List of French phrases in Lolita chapter by chapter
Guide to French and Latin (incomplete)
Foreword
No French phrases
Part One
Chapter 2
(p10) Mon cher petit papa: My dear little dad.
(p11) Lycée: The second and last stage of secondary education in the French educational system; high school.
Chapter 3
(p12) Plage: A sandy bathing beach at a seashore resort.
(p13) Chocolat glacé: Chocolate ice cream.
Chapter 5
(p15) Manqué: Lit. missed, might be used for someone who could have become something but didn't, or somebody who was a failure at something. In the case of the book it means more 'lacking'; he's referring to those who lack talent See the Wikipedia article on manqué for a full meaning.
(p16) Histoire Abrégée de la poésie anglaise: A Brief History of English Poetry.
(p20) Enfant charmante et fourbe: Charming and cheating child
Chapter 6
(p21) Frétillement: wriggling.
(p21) Cent: one hundred.
(p21) Tant pis: too bad.
(p21) Monsieur: sir, mister; a John (patronizer of prostitutes).
(p22) Bidet: A fixture similar in design to a toilet that is straddled for washing the genitals and the anal area.
(p22) Petit Cadeau: small gift (the money exchanged).
(p22) Dix-huit: Eighteen.
(p22) Oui, ce n'est pas bien: Yes, this is not good.
(p22) Grues: cranes; slang for prostitute, from the observation that cranes (both the bird and the lifting machine), like prostitutes on the street corner, stand on one leg.
(p22) Il était malin, celui qui a inventé ce truc-là: The one who invented that thing was clever.
(p22) Posé un lapin: to stand someone up (for a date).
(p22) Tu est bien gentil de dire ça: You are very kind to say that.
(p22) Avant qu'on se couche: Before we lay down (before we have sex).
(p23) Je vais m'acheter des bas: I'm going to buy myself some stockings.
(p23) Regardez-moi cette belle brune: Do look at that beautiful brunette.
(p23) Qui pourrait arranger la chose: Who could arrange the thing.
(p24) Son argent: Her money.
(p24) Lui: Him.
Chapter 7
(p25) Mes malheurs: My misfortunes.
(p25) Français moyen: Average Frenchman.
Chapter 8
(p25) Pot-au-feu: Beef stew.
(p25) À la gamine: Like a playful, mischievous girl.
(p26) mairie: Town/City hall.
(p26) baba: (type of cake).
(p26) Paris-Soir: (large-circulation daily newspaper in Paris, France from 1923-1944).
(p27) Mon oncle d'Amérique: My uncle from America.
(p27) préfecture: (administrative jurisdiction or subdivision in any of various countries and within some international church structures).
(p28) Mais qui est-ce?: But who is it?
(p28) Jean Christophe:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Christophe
(p29) j'ai denabbde pardonne: excuse me.
(p29) est-ce que j'ai puis: I wish I could do it.
(p29) le gredin: The rogue/rascal.
Chapter 10
(p40) fruit vert: green fruit.
(p40) Au fond, ça m'est bien égal: I don't care either way.
Chapter 11
(p40) en escalier: On stairs.
(p43) Delectatio morosa: A pleasure taken in sinful thought or imagination, such as brooding on sexual images.
(p43) Je m'imagine cela: I can imagine that.
(p44) ne montrez pas vos zhambes: Don't show your legs.
(p44) à mes heures: in my spare time
(p47) le mot juste: The perfectly appropriate word or phrase for the situation.
(p47) la vermeillette fente: the ruby slit (vulva).
(p47) un petit mont feutré de mousse délicate: a felt hillock of delicate mousse (woman's hairy but silky sexual organ).
(p47) tracé sur le milieu d'un fillet escarlatte: drawn on the middle of a net escarlatte (?)
(p49) Ces matins gris si doux: These gray mornings, so soft
(p51) primo: firstly
(p51) secundo: secondly
(p53) Mais allez-y, allez-y: But onwards, onwards
(p55) manège: The art of training and riding horses.
Chapter 17
(p70) pavor nocturnus: Night terrors
(p70) peine forte et dure: Hard and forceful punishment/strong and forceful pain
(p70) quel mot: What (a) word
(p72) Une petite attention: Literally "a little attention", a small act of concern
Chapter 18
(p74) soi-disant: So-called, or Self-styled
(p74+) chéri: Beloved
Chapter 21
Ce qui me rend folle, c'est que je ne sais à quoi tu penses quand tu es comme ça: What makes me mad is that I don't know what you're thinking when you're like that
Chapter 25
(p105) Eh bien, pas du tout!: Well, not at all!
Part Two
Chapter 10
Tic nerveux: nervous tremor
Chapter 11
Emigre: emigrant
Chapter 23
Comme il faut: proper (fm. properly)
Chapter 24
Garcon: waiter
Chapter 25
Chambres garnies: furnished rooms
Que c'etatit loin, tout cela!: It was far away - all this!