
French expression of the Day: Gauche caviar
Well firstly you need to establish that you're not being offered a tasty fish snack if someone says this you and it may also come in handy as an insult.
What does it mean?
Literally translated as 'caviar left' this is actually a derogatory political term roughly equivalent to 'champagne socialist' in English.
It's used for people who espouse leftist or socialist values but live the lifestyle of the elites.
Advertisement
So if you know someone who is always banging on about solidarity with the workers while at the same time splurging on an expensive lifestyle and paying their cleaner the bare minimum this is a good insult to fling at them.
There's a fairly heavyweight list of French politicians, artists and intellectuals who have been accused of this, including Dominique Strauss-Kahn (although it's possible that wasn't the worst thing about him), François Mitterrand, Anne Hidalgo, Bernard-Henri Lévy and Françoise Sagan.
Alternatives include
gauche de salon
(drawing room socialist) or
gauche Toscane
after Tuscany - the favoured holiday destination of a certain type of European elite.
Just as in English, there isn't really an alternative for a right-winger who has sold out on their principles. The term
droite cassoulet
briefly featured in political discourse in 2008 but it was a joke, coined by comedian Anne Roulanoff.
Use it like this
Vous parlez de solidarité mais en réalité vous n'êtes qu'une gauche caviar
- You talk about solidarity but really you're just a champagne socialist
Ces politiciens gauche caviar séjournent tous dans des hôtels cinq étoiles
- Those champagne socialist politicians all stay in five-star hotels

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

LeMonde
4 hours ago
- LeMonde
Macron announces that France will recognize Palestinian statehood
French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Thursday, July 24, that France will recognize Palestine as a state, amid snowballing global anger over people starving in Gaza. Macron said in a post on X that he will formalize the decision at the United Nations General Assembly in September. "The urgent thing today is that the war in Gaza stops and the civilian population is saved.″ The French president offered support for Israel after the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks and frequently speaks out against antisemitism, but he has grown increasingly frustrated byIsrael's war in Gaza, especially in recent months. ″Given its historic commitment to a just and sustainable peace in the Middle East, I have decided that France will recognize the state of Palestine," Macron posted. ″Peace is possible." He also posted a letter he sent to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas about the decision. France is the biggest and most powerful European country to recognize Palestine. More than 140 countries recognize a Palestinian state, including more than a dozen in Europe. France has Europe's largest Jewish population and the largest Muslim population in western Europe, and fighting in the Middle East often spills over into protests or other tensions in France. The Israeli Foreign Ministry had no immediate comment. France's foreign minister is co-hosting a conference at the UN next week about a two-state solution. Last month, Macron expressed his "determination to recognize the state of Palestine," and he has pushed for a broader movement toward a two-state solution, in parallel with recognition of Israel and its right to defend itself. Thursday's announcement came soon after the US cut short Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar, saying Hamas wasn't showing good faith. Momentum has been building against Israel in recent days. Earlier this week, France and more than two dozen mostly European countries condemned Israel's restrictions on aid shipments into the territory and the killings of hundreds of Palestinians trying to reach food.


France 24
4 hours ago
- France 24
France will recognise State of Palestine: Macron
At least 142 countries now recognise or plan to recognise Palestinian statehood, according to an AFP tally -- though Israel and the United States strongly oppose the moves. Several countries have announced plans to recognise statehood for the Palestinians since Israel launched a bombardment of Gaza in 2023 in response to the October 7 attacks. Macron's announcement drew immediate anger from Israel, with Deputy Prime Minister Yariv Levin labelling it a "shameless decision" that would be a "direct aid to terrorism". Senior Palestinian Authority official Hussein al-Sheikh welcomed the move, saying it "reflects France's commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people's rights to self-determination and the establishment of our independent state". 'Urgent priority' International concern is growing about the plight of the more than two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where the fighting has triggered a dire humanitarian crisis and warnings of mass starvation. Israel has rejected accusations it is responsible for Gaza's deepening hunger crisis, which the World Health Organization has called "man-made" and France blamed on an Israeli "blockade". Macron said the "urgent priority today is to end the war in Gaza and rescue the civilian population". "We must finally build the State of Palestine, ensure its viability and enable it, by accepting its demilitarisation and fully recognising Israel, to contribute to the security of all in the Middle East," he wrote on social media. He said he intended to make the announcement at the UN General Assembly in September. While France would be the most significant European power to recognise a Palestinian state, others have hinted they could do the same. Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced he would hold a call with counterparts in Germany and France on efforts to stop the fighting on Friday, adding that a ceasefire would "put us on a path to the recognition of a Palestinian state". Norway, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia all announced recognition following the outbreak of the Gaza conflict, along with several other non-European countries. Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed 59,587 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. © 2025 AFP


Euronews
4 hours ago
- Euronews
Macron announces that France will recognise Palestine as a state
French President Emmanuel Macron has announced that France will recognise Palestine as a state, while global anger grows over people starving in the Gaza Strip. In a statement posted on X, Macron said that the decision will be formalised at the UN General Assembly in September. ″Given its historic commitment to a just and sustainable peace in the Middle East, I have decided that France will recognise the state of Palestine,'' Macron posted. ″Peace is possible.'' "The urgent thing today is that the war in Gaza stops and the civil population is saved," said Macron. This story is developing and our journalist will update it as more news comes through.