Re: French leave, Greek sex etc.

On 2008-09-25, Christian Weisgerber wrote:

Adam Funk <a24061@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

I need your help about a group of expressions/phrases with the
following characteristics:
a) the name of a nation is used
b) there are similar expressions in several languages with the same
nation's name
c) the expression must not be used in its "country of alleged
origin",
d) in that language, there exists a variant using another nation's
name

I am not sure whether "French letters" satisfy either b) or d).

I don't know about (b), but the French equivalent of "French letter"
is "capote anglaise".

The German slang term is "Pariser" (Parisian), so we have a French
connection there if not exactly an equivalent.

I didn't know that. Is it current slang or a bit old-fashioned (as
"French letter" certainly is in English)?

I think that makes "French letter"/"Pariser" satisfy all the OP's
criteria then, depending on how many qualify as "several".


--
History teaches that grave threats to liberty often come in times of
urgency, when constitutional rights seem too extravagant to endure.
(Thurgood Marshall)
.

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