{"id":9495,"date":"2016-12-28T11:44:16","date_gmt":"2016-12-28T09:44:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/?p=9495"},"modified":"2024-07-16T17:11:25","modified_gmt":"2024-07-16T15:11:25","slug":"funny-french-expressions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/french-courses-paris\/funny-french-expressions\/","title":{"rendered":"Funny French expressions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

10 Funny French Idioms: Learn Language, Culture, and Humor in One Go<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

In this article, you\u2019ll find popular French expressions that you will hear in France<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1. Les carottes sont cuites<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"French<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This French expression literally means the carrots are cooked<\/em>, but we say run simply because the speaker means that the outcome of the situation cannot be changed<\/em>! All hope is gone; there is no possibility of success; the period of good fortune is over. A similar expression in English would be his\/her goose is cooked<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Co\u00fbter les yeux de la t\u00eate<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This French saying literally means that something costs the eyes in your head \u2013 it\u2019s a price that\u2019s unreasonable. The English equivalent is \u2018to cost an arm and a leg\u2019. Here\u2019s an example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

J\u2019aurais aim\u00e9 acheter un nouvel ordinateur mais \u00e7a co\u00fbte les yeux de la t\u00eate.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I would have liked to buy a new computer but it costs an arm and a leg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Mettre son grain de sel<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"French<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This French idiom literally means to put in one\u2019s grain of salt \u2013 to give someone an unsolicited and unnecessary opinion. Case in point, your mom offering you advice and feedback on your love life (or lack thereof). Here\u2019s an example:
Encore une fois, elle a mis son grain de sel.
<\/em>Once again, she offered an unsolicited opinion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. \u00c7a marche !<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This popular French idiom literally means \u201cthat works.\u201d Marcher<\/em> is an interesting verb because it means both \u201cto walk\u201d and \u201cto function\/to work,\u201d so it is not always transparent for English speakers.  You\u2019ll use this expression much in the same way as its English equivalent. If you and some friends are making some plans, you\u2019ll say \u00e7a marche<\/em> to confirm that you\u2019re on board. Note that this expression changes from region to region. In Switzerland, for example, people say \u00e7a joue<\/em>: that plays! Here\u2019s an example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On se retrouve \u00e0 midi pour d\u00e9jeuner ?
<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oui, \u00e7a marche!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s meet at noon for lunch?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, that works!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. \u00catre sur son 31<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"French<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On big occasions, the French will \u201c\u00catre sur son 31<\/em>,\u201d meaning that they\u2019ll be putting on beautiful and elegant clothes. If you watch the Cannes Festival Red Carpet events, for instance, this is typically what \u201cto be on your 31\u201d entails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Chercher la petite b\u00eate <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The literal translation of this expression is \u00ab\u00a0to look for the little beast\u00a0\u00bb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the French feel that someone is looking really hard for a reason to complain about something, they say someone is \u201clooking for the little beast.\u201d The best English equivalent would be \u201csplitting hairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. C’est la fin des haricots <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

While this expression literally means ‘that’s the end of the beans,’ the French meaning is ‘that’s the last straw.’ This expression, used often in exasperation, is quite confusing to French learners until they realize the meaning is not literal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. Appeler un chat un chat<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When you tell someone to \u201ccall a cat a cat\u201d in French, it means you want them to speak their mind or tell the truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The closest English expression would be to \u00ab call a spade a spade \u00bb or to \u00ab speak frankly \u00bb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

9. Arr\u00eate ton char !<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This expression literally means <\/strong>\u00ab <\/strong>Stop your chariot \u00bb in English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Initially, you might think that this French expression is used when trying to get someone to slow down. In actuality, however, this funny French phrase actually means to stop bluffing!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10. \u00catre au taquet<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This French expression literally means<\/strong> \u00ab to be at a piece of wood \u00bb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The word \u201ctaquet<\/em>\u201d is used to refer to a piece of wood put between a door and a wall to block it. This funny French saying means to work hard with the expectation that something good will happen. The best English equivalent would be \u201cto give your best.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Discover 10 hilarious French idioms that will boost your language skills and cultural understanding. Learn these common expressions, their meanings, and English equivalents to impress native speakers and add flair to your French conversations. From ‘cooked carrots’ to ‘stopping chariots,’ dive into the colorful world of French language humor!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":9499,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,2625],"tags":[2090,2522,2521,2092,2520,2519,3306,2524,2523,2095,2526],"class_list":["post-9495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-french-courses-paris","category-french-expressions","tag-common-french-idioms","tag-english-expression","tag-french-expression","tag-french-idiom","tag-french-idioms","tag-funny-french-expressions","tag-funny-french-idioms","tag-funny-french-saying","tag-literal-translation","tag-popular-french-expressions","tag-popular-french-idiom"],"aioseo_notices":[],"modified_by":"Caroline","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/images\/2016\/12\/french-idioms.jpg",720,360,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/images\/2016\/12\/french-idioms-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/images\/2016\/12\/french-idioms-300x150.jpg",300,150,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/images\/2016\/12\/french-idioms.jpg",720,360,false],"large":["https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/images\/2016\/12\/french-idioms.jpg",720,360,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/images\/2016\/12\/french-idioms.jpg",720,360,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/images\/2016\/12\/french-idioms.jpg",720,360,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Caroline","author_link":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/author\/caroline\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Discover 10 hilarious French idioms that will boost your language skills and cultural understanding. Learn these common expressions, their meanings, and English equivalents to impress native speakers and add flair to your French conversations. From 'cooked carrots' to 'stopping chariots,' dive into the colorful world of French language humor!","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9495","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9495"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9495\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19386,"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9495\/revisions\/19386"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9499"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.frenchcourses-paris.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}