French Phrase
Y a plein de trucs qui font que ça rame.
Meaning
Literally: "There are a lot of things that make it lag." It’s used to explain why a device, program, or process is running slowly, often in a casual, slightly frustrated tone.
When to use
Use this phrase in informal conversations when you want to point out that many factors are causing a slowdown—e.g., talking about a sluggish computer, a slow internet connection, or a delayed project.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Yapleindetrucsquifontqueçarame
Y a = il y a (colloquial)
In spoken French, "Y a" replaces the formal "il y a" and means "there is/are".
plein de + noun
"Plein de" is an informal way to say "a lot of" or "many".
qui + verb + que
The relative clause "qui font que" expresses cause: "that make/that cause".
ça = this/that
"Ça" is the neutral demonstrative pronoun used in everyday speech.
ramer (verb)
Literally "to row," but in slang it means "to lag, to be slow" (often about computers or internet).
🗨In Conversation
Mon PC rame, il met cinq minutes à ouvrir un simple document.
My PC is lagging, it takes five minutes to open a simple document.
Y a plein de trucs qui font que ça rame, comme les programmes en arrière‑plan et le manque de RAM.
There are a lot of things that make it lag, like background programs and lack of RAM.
✕Common Mistakes
Y a plein de trucs qui font ça rame.
The relative clause needs "que" after "font"; "font que" introduces the cause.
Il y a plein de trucs qui font que ça rame.
While grammatically correct, using "Il y a" sounds formal; the phrase is meant to be informal.
Y a plein de trucs qui font que ça rame (meaning "row").
Do not translate "rame" as "row" in this context; here it means "to lag".
↔Alternatives
Il y a beaucoup de choses qui ralentissent les choses.
There are many things that slow things down.
Beaucoup d'éléments causent ce ralentissement.
Many elements cause this slowdown.
Il y a plein de facteurs qui font que ça marche lentement.
There are plenty of factors that make it work slowly.
Cultural Tip
The contraction "Y a" is strictly spoken French; avoid it in formal writing. "Ramer" as "to lag" is popular among younger speakers, gamers, and tech‑savvy people. In other contexts, "ramer" still means "to row" (e.g., "Il rame sur la rivière").