The Stories Of Our Lives

2009 Jan 30 20:48

From Émilie

Expressions

I’ll welcome ideas for other posts like this one, either other expressions I’ll try to translate or general French-English-translation posts ideas. If some little French mystery or weirdness has been nagging at you for a while, now is the time to ask.

Below are English expressions = their French equivalent (and the literal translation of the equivalent, if it differs):

Naked as a jaybird = Nu comme un ver (Naked as a worm)
Putting all your eggs in one basket = Placer tous ses oeufs dans le même panier (idem)
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, Better safe than sorry = Mieux vaut prévenir que guérir (Better to be safe than to cure)
The lion’s share = La part du lion (idem)
The early bird catches the worm =(+/-)= L’avenir appartient à ceux qui se lèvent tôt (Early risers own the future)
To rain cats and dogs, It rained buckets =
Il pleut des cordes (It rains ropes)
OR Il pleut à sceaux (everybody around here pronounces it “à sciot”, but I’m pretty sure it’s supposed to be “à sceaux”, which would be buckets)
OR Il tombe des clous (It is falling nails… wow, that sounds harsher in English)
OR Il pleut à boire debout (roughly: It rains enough for drinking standing up)
Beggars can’t be choosers, Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth =(+-)= À cheval donné, on ne regarde pas la bride (If the horse is given, you shouldn’t be picky about the bridle)
The cherry on top = La cerise sur le sundae (The cherry on the sundae)
Getting ahead of one’s self = Vendre la peau de l’ours avant de l’avoir tué (Selling the bear’s hide before killing it)

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4 Responses to “Expressions”

Paul (January 31st, 2009 )
It should be, “the early bird catches the worm.” The intimation is that the late riser will find all the worms already taken.

And the translation you have for, “beggars can’t be choosers,” is actually a common english expression as well. We say, “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”
Émilie (January 31st, 2009 )
Thanks Paul, I modified the post. The repeated “bird” was an editing error, unfortunately.
fv (January 31st, 2009 )
“Better safe than sorry = Mieux vaut prévenir que guérir (Better safe than nursing)”
I think a closer English expression is ‘An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” And I’ve always translated ‘guerir’ -> ‘cure’. I think they have the same root.

And if anyone can tell me what a “Passe-Carreau” is, I’ll be able to finally sleep in peace. I think I’ve already asked you this one, Emy.
Émilie (February 1st, 2009 )
And at that time, I did not have the web at my fingertips… Rest assured, you won’t have to ask me thrice:

Passe-Carreau : Long morceau ou rouleau de bois recouvert de molleton, qui sert au repassage des coutures. (HEPWORTH, M.F., Children’s Tailoring, p. 12, LYNCH, Mary and Dorothy SARA, Sewing Made Easy, p. 60, Grand Larousse Encyclopédique, p. VIII, p. 220, Manuel de couture, p. 102.).
English translation: Roller

Sleep well!

Check out the Grand dictionnaire terminologique of l’Office québécois de la langue française. It’s a really neat reference.

Thanks for that other expression, too – I hadn’t heard it before. I will add it and will keep “Better safe than sorry” as well, because it is shorter and heard more often in English, I believe.