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proverb

impossible n'est pas français

/ɛ̃.pɔ.si.blə n‿ɛ pa fʁɑ̃.sɛ/

proverb/ɛ̃.pɔ.si.blə n‿ɛ pa fʁɑ̃.sɛ/

there's no such word as can't; nothing is impossible

Literally, “[the word] 'impossible' is not French”. According to the traditional account, this saying derives from a statement by Napoleon, when told by General Le Marois during the German Campaign of 1813 that he could no longer hold Magdeburg. Napoleon's response was: : Ce n’est pas possible, m’écrivez-vous : cela n’est pas français. You tell me, "it is not possible"; that is not French.