Meaning of the French Expression Le cinq àsept

Meaning of the French Expression Le cinq sept The informal expression le cinq sept refers to what could be considered a very French version of Happy Hour: the two-hour period after work, from 5 to 7 pm, when (some) people meet up with their lovers before going home to their spouses. Translation: an afternoon tryst. The reality of le cinq sept was openly acknowledged for perhaps the first time in Franà §oise Sagans 1967 novel La Chamade. Just for fun, I had my husband ask his students (aged 40 and up) about it, and they all said they were very familiar with le cinq sept, with one exception. The youngest said she didnt know it, then added a caveat: Mais je viens de me marier, alors qui sait ce qui va se passer dans vingt ans. Incidentally, the French translation of tryst is un rendez-vous galant - further proof that everything sounds better in French. Well almost: for happy hour, the correct translation is heure du cocktail or heure de lapà ©ritif, but instead they usually stick with appy hour. Different in Canada In Quà ©bec, le cinq sept has nothing to do with sex. It refers to a group of friends meeting up to have a drink after work, or before an evening outing to a play or some other entertainment. In this sense, le cinq sept might be translated by happy hour or, if it doesnt include alcohol, just something generic like afternoon get-together or rendez-vous. Source Sagan, Francoise. La Chamade. French Edition,  Pocket, 1990.