I’ve just found a great site on which a Brit living in France gives tips, advice and support for French learners. The worldly advice of “accompany it with a slight shrug and look totally French” has served me well so far. I’ve found that I can get away with not knowing a lot of French words by just puffing out my lips and uttering “pfft” as a sharp syllable on a sharp outtake of breath. It’s one of those more-than-words expressions, and I’ve just been working extensively to make it sound authentic. More often than not I can get it right, but occasionally it comes out with a foreign accent, which really gives the game away…