Jump to:

• c'est la vie
  c'est la vie

  that's life; such is life.
• C'est la vie
  C'est la vie

  An expression used to play down some minor disappointment: “So we lost a softball game by twenty-two runs. What can you do; c'est la vie.” From French, meaning “that's life.”

c'est la vie

American  

[se la vee] / sɛ la ˈvi /

French.

1. that's life; such is life.

---

c'est la vie British  

/ sɛ la vi /

1. that's life

---

C'est la vie Cultural  

1. An expression used to play down some minor disappointment: “So we lost a softball game by twenty-two runs. What can you do; c'est la vie.” From French, meaning “that's life.”

---

Example Sentences

I understand, though, that it would have made the bike pricier, so c’est la vie.

From The Verge • Jan. 2, 2020

Close smiled and offered a c’est la vie shrug.

From New York Times • Feb. 24, 2019

Her survival of the ups and downs has given her the c'est la vie attitude about her latest body of work, one that harks back to her initial love of pop.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2018

Beautiful hair came at a price, but I figured a scalp dotted with blisters was mine: c’est la vie.

From The Guardian • Feb. 4, 2017

The French version of the same idea is in no way inferior to the Greek: On entre, on crie, Et c'est la vie!

From Political and Literary essays, 1908-1913 by Baring, Evelyn