Montréal
During a conversation, I was reminded of the importance and frequency of the expression faque là. You’ll want to make sure you understand this expression if you don’t already.
Faque is a contraction of ça fait que. Faque means so, like alors, and it’s an informal usage.
Faque can be pronounced with one syllable (as faque) or two (as fa/que). The person who used the expression faque là that inspired this post always pronounced faque with one syllable.
Faque c’est ça.
So there you go.
So there you have it.
So that’s how it is, etc.
Faque qu’est-ce qu’on fait?
So what are we going to do?
As for là, it can be used in the sense of now.
Là, tu vas m’écouter.
Now you’re gonna listen to me.
Là, chu tanné!
Now I’m fed up!
Viens-t’en là, là.
Come right now.
When used with past time, though, là means then.
Là, y m’a dit : …
Then he said to me: …
Là, j’ai eu une idée.
Then I got an idea.
In conversations, you’ll often hear là accompanied by faque and used with past time, the same way so then is used in English.
Faque là, y m’a dit : …
So then he said to me: …
Faque là, j’ai eu une idée.
So then I got an idea.
You’ll also hear pis là very frequently, where pis is a contraction of puis. We can translate pis là as and then, or more informally as an’ then.
Pis là, y m’a dit : …
And then he said to me: …
Pis là, j’ai eu une idée.
And then I got an idea.
The most useful of the posts I have come across! Many thanks – you guys loooooove “fauque” (kinda like we love to use “alright”)! This site has really been helpful – thank you so much.
I hear ‘faque’ all the time here in Mtl and it was the first, most baffling word I learned when I moved here. Definitely an essential word to know.
On a related note, I have this idea that ‘faque’, ‘pis’ and ‘donc’ are far more commonly used than ‘alors’. I hear ‘alors’ from Quebecois sometimes but bilingual Anglos seem to use ‘alors’ almost exclusively, instead of all the others. Am I just imagining this?
Yes, it would be good if ‘faque’ were learned right away when starting French. I’d say you’re right about ‘faque’ and ‘donc’ being used more than ‘alors’. (Remember, though, that ‘pis’ means something else; it means ‘and’ or ‘then’.) As for anglophones, it’ll depend on the individual. There are anglophones whose French is virtually indistinguishable from that of a francophone. Others may have a spoken French containing fewer idiomatic usages.
I’m from New Hampshire and decided to move up here to Quebec City to learn French. I’ve been here for a little over two months and am beginning to be able to communicate quite fluently but with all of the expressions exclusively used by French-Canadiens it’s paramount to learn them to really get by here.