Hello, dear friends! Thank you for joining me for this new episode of the Authentic French podcast. Today, we are going to look at a funny expression which is "de la poudre de perlimpinpin". It is funny and I will also tell you an anecdote which is linked to the current President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, who used this expression. I will tell you a little bit of the context. It will be very funny. So let's go.
But before that, before talking about the magic powder, I would like to ask you a small favor that is very simple, it will take you a few seconds, and that would be to leave 5 stars for the Français Authentique podcast on your favorite application. It can be on Apple Podcast or on Google Podcast, it doesn't matter. Or if you haven't done it, if you listen to the content on the free Français Authentique mobile application, you can leave 5 stars there. Obviously, it helps us a lot and it helps Français Authentique to help even more people. So leave 5 stars, please. Pause and do it. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Let's move on to our expression, perlimpinpin powder, and see the two major words that make up this expression, the word "powder" and the word "perlimpinpin".
Powder is a substance formed by very small particles, very small grains. For example, powdered sugar is sugar that is in very small grains. It is not sugar cubes, eh, it is not a kind of cube that we are going to put in our coffee, which is solid, it is really sugar powder. You can think of flour. It is a kind of powder. We are talking about poland whatsapp number data gunpowder, which is a small explosive powder, or makeup powder for women who wear makeup. At the level of the cheekbones for example or the eyelids, well we put a powder. It is a substance, it is something that is formed by very small particles.
The word that probably poses a little more of a problem for you is the word "perlimpinpin", which actually represents a magic formula like the famous "abracadabra". You know the word "abracadabra", I think. I did a podcast on the subject . I think I also talk about it in my book 301 expressions pour parler comme les Français . In any case, that's what we say when we do magic. We can say "abracadabra" or "perlimpinpin". It's really a word that symbolizes magic, something that happens by magic.
And this expression, it actually refers to the various powders that merchants tried to sell in the past by claiming that they had magical powers and that they were able to solve any problem. So with this kind of magic formula, we would say "it's magic powder". We imply that the remedy that the merchant is trying to sell us and which is supposedly magical and miraculous, it is not effective.
So there really is here, when we talk about magic powder, this slightly negative and mocking idea. We make fun of people a little by saying that. And we are actually saying that what is presented to us, the solution that is presented to us as being miraculous, is ineffective. It is a so-called miracle cure but which is useless or it is a so-called interesting idea but which will not work. So that is basically what this expression means. I will give you three examples, three contexts, before telling you the anecdote linked to President Macron.