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La bise

In this weather forecast for the Mont Blanc area, you'll come across a word with a very specific meteorological meaning: la bise. Translated as "north wind," la bise is more precisely a chilly wind that passes through certain areas of eastern France and Switzerland (you can find a more detailed and scientific account of this phenomenon here). Some French windows might feature un brise-bise (literally, "breaks" or "stops the north wind"), a small curtain usually made of lace that covers only a portion of the window. These are definitely more decorative than functional.

 

Donc le temps va s'arranger; on aura toujours un peu de bise pour ce mardi matin.

So the weather will settle down; we'll still have a bit of a north wind for this Tuesday morning.

Caption 10, TV8 Mont Blanc - Météo du 26 octobre 2010

 Play Caption

 

BANNER PLACEHOLDER

On an unrelated note, une bise is also an informal way of saying "a kiss." You might hear it most often in the expression faire la bise, which refers to the customary French greeting of giving someone a peck (or more than one!) on both cheeks. This helpful article breaks down when and how to use this very common gesture: https://www.thoughtco.com/french-kisses-french-english-bilingual-story-1368026.

Vocabulary

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