La Langue: My first Franglais joke — what does the French owl say?

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On my second third week of learning French I got pushed into an A2 class, I asked my prof—very seriously, with my best A1 eyebrows— “En anglais, la chouette dit ‘Who! Who!’… en français, la chouette dit ‘qui-qui’ ?”

The retired Swedish army colonel sitting next to me in class laughed for a full minute. (If you’ve never been applauded in hoots by a Scandinavian officer, highly recommend. 12/10, would embarrass myself again.)

What makes the joke work

  • In French, owls go « hou-hou » (hoo-hoo), and the verb is hululer—yes, really. (Wiktionnaire)

  • Qui means “who”, but it’s not the sound owls make. That’s our cross-Channel false friend doing a little mischief.

  • Bonus pun: chouette is also slang for “great/cool!” So your joke is double-chouette. (Larousse)

Pedant corner (because one always comes to class): a hibou usually has ear tufts (aigrettes) and a chouette doesn’t. Either way, both hululent beautifully.

Swedish side-quest: in Swedish, the owl is uggla and it’s often rendered “ho-ho.” No wonder the colonel loved it.

Mini tool-kit by level

A1 – Say it & grin

  • “En français, le hibou fait hou-hou !”

  • “C’est chouette ! (= That’s great!)” (Larousse)

  • Animal sounds to collect: ouaf-ouaf (dog), miaou (cat), meuh (cow), coin-coin (duck), cocorico (rooster).

A2 – Ask a playful question

  • “Question pour la prof : en anglais, la chouette dit ‘who-who’… et en français ?”

  • Fix my baby French: it’s une blague, la chouette, le professeur / la professeure.

B1 – Tiny grammar flex

  • qui = “who/that” (subject). “La chouette qui hulule…”

  • Verb of the day: hululer (to hoot). Use it in the past: La chouette a hululé toute la nuit.

B2 – Culture & register

  • Spot the double meaning in conversations: “C’était chouette !” is colloquial approval, not an ornithology alert. (Larousse)

C1/C2 – Nerdy but nifty

  • Work in the noun hululement (a hoot) and watch your teacher beam.

  • Bonus compare-and-contrast: how onomatopoeia shifts across languages (who/who vs hou-hou).

Try the joke yourself

Next time you’re in class or at a café:
“En anglais, la chouette dit ‘who-who’… en français, elle dit ‘qui-qui’?”
Smile. Wait. Enjoy the hululement of laughter.

Your turn

What was your first Franglais blague that actually landed? Drop it below—bonus points if it’s A1-friendly and teacher-approved. And if you’re Team Hibou or Team Chouette, defend your bird (civilly!) in the comments. Hou-hou!