expliquer le surprise

It works just like the English phrase. You use the verb expliquer (to explain) followed by la surprise. Note that surprise is feminine, so we use la. You can say Je vais t'expliquer la surprise (I am going to explain the surprise to you). It’s very flexible. You can use it in the past tense too: J'ai expliqué la surprise. It’s a great way to transition from the shock of the moment into a long, fun conversation. It's the verbal equivalent of showing someone the blueprints of your master plan.

Use this when the dust has settled. The cake has been cut. The person has stopped screaming with joy. Now, everyone wants to know the logistics. You’ll use it at dinner parties, after a proposal, or when a hidden guest finally appears. It’s also common in professional settings. Maybe a boss planned a "surprise" team-building day. They will expliquer la surprise to tell everyone why they are suddenly at a bowling alley instead of a meeting. It's the bridge between the shock and the celebration.

Whatever you do, don't use this *before* the surprise. If you say "I’m going to explain the surprise" while the person is still clueless, you’ve just committed a social crime. That’s called gâcher la surprise (spoiling the surprise). Also, don't use it for small things. If you bought someone a coffee, you don't "explain" it. You just give it. Save this for the big, multi-step plans that require a bit of storytelling. If there's no mystery to solve, there's nothing to explain!

The French love a good "mise en scène" (staging). A surprise isn't just a random event; it's often a carefully choreographed performance. In French culture, sharing the effort you put into something for a friend is a way of showing affection. By explaining the surprise, you are showing the person how much you care. You're saying, "Look at all these hoops I jumped through just to see you smile." It’s a moment of shared intimacy and pride that validates the effort of the giver.

If you want to sound a bit more casual, you might say raconter le plan (tell the plan). If it was a secret, you could say dévoiler le secret (reveal the secret). Sometimes people say vendre la mèche, which literally means "to sell the wick," but it means to let the cat out of the bag. But expliquer la surprise remains the most direct and common way to describe the post-reveal breakdown. You might also hear débriefer la surprise if you're feeling a bit more modern or professional.