Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

c'est la vie

/ˌseɪ.lɑˈvi/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.27 in modern English

Syllables: c'est la vie
IPA: /ˌseɪ.lɑˈvi/

14

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

1

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

phrase

An expression of acceptance of misfortune in life; that's life; such is life; so it goes

Example Sentences

"Incidentally, it is common to store Prolog code in files with a .pl suffix. It’s an indication of what the file contains (namely Prolog code) and with some Prolog implementations you don’t actually have to type in the .pl suffix when you consult a file. Nice — but there is a drawback. Files containing Perl scripts usually have a .pl suffix too, and nowadays there are a lot of Perl scripts in use, so this can cause confusion. C’est la vie."

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from French c'est la vie.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˌseɪ.lɑˈvi/
British English: /ˌseɪ.læˈviː/

Phrases

that's life it is what it is things happen it can't be helped this is the life life's a bitch shit happens

Frequently Paired Words

that's life it is what it is things happen it can't be helped this is the life life's a bitch shit happens

Synonyms

c'est la vie it is as it is it is how it is it is what it is life's a bitch shit happens so be it so is life so it goes such is life that's life that's that and this is this

Questions

How do you pronounce c'est la vie?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˌseɪ.lɑˈvi/.
What does c'est la vie mean?: An expression of acceptance of misfortune in life; that's life; such is life; so it goes
Where does c'est la vie come from?: Unadapted borrowing from French c'est la vie.

How to pronounce c'est la vie

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “c'est la vie”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌseɪ.lɑˈvi/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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