Welcome to the British Council’s Language Clinic. Come in, take a seat and make yourself comfortable. This week you’ve asked me a rather puzzling question. In order to answer it we must first consider one of the ways in which English has developed. There are many examples of words having been “borrowed” from French (and vice-versa). Some of these words have remained similar in their spelling, use and meaning (like“literature” and “littérature”, “authority” and “autorité”). Words such as these are known as True Friends. Sometimes, words share a similar spelling but their meanings are very different. I would be shocked if I were offered “pain” by a baker or if I were told that the reason my torch was not working was because my “piles” were the wrong size! These are False Friends. Some words were related in the past and still refer to similar concepts, but their meanings now are different. Words like these are known as False Cognates. For example, “actuellement”, meaning “at present” differs from the English “actually”, which is used to introduce information which may be surprising. Other examples include “éventuellement” and “eventually” and drum roll please… “ancien” and “ancient”. Although they both refer to the idea of something being “old”, the English “ancient” is used to refer to the idea of something being “old”, the English “ancient” is used to refer to the extremely distant past (relative to a human life span). The French “ancien”, on the other hand, is used to refer to the “former” or “previous”. This explains why I overheard someone referring to their “ancient girlfriend”! For those who require a more exact answer to the question, the Oxford English Dictionary defines “ancient” as being before AD 476 (the fall of the Western Roman Empire).

Please send your comments, queries and questions to “Dr Danny” at the British Council Language Clinic by emailing [email protected].

Or contact the British Council to find out more about English Language study options by calling (+230) 403 0200.