cancan

gossip

noun kahn-KAHN Rare

Also means

cancan dance

Usage Note

Cancan has two very different lives: as a masculine noun it means idle gossip or tittle-tattle (faire des cancans = to gossip), and le cancan is also the famous high-kicking dance popularized at the Moulin Rouge in 19th-century Paris. Context makes the meaning clear. The verb cancaner means to gossip.

Examples

"Elle adore faire des cancans sur ses voisins."

Natural Translation

She loves gossiping about her neighbours.

Literal Translation

She loves making gossip about her neighbours

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