ouais

From oui via dialectal variants; also possibly from oyez.

Before becoming an informal synonym of oui, the word was exclamatory. According to Auguste Scheler, it could be linked to Indo-European roots: οὐαί (ouaí) in Greek, vae in Latin, uau in Portuguese, wow in English, wau in German, guau in Spanish or vai in Romanian.

• IPA^(key): /wɛ/

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ouais

1. (informal) yeah, yep, yup, yes, affirmative expression

   Synonyms: (informal, mitigated yes) mouaif, (informal, mitigated yes) mouais, (informal) ouaip, oui, (informal) ouep, (anglicism) yeah, (anglicism) yep, (anglicism) yes

   T’as eu ton bac alors ? — Ouais, tranquille.

   You've got your baccalaureate then? Yeah, no problem.

2. (informal) Used to express consent

   Synonyms: (informal) mouais, (informal) ouaip, oui, (informal) ouep, (anglicism) yep

   Damien est irresponsable. — Ouais ; ça lui jouera des tours.

   Damian is irresponsible. — Yeah; it will play tricks on him in the future.

3. (dated) wow

   Synonyms: oh, ouah, mazette, (informal) purée, (vulgar) putain, waou, waouh

   • Hugo, Notre-Dame de Paris, 1832

     Ouais ! dit le roi en se grattant l’oreille gauche avec la main droite, cela fait un bon bout de ma ville !

     Wow! said the king, scratching his left ear with his right hand, that's quite a bit of my town!

4. (informal) whoo (expresses joy)

   Synonyms: hourra, yeah, yes, yippie, youpi

   Ouais, on a gagné ! ― Whoo, we / they won!

• Auguste Scheler, Dictionnaire d'étymologie française d'après les résultats de la science moderne, 1862
• “ouais”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
• “ouais” in Dictionnaire Français en ligne Larousse.
• “ouais” in Dico en ligne Le Robert.