I'm sure that's a weird topic but here's a little background. Three couples in California went in to make wine together and we have become friends through the process. I wanted to name my wine (in French) "six friends", but when I found out the French word for "six" is also "six" it sounded like I'd mixed English and French words for the wine name. So then, I tried "three couples". Lo and behold the French word for "couples" is "couples" and I'm back to it looking like I mixed English and French words. Not giving up, I tried "three times two friends" (in my mind thinking 3 couples of two - the "times" being a multiplier e.g. 3*2). And I got the translation of Trois Fois Deux Amis, only to find that the Fois means literal time (as in time of day). Literal translation obviously, which is what you get when you do a translation on the internet. Can someone come up with a name that says what I'm trying to say? Six friends, three couples... something like that? Hopefully there are casual terms for what I'm getting at. Thanks so much. Karen
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1Forget about the six friends, there's an old song, that will touch a chord with all French people, by Georges Brassens called "Les copains d'abord" (Friends First, or, Buddies First) that would fit your purpose. You can easily find it on Youtube.– grandtoutMay 5, 2020 at 8:15
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1And une demi-douzaine d'amis (half a dozen friends) probably has too much alliteration.– Peter ShorMay 5, 2020 at 10:38
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"the Fois means literal time (as in time of day)" what now?– njzk2May 5, 2020 at 17:18
2 Answers
I'm afraid this question is far too localized to match SE goals but well, at least it's not homework...
One first comment. You wrote:
only to find that the Fois means literal time (as in time of day).
This is incorrect. Fois does mean "times" here like in "three times two friends". It is not restricted to literal time.
About your wine, my best guess for an idiomatic suggestion is:
La cuvée des six amis.
Beware not to capitalize every word like it is done in English (although that rule is not well observed in the next samples...)
Some similar wine names:
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'Fois' can also have other meanings, like "On fera ça une autre fois." (We'll do that another time), or "Trois fois par jour" (Three times a day).– J...May 5, 2020 at 14:15
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@J... Granted, although it can be argued that the fois in trois fois par jour is not that different than the trois in trois fois deux amis.– jlliagreMay 5, 2020 at 15:23
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3Fair, but all this to say that it is also used to count occurences or to indicate a relative time (La dernière fois qu'on...) "The last time that we...", etc. Not literal time of day like OP suggested, but as a time indicator beyond simple multiplication. Great answer, in any case.– J...May 5, 2020 at 15:32
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A better translation (not in usage but in meaning) of "fois" would be "instance"– njzk2May 5, 2020 at 17:20
Why don't you just name it in Italian instead? It is a French blend? Or some special connection to French wines? "Sei amici" solves your problem and still lets you use a romance language from a country that produces a lot of wine.
