café allongé
In French, "long black coffee" is translated as café allongé.
A café allongé refers to a drink made by adding hot water to a shot of espresso to dilute it.
What does it mean word for word?
The word allongé literally means "lengthened" or "extended", which refers to the way the espresso is diluted with water.
Which one should you use?
A café allongé is distinct from a café crème, which is a coffee served with milk.
How does it change in a sentence?
When ordering, you will typically use the masculine indefinite article un before the phrase, as in un café allongé.
Did you know?
- In France, if you order a café without specifying allongé, you will receive a tiny, potent espresso, as this is the default standard for coffee.
- The term allongé is used for other food and drink dilutions in French, such as vin allongé, which is wine diluted with water.
- The word café is a linguistic traveler that shares an ancestor with the English 'coffee' through the Italian caffè and the Ottoman Turkish kahve.
Examples in context
- Bonjour, je voudrais un café allongé, s'il vous plaît.Hello, I would like a long black coffee, please.
- Excusez-moi, je prendrais un café américain, s'il vous plaît.Excuse me, I would like a long black coffee, please.
- Je voudrais un café allongé, s'il vous plaît.I would like a long black coffee, please.
- Un café allongé est très léger.A long black coffee is very light.
- Est-ce que vous avez du café allongé ?Do you have long black coffee?
Example conversation
Manon and Lucas are at a café.
- ManonQu'est-ce que tu veux boire, Lucas ?What do you want to drink, Lucas?
- LucasJe vais prendre un café allongé.I'll have a long black coffee.
- ManonC'est un bon choix pour commencer la journée.That is a good choice to start the day.
- LucasOui, j'aime quand il est bien dilué.Yes, I like it when it is well diluted.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries café, CC BY-SA 4.0.
