The French Are Annoyed

One night at dinner with Melanie and her parents, the topic came up on how to translate into English certain French expressions of annoyance. The general conclusion was that in English, things can be irksome, things can bug you, irritate you, maybe bother you, and things can be perturbing but generally, you'll just say that it's all annoying.

In French, however, there are many different ways to express annoyance, all of varying degrees of intensity. Once you are in France and comfortably integrated, you will notice how often the French are bothered and find things, situations, and people "annoying."

Melanie's mom concluded that perhaps it is because the French (wo)man (somehow "le Français" sounds better) loves complaining and is often unsatisfied. Everyone's a critic but I wouldn't be surprised if someone told me the French invented that expression just so they wouldn't feel so alone.

Not a comprehensive list but the following are some expressions I have heard the most:
C'est chiant: literally translated into "it's/that's shitty" but shitty in an annoying way. You can also say il/elle est chiant(e). This expression is the one most often used.

Ça fait chier/ça me fait chier: you can make the literal translation, it does and doesn't make sense in English.

J'en ai marre!: "I've had enough!" [Note: bears resemblance but no relation in terms of meaning to c'est/il/elle est marrant(e) which means "that's/s/he's hilarious".]

Ça m'embête: "That bugs me!" You can also say, c'est/il/elle est embêtant(e).

J'en ai ras-le-bol!: To understand this one, I was told to picture a bowl being filled to the brim and pretty much spilling over, as a visual expression of how you feel. Maybe equivalent to when people say "I've had it up to here!" and make that cutting gesture at their necks.

Ça me soûle: Maybe equivalent to "that pisses me off." This one is quite strong. You can also say tu/il/elle me soûle. [Note: not to be confused with je suis/il/elle est soûle which means "I am/s/he is drunk".

Machinstrucschoses-Thingamajig

Thing, gizmo, thingamabob, thingumajig, whatchamacallit, widget, doohickey, things, stuff...

The French speaker’s equivalent to the English speaker’s substitute word “thing” are truc(s), machin(s), chose(s), trucmachin, machintruc (actually, the word chose does not seem to be used as much). Truc or machin, like our “thing” or “stuff” can be used when you are experiencing a lapse in vocabulary, or if you are feeling too lazy to find specific words.

Serge Gainsbourg has a funny song called "Machins choses" which can be found on his Intégrale Vol. 3. In the song, the guy (Gainsbourg, I guess), is talking to some girl, but the whole point is the he's never really specific about anything and replaces every place, name, thing, thought... with machin, truc or chose.

France, in a Manner Speaking

Showing appreciation and being polite is a good skill to have in any country but in France, it is as common as eating baguettes and sometimes more than just optional. Some French lessons will have taught you that the conditional is the polite conjugation. Keep that in mind, along with the following which are some common situations and expressions:

To show your appreciation
vous êtes très gentils(les); mais c'est gentil; c'est très gentil etc.
In France, niceties seem to go a long way. Even if you consider somebody as 'just doing their job', in France, people seem to understand how shitty certain jobs can be and so the use of encouraging and sympathetic expressions are quite normal. On a more self-interested note, if you want to accomplish more, even feigned politeness will accomplish more than just being mean and pushy.

To say "you're welcome"
je vous (t') en pries: this is a very useful one and is often used in place of de rien - which can still be used - to say you're welcome. It is super polite.
*However, it should be noted that this expression, if not said with the right tone, can easily become an expression of extreme exasperation and annoyance.

To make someone feel comfortable
il n'y a pas de souci: "y'a pas de souci" is how it will actually sound in the spoken. This can be translated into what I heard many times and decided was a very Vancouver thing "no worries".

To say you're sorry
Je suis désolé