This is a fun vintage French-Canadian (Québecois) commercial from the 1970s for Ski-Doo snowmobiles. The commercial is packed with lots of fun vocabulary and grammar, for example “auto-neige” meaning snowmobile. Other points of interest are usage of the word même, indirect object pronoun en, usage of the preposition chez and much more.
text and translation
- Voici un garçon complexe, votre vendeur Ski-Doo. Un fier comme tout.
Here’s a complex boy, your Ski-Doo salesman. Proud as can be. - Pourquoi? Parce que c’est lui qui offre le plus grand choix d’auto-neige, avec un service inbattable.
Why? Because he’s the one who offers the biggest choice of snowmobiles, with unbeatable service. - Ces modèles Ski-Doo grimpent les montagnes, ou semblent vouloir s’envoler.
These Ski-Doo models climb mountains, or seem to fly away. - Certains Ski-Doo sont si luxueux qu’ils ont même une allume-cigarette.
Certain Ski-Doos are so luxurious that they even have a cigarette lighter. - D’autres si puissant qu’on les appelle TNT.
Others are so powerful they’re called TNT. - Il y a aussi un modèle si bon marché que certains en achètent plus qu’un.
There’s also a model so cheap that certain people buy two of them. - Et le vendeur Ski-Doo représente Bombardier, l’inventeur de l’auto-neige.
And the Ski-Doo salesman represents Bombardier, the inventor of the snowmobile. - Allez voir votre vendeur Ski-Doo soixante-dix et découvrez pourquoi de plus en plus chez nous, c’est Ski-Doo.
Go see your Ski-Doo salesman 70 and discover why more and more in Quebec, it’s Ski-Doo.
vocabulary and grammar of interest
- Un fier comme tout – “fier” is normally an adjective for proud.
- auto-neige – French-Canadian word for snowmobile. Other terms include motoneige (f) and scooter des neiges (m).
- c’est lui qui offre – He’s the one who offers. C’est moi qui + verb means I’m the one who + verb. C’est moi qui parle français! I’m the one who speaks French!
- s’envoler – to fly away. This is a subjective pronominal verb. Complete lesson on subjective pronominal verbs here.
- ils ont même une allume-cigarette – même has multiple meanings. One meaning is same. C’est la même chose – it’s the same thing. Moi-même is myself. The meaning in this context is “even”.
- certains en achètent plus qu’un – this is usage of the indirect object pronoun en, with en meaning “them”. J’en ai deux translates to I have two of them. Complete lesson on “en” here. Here’s a lesson covering example sentences of acheter (to buy).
- Joseph-Armand Bombardier, a Quebec native, invented the Ski-Doo in 1935.
- chez nous – chez is preposition for at one’s house or at or in one’s region. For example, “Je suis chez moi”. I’m at home. Here “chez nous” means here in Quebec.
