Can’t go without your daily cup’o’Joe? Well, here’s the next best thing to coffee – a blog with coffee-related phrases from around the world! Here you’ll find eight fantastic expressions that will boost your caffeine vocabulary and make you seem ever that bit more sophisticated!
Have we missed your favourite coffee-related phrase on this post? Be sure to add your own entries to untranslatable, the world’s first multilingual urban dictionary! We’ve also written a really helpful submissions guide that will guide you through the process.
Wrong Coffee
If you’ve been handed a very milky coffee and you like it strong, this is what you can say! This Dutch phrase is a great way to communicate with someone jokily that they’ve made you a “wrong coffee” and will make you blend in when you’re in the Netherlands.
Chafé
Now, we all know that coffee is an important part of culture in South America, so it’s absolutely no surprise that there’s a phrase used in Brazil for a weak coffee! We love the blending of nouns to create an entirely new word, and I certainly know someone that I can use this coffee-related phrase with.
If you loved this Portuguese phrase, why not take a look at our blog post containing 21 perfect Portuguese phrases to learn?
Satan
Been given a coffee that’s a little bit too strong? In Poland, it’s perfectly acceptable to call it “Satan”! We love this humorous way of describing a strong black coffee, and I’ve got my fingers crossed that this coffee-related phrase will catch on across the world!
شفّة
Similar to the Brazilian chafé, شفّة (pronounced shaffé) is used in Lebanon as a noun to replace the word “coffee”. It’s a lovely little expression that makes the thought of going for a coffee with friends even cuter!
Double-double
Whilst perhaps the Dutch wouldn’t be so pleased with this coffee order, the Canadians love it! Personally, I can’t think of anything cooler than going into your local coffee shop and saying “I’ll have a double-double, please”. Feels like something out of a spy novel!
One-Hand Coffee
This is a fantastic coffee-related phrase for the busy bee in your life! Ever feel like you’re so busy you can’t sit down and enjoy your coffee (whether that be a double-double, a chafé, or even a wrong coffee – we don’t judge here!)? Well, that’s where this Portuguese phrase comes in clutch.
Paned
Here at the Foreign Language Collective, we have such a soft spot for the Welsh language. It’s truly beautiful. So, we simply had to include “paned” on our list of coffee-related expressions. Even sounding it out feels so comforting.
A Cup of Comfort
We’re hopping back over to the Netherlands to wrap things up today. This phrase is simply too cute to not include! Whether you enjoy having a cup of coffee as you read, or use one to help you feel awake in the morning, coffee really is a cup of comfort for so many people!
Thanks so much for reading this blog post, be sure to check out some more fantastic language expressions here at the Foreign Language Collective. You can also see some fantastic foreign language expressions over on the Untranslatable Instagram page!