This little phrase is ideal for empathising with somebody’s sob story or common unhealthy luck.
Why do I have to know la poisse?
Because if you wish to emphasise having sheer unhealthy luck, that is the right phrase.
What does it imply?
Strictly talking, la poisse — roughly pronounced p-wah-ss — means jinx.
French individuals usually use this time period to focus on the sensation of distress following a case of unhealthy luck. It’s normally linked to the verb avoir (to have): j’ai la poisse — I’ve unhealthy luck / I’ve been jinxed.
Advertisement
But you may as well say it to somebody in response to their story of unhealthy luck – the intonation is similar as if you would say ‘that’s rotten luck!’ or ‘oh no, that sucks’ in response to a story of woe.
It is utilized in moments of irritation or frustration, however it’s a slightly lighthearted time period.
For instance, you need to use it when speaking about repeated unhealthy climate, transport delays or sports activities if a workforce retains dropping. It could be thought-about insensitive to make use of it for extra dire conditions, in the identical manner that you just would not say ‘that sucks’ if somebody advised you a member of the family had simply died.
Use it like this
Je ne veux pas nous porter la poisse en parlant trop de ça ! – I do not need to jinx us by speaking about it an excessive amount of!
C’est la poisse ! — That’s horrible!
