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Le Petit Prince - quotes 🌠

Le Petit Prince (1943) is a novel by Antoine de Saint Exupéry, translated into English as The Little Prince.

🌟 1. Les grandes personnes ne comprennent jamais rien toutes seules, et c’est fatigant, pour les enfants, de toujours et toujours leur donner des explications.

Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.

🌟 2. Quand le mystère est trop impressionnant, on n’ose pas désobéir.

When a mystery is too overpowering, one dare not disobey.

🌟 3. La preuve que le petit prince a existé c’est qu’il était ravissant, qu’il riait, et qu’il voulait un mouton. Quand on veut un mouton, c’est la preuve qu’on existe.

The proof that the little prince existed is that he was charming, that he laughed, and that he was looking for a sheep. If anybody wants a sheep, that is a proof that he exists.

🌟 4. Mais les graines sont invisibles. Elles dorment dans le secret de la terre jusqu’à ce qu’il prenne fantaisie à l’une d’elles de se réveiller…

But seeds are invisible. They sleep deep in the heart of the earth’s darkness, until some one among them is seized with the desire to awaken.

🌟 5. Il ne faut jamais écouter les fleures. Il faut les regarder et les respirer. La mienne embaumait ma planète, mais je ne savais pas m’en réjouir.

One never ought to listen to the flowers. One should simply look at them and breathe their fragrance. Mine perfumed all my planet. But I did not know how to take pleasure in all her grace.

🌟 6. Tu as des cheveux couleur d’or. Alors ce sera merveilleux quand tu m’aura apprivoisé! Le blé, qui est doré, me fera souvenir de toi. Et j’aimerai le bruit du vent dans le blé…

You have hair that is the color of gold. Think how wonderful that will be when you have tamed me! The grain, which is also golden, will bring me back the thought of you. And I shall love to listen to the wind in the wheat…

🌟 7. On ne connaît que les choses que l’on apprivoise, dit le renard. Les hommes n’ont plus le temps de rien connaître. Il achètent des choses toutes faites chez les marchands. Mais comme il n’existe point de marchands d’amis, les hommes n’ont plus d’amis. Si tu veux un ami, apprivoise-moi!

“One only understands the things that one tames,” said the fox. “Men have no more time to understand anything. They buy things all ready made at the shops. But there is no shop anywhere where one can buy friendship, and so men have no friends any more. If you want a friend, tame me…”

🌟 8. Le langage est source de malentendus.

Words are the source of misunderstandings.

🌟 9. Voici mon secret. Il est très simple : on ne voit bien qu’avec le coeur. L’essentiel est invisible pour les yeux.

And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.

🌟 10. C’est le temps que tu as perdu pour ta rose qui fait ta rose si importante.

It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.

🌟 11. Tu deviens responsable pour toujours de ce que tu as apprivoisé. Tu es responsable de ta rose…

You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed. You are responsible for your rose…

🌟 12. - Les enfants seuls savent ce qu’ils cherchent, fit le petit prince. Ils perdent du temps pour une poupée de chiffons, et elle devient très importante, et si on la leur enlève, ils pleurent…

“Only the children know what they are looking for,” said the little prince. “They waste their time over a rag doll and it becomes very important to them; and if anybody takes it away from them, they cry…”

🌟 13. Ce qui embellit le désert, dit le petit prince, c’est qu’il cache un puits quelque part…

“What makes the desert beautiful,” said the little prince, “is that somewhere it hides a well…”

🌟 14. Dessine-moi un mouton!

Draw me a sheep!

🌟 15. Quand on a terminé sa toilette du matin, il faut faire soigneusement la toilette de la planète.

When you’ve finished getting yourself ready in the morning, you must go get the planet ready.

🌟 16. J'aime bien les couchers de soleil. Allons voir un coucher de soleil…

I am very fond of sunsets. Come, let us go look at a sunset…

🌟 17. On ne sait jamais!

“One never knows!”

🌟 18. Il faut exiger de chacun ce que chacun peut donner, reprit le roi. L'autorité repose d'abord sur la raison. Si tu ordonnes à ton peuple d'aller se jeter à la mer, il fera la révolution. J'ai le droit d'exiger l'obéissance parce que mes ordres sont raisonnables. Alors mon coucher de soleil ? rappela le petit prince qui jamais n'oubliait une question une fois qu'il l'avait posée. Ton coucher de soleil, tu l'auras. Je l'exigerai. Mais j'attendrai, dans ma science du gouvernement, que les conditions soient favorables.

“One must command from each what each can perform,” the king went on. “Authority is based first of all upon reason. If you command your subjects to jump into the ocean, there will be a revolution. I am entitled to command obedience because my orders are reasonable.” “Then my sunset?” insisted the little prince, who never let go of a question once he had asked it. “You shall have your sunset. I shall command it. But I shall wait, according to my science of government, until conditions are favorable.”

🌟 19. C'est véritablement utile puisque c'est joli.

It is truly useful since it is beautiful.

🌟 20. ‘Où sont les hommes ?’ reprit enfin le petit prince. 'On est un peu seul dans le désert.’ 'On est seul aussi chez les hommes’, dit le serpent.

“Where are the people?” resumed the little prince at last. “It’s a little lonely in the desert…" "It is lonely when you’re among people, too,” said the snake.

🌟 21. Vous êtes belles, mais vous êtes vides…. On ne peut pas mourir pour vous.

You’re beautiful, but you’re empty…. No one could die for you.

🌟 22. Les hommes ont oublié cette vérité, dit le renard. Mais tu ne dois pas l’oublier. Tu deviens responsable pour toujours de ce que tu as apprivoisé.

“Men have forgotten this truth,” said the fox. “But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.”

🌟 23. Mais les yeux sont aveugles. Il faut chercher avec le cœur.

But the eyes are blind. One must look with the heart…

how to sound more like a french native speaker 🌿

The following points are 5 classic French conversational techniques and mannerisms to help you sound just a bit more truly français:

1. The tactical use of bah

Fairly difficult to translate, the French bah is used rather regularly and can make your speech pattern sound very authentic.

In answer to an obvious question perhaps:

“Tu aimes bien la pizza?” (Do you like pizza?)

“Bah oui, bien sur!” (Well, yes, of course!)

Or something like the following:

“Tu adores le brocoli?” (Do you love broccoli?)

“Bah non! Je déteste!” (No, I hate it!)

Or as a deep, elongated syllable to fill gaps while you think:

“Qu’est-ce que tu fais le weekend?” (What are you doing on the weekend?)

“Baaaaaahh, en fait je ne sais pas encore.” (Well…actually I don’t know yet)

2. Add quoi to the ends of sentences

This one is also not easy to translate, but it would be the French equivalent of “whatever” or “innit.” So, you might imagine that it shouldn’t be used when talking formally, but it’s used often in casual conversation and can perfectly round off a sentence.

“C’est quoi, ça?” (What is that?)

“Euuh, je ne sais pas exactement mais je pense que c’est une sorte de nourriture, quoi.” (Um, I’m not really sure but I think it’s a type of food or whatever.)

3. Using eh, ah and hein like there’s no tomorrow

Whether it’s to fill space while you think or to provoke a response, these elongated vowels are very useful when speaking French. They can be heard very often in conversation.

For example, in English we add “don’t you?”/ “aren’t you?”/ “isn’t it?” to the end of statements to toss the conversational ball back into the other person’s court. The French will simply say “hein?”

“Il fait beau aujourd’hui hein?” (It’s nice weather today isn’t it?)

Try it with raised eyebrows for added French effect.

4. Sufficient use of voilà here, there and everywhere

The slangy English phrases “so, yeah” or “so, there you go” would probably be best translated into French as “voilà.”

When you can’t think of anything else to say at the end of a sentence, you can’t go wrong with a voilà. Sometimes even two. Voilà voilà.

5. Not forgetting the classic French shrug

In response to a question to which you don’t know the answer, respond the French way with an exaggerated shrug, raised eyebrows and add a “baaah, je sais pas, moi!” for good measure.