Learning French - French Expressions with Cows
The French have a very special relationship with cows, a kind of entente cordiale where it is agreed that in return for milk to make excellent cheeses, cows get a special place in French culture, notably in popular expressions, slang and humour. The French word for ‘cow’ is la vache, from Latin vacca. I haven’t found any English word related to it, the Germanic word ‘cow’ seems to be sufficient for us.Rocket French French financial journalists sometimes refer to economic downturns as ‘periods of skinny cows’ (vaches maigres). This is a reference to the biblical account of Joseph (of Technicolor dreamcoat fame) who interpreted Pharaoh’s dream about seven fat cows and seven skinny cows as periods of prosperity and famine respectively.