Informal French Expression
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| Meaning | to cope, hold up, handle, survive; to stay the course, weather the storm | |
| Literally | to hold the blow | |
| Register | normal / informal | |
| Pronunciation |  |
[teu neer leu koo] |
| IPA | [tə niʀ lə ku] | |
Usage notes: The French expression tenir le coup is pretty straightforward. Literally, it means to cope with a physical blow.
Par exemple…
| Comment est-ce que les boxeurs tiennent le coup ? | How do boxers cope with being hit? |
By extension and informally, tenir le coup means to hold up to an intangible blow, to cope with a psychological or emotional situation.
| Je ne sais pas s’ils peuvent tenir le coup. | I don’t know if they can weather the storm. | |
| Ils ont tenu le coup, et leur mariage s’en trouve mieux. | They survived, and their marriage is all the better for it. |
Tenir le coup isn’t limited to difficulties faced by people.
| J’espère que son témoinage tiendra le coup. | I hope his testimony will hold up. | |
| Penses-tu que l’économie tienne le coup ? | Do you think the economy will survive? |
Tenir le coup in action
Example of tenir in a real-life video from Lawless French Immersion:
| On tient le coup, on reste debout. | We hold on, we stay on our feet. | |
| Video: Les Enfoirés – Maintenant | ||
Somewhat synonymous
- endurer – to endure
- résister – to resist, overcome
- supporter – to endure, tolerate
- survivre – to survive
To survive a literal storm is essuyer une tempête.
Related lessons
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