What are the French words for sneaky?

Beer promotions are always more abundant in France during the summer months, as les grandes surfaces (the generic name for the country’s big-name supermarkets like Leclerc, Auchan and Intermarché) appeal to thirsty outdoor diners and poolside boozers with two-for-one deals and suchlike.

This year’s football World Cup has added to the bière-buying frenzy, with huge piles of boxed beers greeting shoppers at most store entrances.

Keen to take advantage of a deal or two before settling in for a weekend of settee-sitting fandom, I perused the promos at my local hypermarché and was thrilled to spot – from a distance, thanks to its easily distinguishable branding – an impressive tower of my favourite brand of IPA. India Pale Ale is the boom beer in France of late, with all brasseries now producing – with mixed success, it must be said – their own version of the hoppy tipple that has been a favourite in the UK and USA for many years.

As I eagerly approached the stack of boxed cans (canettes), buoyed by the promise of a serious bargain, I soon noticed that I had been ‘had’.

While its sister ale, a lighter beer in the same range (gamme), fell under the “buy one, get 30% off the second” promotion, my own favourite was not discounted at all.

I harrumphed under my breath at this crafty supermarket tactic of deceiving buyers into thinking all items in a ‘promotional’ area are part of a deal.

It got me thinking of the French words for sneaky, which I duly looked up once home with a beer open.

It turns out that just like us, the French have great terms for underhand tactics, using expressions like sournois, and fourbe.

Sneaky phrases:

• Ma sœur est très sournoise et réussit toujours à faire ce qu'elle veut sans que ma mère soit au courant. - My sister is very sneaky and aways manages to do what she wants without my mum knowing.

• Il faut se méfier des manœuvres fourbes des agences de location de voitures. - You should be wary of the sneaky tactics employed by car hire companies.