French: Idioms That Make No Sense Literally
30 French idioms that sound absurd word for word. Front: the French idiom. Back: the literal translation and what it actually means.
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#1
Q:poser un lapin
- A:Lit. "to put down a rabbit" → to stand someone up
#2
Q:avoir le cafard
- A:Lit. "to have the cockroach" → to feel down
#3
Q:coûter les yeux de la tête
- A:Lit. "to cost the eyes from your head" → to cost a fortune
#4
Q:avoir un chat dans la gorge
- A:Lit. "to have a cat in your throat" → to have a frog in your throat
#5
Q:tomber dans les pommes
- A:Lit. "to fall into the apples" → to faint
#6
Q:raconter des salades
- A:Lit. "to tell salads" → to tell lies
#7
Q:avoir la pêche
- A:Lit. "to have the peach" → to be full of energy
#8
Q:faire la grasse matinée
- A:Lit. "to do the fat morning" → to sleep in
#9
Q:quand les poules auront des dents
- A:Lit. "when hens have teeth" → when pigs fly
#10
Q:mettre son grain de sel
- A:Lit. "to add your grain of salt" → to put in your two cents
#11
Q:avoir le coup de foudre
- A:Lit. "to be struck by lightning" → to fall in love at first sight
#12
Q:casser les pieds
- A:Lit. "to break someone's feet" → to annoy someone
#13
Q:être dans la lune
- A:Lit. "to be in the moon" → to be daydreaming
#14
Q:les carottes sont cuites
- A:Lit. "the carrots are cooked" → it's all over
#15
Q:ce n'est pas la mer à boire
- A:Lit. "it's not like drinking the sea" → it's not that hard
#16
Q:donner sa langue au chat
- A:Lit. "to give your tongue to the cat" → to give up guessing
#17
Q:chercher la petite bête
- A:Lit. "to look for the little beast" → to nitpick
#18
Q:il pleut des cordes
- A:Lit. "it's raining ropes" → it's raining cats and dogs
#19
Q:avoir d'autres chats à fouetter
- A:Lit. "to have other cats to whip" → to have bigger fish to fry
#20
Q:revenons à nos moutons
- A:Lit. "let's get back to our sheep" → back to the point
#21
Q:se prendre un râteau
- A:Lit. "to get hit by a rake" → to get turned down
#22
Q:faire la tête
- A:Lit. "to make the head" → to sulk
#23
Q:avoir une araignée au plafond
- A:Lit. "to have a spider on the ceiling" → to be a bit crazy
#24
Q:en faire tout un fromage
- A:Lit. "to make a whole cheese out of it" → to make a mountain out of a molehill
#25
Q:mettre les pieds dans le plat
- A:Lit. "to put your feet in the dish" → to put your foot in it
#26
Q:avoir du pain sur la planche
- A:Lit. "to have bread on the board" → to have a lot of work to do
#27
Q:prendre ses jambes à son cou
- A:Lit. "to take your legs around your neck" → to run away fast
#28
Q:appeler un chat un chat
- A:Lit. "to call a cat a cat" → to call a spade a spade
#29
Q:tirer les vers du nez
- A:Lit. "to pull the worms out of someone's nose" → to worm information out of someone
#30
Q:boire comme un trou
- A:Lit. "to drink like a hole" → to drink like a fish