When you start learning French, one of the first topics that you’ll probably cover is emotions, feelings, and moods. A lot of time, you’ll just be taught adjectives like heureux, triste, fatigué, and related idioms like avoir le cafard will be overlooked. Even those who’ve been learning French for a while are likely to be unfamiliar with a lot of the expressions that come with … Continue reading Ten Popular French Idioms and Expressions to Talk About How You’re Feeling

Literal Translation: to put the flea in somebody’s ear Meaning: to put an idea in somebody’s head, to set somebody thinking, to arouse somebody’s suspicions Explanation: the French idiom mettre la puce à l’oreille de quelqu’un is generally used when somebody says or does something that arouses your suspicions. It can be used to refer to both positive and negative things. Here’s a couple of … Continue reading French Expression: mettre la puce à l’oreille de quelqu’un

Meaning: to have a lisp Literal Translation: to have a hair on the tongue Here’s a couple of examples of this expression being used in context: Mes amis se moquent de moi parce que j’ai un cheveu sur la langue. My friends make fun of me because I have a lisp. Comme elle a un petit cheveu sur la langue, elle a quelquefois du mal … Continue reading French Expression: avoir un cheveu sur la langue

Meaning: to have a gap between one’s front teeth, to have a diastema Literal Translation: to have lucky teeth Here’s an example of this expression being used in context: Quand elle a souri, j’ai remarqué qu’elle avait les dents du bonheur. / Quand elle a souri, j’ai remarqué qu’elle avait les dents de la chance. When she smiled, I noticed that she had a gap … Continue reading French Expression: avoir les dents du bonheur, avoir les dents de la chance

Just like the English language, French has many idioms and expressions involving animals. Some of these have relatively similar English equivalents, whereas others have seemingly nonsensical direct translations! Either way, learning these idiomatic expressions is a great way to understand more of the French that you read and hear, and speak more like a native. rire comme une baleine Meaning: to laugh one’s head off, … Continue reading Twelve Popular Animal-Related Idioms in French