
59. Jacob « Julie, passe-moi les atocas, s’te plaît. »
60. Narrator Passe-moi: pass me. It uses tu, so it’s for family and friends. And s’il te plaît, said fast, often sounds like s’te plaît.
61. Julie « Encore de la dinde? »
62. Jacob « Ben oui! »
63. Narrator Encore: more, another helping. Ben oui: well, yes. Of course.
64. Jacob « Mmm... C’est écœurant! »
65. Julie « Merci! »
66. Narrator Now you know. In the dictionary, écœurant means disgusting. In familiar Québec French, it can also mean amazing. The tone and the moment tell you which one. Just like c’pas pire.
67. Julie « T’as trop mangé? »
68. Jacob « Ouf... Ben oui. Chu plein. »
69. Narrator Chu plein: I’m full. Chu, or chui, is how je suis often sounds in everyday Québec speech. Familiar, and very common.
70. Narrator One word not to use for this: bourré. In familiar French, it also means drunk.
71. Julie « Tu repartiras avec les restes! »
72. Narrator Les restes: the leftovers. Turkey sandwiches on Monday, and on Tuesday...
73. Narrator Monday is the holiday itself. In Québec, it’s un jour férié: a statutory holiday.
74. Narrator Banks and post offices close, but Québec law doesn’t make stores close that day, so many stay open.
75. Narrator So if you forgot the atocas, you can probably still find some on Monday.
76. Jacob « Joyeuse Action de grâce! »
77. Narrator To wish it: Joyeuse Action de grâce. You’ll also hear Bonne Action de grâce.
78. Narrator Your turn. Seven phrases from this weekend. Answer before I do.
79. Narrator La fin de semaine?
80. Narrator The weekend.
81. Narrator Y fait frette?
82. Narrator It’s cold.
83. Narrator Le souper?
84. Narrator The evening meal.
85. Narrator Chu plein?
86. Narrator I’m full.
87. Narrator Une tuque?
88. Narrator A knit winter hat.
89. Narrator Des atocas?
90. Narrator Cranberries.
91. Narrator And at the table: C’est écœurant?
92. Narrator It’s amazing.
93. Narrator Which word surprised you most? Tell us in the comments. Joyeuse Action de grâce.
94. Narrator You heard it. Now you know it.