FRENCH WORD-A-DAY

      
                  A little cabanon in Vidauban (Var).

Special thanks to Jean-Marc for recording the pronunciation of "paille". Click on the link below to listen to the word.

une paille (pie) noun
  1.  straw (hat)
  2.  straw (drinking)

Hear today's word: Download paille.wav

Expressions
tirer à la courte paille = to draw straws
être sur la paille = to be penniless
C'est la paille et la poutre = It's the pot calling the kettle black.
un feu de paille = a flash in the pan
un homme de paille "man of straw" = front man in a dishonest affair
le vin de paille = straw wine (sweet white wine from grapes dried upon straw)

Citation du Jour:
L'espoir luit comme un brin de paille dans l'étable.
Hope shines like a wisp of straw in a cowshed. --Paul Verlaine

A Day in a French Life:
The story that originally appeared here and included the vocabulary,* below, is now a part of this book:

Words in a French Life: "...a heart-winning collection from an American woman raising two very French children with her French husband in Provence, carrying on a lifelong love affair with the language."
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*une poignée (f) = a handful; un gâteau (m) = a cake or cookie; un garçon (m) = a boy; une pomme (f) = an apple; Ne rentrez plus dans la cuisine! = Don't come back into the kitchen!; une machine à café (f) = coffee machine; le canapé (m) = couch; un match de foot (m) = football game; Il ne pleut plus! = It's no longer raining; gigoter = to fidget; le terrain de foot (m) = soccer field; le footballeur (m) la footballeuse (f) = soccer player; le maillot (m) = jersey (soccer)