“You look extremely tired and grumpy. Why don’t you take a few days off?”
“No chance! My boss won’t grant me leave even if I ask for it. She’s upset because two people on her team have taken French leave. They’ve been...”
“French leave? Really? Have they gone to France on holiday? Why didn’t you...”
“That’s not what the expression means. When a person goes on ‘French leave’, he takes off without permission. He just...”
“He just doesn’t show up for work. He doesn’t have anyone’s okay to be on leave either.”
“That’s right! The Principal became extremely angry when he learnt that the students took French leave to see the one-day match.”
“Good example. If your boss is giving you a hard time, take French leave and go see your parents.”
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it. I’ve never taken French leave. I’ve always...”
“There’s always the first time. Tell me, why is it called French leave? What is the ....”
“The English, as you probably know, hated the French. So whenever they got a chance, they made fun of their neighbours.
They thought that the French were rude; that they were people without manners.
The English believed that when a Frenchman was invited to dinner, he always left without thanking the host. They called this ‘French leave’.”
Origins
“That’s shocking. But is it true that Frenchmen really did that? Did they...”
“Who knows? But what’s interesting is that what the English call ‘French leave’, the French call ‘English leave’! “The two just couldn’t stand each other, I guess. Why do you think your two group members decided to take French leave?”
“A couple of weeks ago, our CEO praised them. It’s possible that all the nice things he had to say went to their head. They...”
“Went to their head? Does it mean it made them dizzy?”
“No, not dizzy. When you let compliments or praise go to your head, it makes you feel extremely proud. You become conceited. You begin to think that you’re much more important than you actually are.”
“In other words, the expression is mostly used to show disapproval. Madhavi has won so many awards at such a young age. But she hasn’t let success go to her head.”
“But that’s not the case with Mohan. He’s let his new-found fame go to his head.”
“He certainly has! How good is your French? Do you remember any of...”
“Well, I haven’t used the language in a while. I’m sure I’m pretty rusty.”
“Rusty? Are you saying that your knowledge of French is full of rust?”
“What I mean is that my French is not as good as it used to be. After all,...”
“You haven’t used the language in a while. So, if you haven’t used a skill or a language in a while, it can get rusty.”
“Exactly! Here’s another example. I went to play table tennis with my cousin. I was a bit rusty at first. Once I loosened up, I had a great deal of fun.”
“Everyone thought that Federer would be rusty at the Australian Open.”
“He certainly proved everyone wrong, didn’t he?”
* * * *
How can anyone govern a nation (France) that has 240 different kinds of cheese? — Charles de Gaulle
The author teaches at the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad. upendrankye@gmail.com