chapeau bas
Chapeau bas means 'hats off' — admiration expressed the old way, by doffing your hat. Say it when someone genuinely impresses you: 'chapeau bas pour ton gâteau !' — hats off for your cake! In quick spoken French it often shrinks to just 'chapeau !', same salute, fewer syllables.
Where you'll hear it
Alice
Bien vu ! En y réfléchissant, je changerais peut-être ma réponse. Les influenceurs, c'est agaçant, mais le gaspillage alimentaire, c'est un vrai scandale. Imagine tout ce qu'on pourrait faire avec cette nourriture !
Well seen! Thinking about it, I might change my answer. Influencers are annoying, but food waste is a real scandal. Imagine everything we could do with that food!
Gabriel
Tu l'as dit ! Et puis, ça permettrait aussi de sensibiliser les gens à la surconsommation. On achète trop, on jette trop. Il est grand temps qu'on se reprenne en main.
You said it, buddy! And it would also help raise awareness about overconsumption. We buy too much, we throw away too much. It's high time we got ourselves together.
Alice
Tout à fait d'accord. Finalement, ta proposition est bien meilleure que la mienne. Elle aurait un impact concret sur la société et l'environnement. Chapeau bas !
Completely agree. Finally, your proposal is much better than mine. It would have a concrete impact on society and the environment. Hats off!
How it shows up
Chapeau bas pour ton discours !
Hats off for your speech!
Tu as fini le marathon ? Chapeau !
You finished the marathon? Hats off!
Chapeau bas, c'était magnifique.
Hats off, that was magnificent.
Related expressions
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