Sinon gare!
see-naw GAAR! Click below to hear this.*
Or else!
You may need this the day after Christmas! The gifts aren’t broken yet, kids are still excited and can’t decide what to play with first, you’re exhausted and just a bit on edge.
So you bark Tu te comportes bien, sinon gare! You behave yourself, or else! If you remember this post from the other day, you will remember that gare! means watch out!
When you dissect sinon into the two words that compose it, you get if not. Sounds like a line of computer programming, right? If you behave, all’s well in the world. If not (ELSE in Basic computer language, if I remember correctly), you are in deep trouble!
Another English word for sinon is otherwise. If you are a Spanish speaker, however, gare à toi: the Spanish word sino looks pretty much the same, but is used differently. Its English meaning is more like but rather. Don’t be misled, sinon gare! People will not understand you.
*Some mobile phones, such as Blackberries, won’t display the audio player. If no player appears, here’s an alternative link to the audio file:
Spk Frnch 