Predictive French Expression
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| Meaning | On Candlemas, winter ends or strengthens. | |
| Register | normal | |
| Pronunciation |  |
[ah lah sha(n) d(eu) leur lee vehr ses ou pr(n) vee geur] |
| IPA | [a la ʃã də lœʁ li vɛʁ sɛs u prã vi gœʁ] | |
Usage notes: À la Chandeleur, l’hiver cesse ou prend vigueur is one of those sayings that predict the weather based on a sometimes arbitrary date or event. It’s pretty straightforward: this is the day that Mother Nature decides to either put an end to winter or give it a boost.
Interestingly, Chandeleur (Candlemas) is on 2 February, which in the US and Canada is also known as Groundhog Day and which has a similar "will-winter-continue-or-has-spring-arrived" weather prediction.
Variations
- À la Chandeleur, l’hiver cesse ou reprend vigueur.
- À la Chandeleur, l’hiver se passe ou prend vigueur.
- À la Chandeleur, l’hiver se meurt ou prend vigueur.
À noter : 2 February is also le jour des crêpes – learn how to make crêpes
Related features
- Reading comprehension: La Chandeleur
- Listening comprehension: Histoire de la Chandeleur
- Verb conjugations: Cesser | Mourir | Passer | Prendre
- Vocabulary: Calendar | Weather
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