Languages
English
Spanish
French
German
Latin
Chinese
Japanese
Other Topics
Translation prices
Machine translation
Harry Potter
Translation quotes
Conversionzauber
Search
Advertisement
French Idioms
To know a language you have to know its idioms, and French is no exception. All forms of the language, from the highly colloquial to the utterly erudite use idioms. Browse below to find the idiom you need, or just explore the many ways you can express yourself in French.
A B C D E F G H I J L M N O P Q R S T U V
l’affaire est dans le sac
it’s in the bag (lit.: the matter is in the sack)
l’échapper belle
have a close call; make a narrow escape
l’embarras du choix
too much to choose from
l’emporter sur
get the better of; win out over
l’esprit de l’escalier
belated wit
l’été de la Saint-Martin
Indian summer
la barbe
damn; blast (lit.: the beard; n.b.: introjection but not vulgar)
la belle affaire
big deal; so what (lit.: the nice matter)
la belle avance
a lot of good that will do (lit.: the nice advance; n.b.: ironic)
la belle saison
warm weather; warm months
la bête noire
a pet peeve (lit.: the black creature)
la court échelle
a boost; a hand up; a leg up
la fable de la ville
a laughingstock
la fable du quartier
a laughingstock
la fin de fins
at the end; in the end; ultimately
la moutarde lui monte au nez
he/she is getting angry
la plupart de(s)
most, most of, the majority of
laisse pisser
forget it; let it go (lit.: let it piss)
laisser de côté
set aside; put aside; leave
lasser la bride sur le cou
give someone a free hand; leave someone a free hand; give someone free reign
le bruit court
rumor has it
le cas échéant
if need be
le champ est libre
the coast is clear
le chemin saint Jacques
the Milky Way (from the legend that sas the remains of saint James were discovered at Compostella in Galicia, Spain, by bishop Theodomir, who
le coup de foudre
love at first sight
le coup de l’étrier
one for the road
le dessous des cartes
what goes on behind the scenes
le dessous des carts
the real story
le dessus du panier
the cream of the crop; the pick of the litter
le droit chemin
the straight and narrow
le fin fond de
the depths of
le fin mot de l’histoire
the real point to the story
le plus clair de
the greater part of (lit.: the clearer of)
le pour et le contre
the pros and the cons
lèche-vitrines
window-shopping (lit.: licking windows)
les carottes sont cuites
your goose is cooked; you’re (we’re) done for (lit.: the carrots are cooked)
les coins et recoins
the ins and outs
les deux font la paire
they are two of a kind
les doigts dans le nez
easily
les faux frais
incidentals
les mains en jumelles sur ses yeux
hands making binoculars over his eyes
lever le nez
raise one’s head
louche
fishy, shifty