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French word of the day: Plaquer

The Local France
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French word of the day: Plaquer
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond"

For when you’ve already had enough of la rentrée.

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Why do I need to know plaquer?

Because we all have moments when we just want to start over. And it’s also a meme, apparently…

What does it mean?

Plaquer has many different meanings - if you’re a rugby fan, you might have heard it used to describe a tackle.  But in casual conversation it’s usually used to mean “to ditch” or “to dump”. Although even within this definition there are several different usages.

It’s commonly used in the phrase tout plaquer et devenir… - to drop everything and become…

This expression can be said sincerely, when you really do dream of quitting your job and starting over, although social media users will often deploy it ironically.

Topito has gathered together some of the best examples, like this post gently mocking Britain's queen and her primary coloured outfits – “Drop everything and become a packet of skittles.”

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But plaquer can also mean “to dump”, as in to break up with someone.

Or it can be used to refer to ditching someone to do something else, such as Michel nous a plaqués pour aller manger avec ses amis – Michel ditched us to go and eat with his friends.

Use it like this

J’ai envie de tout plaquer et devenir berger – I want to quit everything and become a shepherd

J’ai tout plaqué pour venir habiter en France – I gave up everything to come and live in France

Je viens de me faire plaquer – I just got dumped

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