Ça a sa petite volontÉ (fam.) = It has a will of its own (in speaking of children, etc.). C’est toujours Ça = That is something, at any rate. Pas plus que Ça?; Rien que Ça? = Is that all? [This is generally used ironically: e.g. Le cocher m’a demandÉ vingt francs pour aller de la Place de la Concorde À Longchamp!—Rien que Ça?] Cet avocat a un bon cabinet = That barrister has a good practice. Courir le cachet = To go from house to house giving private lessons. [This expression comes from the custom of the master giving to the pupil a number of tickets (called cachets) at the first lesson, for which the pupil pays, and gives one back at the end of each lesson.] C’est le cadet de mes soucis = That is the least of my cares; That is the last thing I worry about. Il a fait le tour du cadran = 1. He has slept the clock round. 2. He has worked for twelve hours at a stretch. *La belle cage ne nourrit pas l’oiseau = Fine clothes do not fill the stomach. Il tient la caisse = (lit.) He keeps the cash account; (fig.) He holds the purse-strings. Il fait la caisse = He is making up his cash account. Quel est l’État de votre caisse? = How much cash have you in hand? Être À fond de cale (fam.) = To be hard up, at the end of one’s resources. [Also more pop.: battre la dÈche. See Sec and Argent.] En rase (or, pleine) campagne = In the open country. Battre la campagne. (See Battre.) Se mettre en campagne = (lit., of a general) To take the field; (fig.) To canvass or look out for a post; To start working. Rendre un homme camus = To stop a man’s mouth; To make a man look small. Il demeura tout camus = He had not a word to say for himself; He was “stumped.” Cette nouvelle n’est qu’un canard = That story is all humbug. [Canard is an absurd tale mocking the credulity of listeners. LittrÉ derives the word from the phrase vendre À quelqu’un un canard À moitiÉ = to half sell a duck to any one, i.e. not to sell it at all, and so, to cheat. A moitiÉ was suppressed and un canard came to mean a cheat, a sell. Many other explanations are given of this word.] Faire la cane = To run away; To show the white feather. [This expression literally means to bob down, like a duck, to escape being shot. The verb caner (= to funk) is more often used now, or the less familiar caponner. “To show the white feather” arises from the fact that white feathers in game-cocks show impurity of breed.] Il prend un air capable = He puts on a bumptious look. C’est un homme capable de tout = He is a man that would stick at nothing. Rire sous cape (or, sous sa coiffe) = To laugh in one’s sleeve (generally of women. See Barbe.) N’avoir que la cape et l’ÉpÉe = To be titled but penniless (generally used of young officers who have nothing but their pay). Roman de cape et d’ÉpÉe = A romantic, melodramatic tale (e.g. Dumas, Les Trois Mousquetaires). *La caque sent toujours le hareng = What is bred in the bone will never come out of the flesh. [“You may break, you may shatter the vase, if you will,
But the scent of the roses will hang round it still.”
Moore, Farewell.]
Il a le caractÈre bien fait = He is always good-tempered. Il a le caractÈre mal fait = He cannot take a joke. C’est un sot À vingt-quatre carats = He is an out-and-out fool, an A 1 fool. [“Enfin quoique ignorante À vingt et trois carats.”
La Fontaine, Fables, vii, 15.]
*Cela arrive comme mars en carÊme = That comes regularly, like clockwork. *Cela arrive comme marÉe en carÊme = That comes very seasonably, just at the right time. Une face de carÊme = A sad, pale, woe-begone face (like that of one who has fasted all Lent). PrÊcher sept ans pour un carÊme = To do a great deal for little good. Muet comme une carpe = As dumb as an oyster. BaÎller comme une carpe = To yawn one’s head off. Elle fait la carpe pÂmÉe (fam.) = She turns up the whites of her eyes; She pretends to be ill; She looks like a dying duck in a thunderstorm. [Also: Faire des yeux de merlan frit.] Une partie carrÉe = A party composed of two ladies and two gentlemen. C’est une tÊte carrÉe = He is an obstinate fellow. C’est un valet de carreau = He is a contemptible fellow, a snob. Coucher sur le carreau = To sleep on the floor. Il l’a laissÉ sur le carreau = He killed him (or, left him for dead on the ground). Il est restÉ sur le carreau = He was killed on the spot, left for dead on the ground. [Formerly the floors of rooms were paved with square tiles or bricks called carreaux. Kitchens are still so paved in France, and often ground-floor rooms in the country.] Battre les cartes = To shuffle the cards. Donner les cartes = To deal the cards. Brouiller les caries = (fig.) To sow discord. Elle lui a tirÉ les cartes = She told his fortune (by cards). Il a vu le dessous des cartes = He has been behind the scenes; he is in the secret, “in the know.” Jouer cartes sur table = To play openly; To act frankly. Donner carte blanche = To give full permission; To grant a person full liberty to act according to his judgment. Je connais la carte du pays = I know the country well. C’est un homme qui ne perd pas la carte = He is a man who keeps his wits about him, who has an eye to the main chance. C’est un chÂteau de cartes que cette maison = This is a jerry-built house. Rester dans les cartons = To be pigeon-holed. Des objets de carton = (fig.) Gimcrack things. C’est bien le cas de le dire = One may indeed say so. Il n’est pas dans le cas de vous nuire = He is not in a position to harm you. Le cas ÉchÉant = In such a case; If such should be the case. C’est le cas ou jamais = It is now or never. Nous en faisons grand cas = We value it very highly. Tout mauvais cas est niable = A man may be expected to deny a deed that he knows to be wrong. Un en-cas = Something prepared in case of need. [Formerly this was said of a slight meal placed in a bedroom in case one should wake in the night and need food. Now it rather refers to anything that can be used in case guests arrive unexpectedly. Also of a parasol that can be used as an umbrella in case it rains. The latter is more usually called un en-tout-cas.] Une noce À tout casser (pop.) = A rare old jollification. Vous me cassez la tÊte avec votre bruit = You split my head with your noise. Je ne me casse pas la tÊte avec (or, pour) de telles bagatelles = I don’t worry my head (or, rack my brains) over such trifles. Il nous cassait l’encensoir sur le nez = He was smothering us with flatteries. [To ‘incense’ any one would be to honour or praise him, but to break the censer against his nose would be overdoing it.] Les fatigues ont cassÉ cet homme = Hardships have broken that man down. J’ai cassÉ une croÛte = I just had a snack. Cet homme casse les vitres = That man speaks out boldly, to bring matters to a crisis; That man does not pick and choose his words. On ne fait pas d’omelettes sans casser des oeufs = Nothing is done without trouble and sacrifice. [A saying attributed to Napoleon I. in defence of the great mortality caused by his wars.] Payer les pots cassÉs = To stand the racket. Se casser le nez = 1. To fall on one’s face. 2. To knock up against an obstacle. 3. To fail in an enterprise. C’est comme un cataplasme sur une jambe de bois = A nod is as good as a wink to a blind horse. Cet individu n’a pas l’air catholique = That man does not look very trustworthy. Votre vin est trop catholique = Your wine is too weak, (i.e. baptised with water). Il parle en connaissance de cause = He knows what he is talking about. Je ne veux pas y aller et pour cause = I do not want to go there, and for a very good reason. J’ai toujours pris fait et cause pour vous = I have always stood up for you, taken up the cudgels in your defence. Il a eu gain de cause = He gained the day. Un avocat sans cause = A briefless barrister. Vous Êtes hors de cause = You are not concerned in the matter; This has nothing to do with you. Il est sujet À caution = He is not to be relied upon. [Caution, meaning “bail,” implies that he cannot be trusted except on bail.] A ce que je vois = As far as I can judge. Ce que je sais, c’est que c’est un voleur = All I know is that he is a thief. Sur ce il s’en alla = After that he went away. Ce que c’est que de nous! = What poor mortals we are! *Bonne renommÉe vaut mieux que ceinture dorÉe = A good name is better than riches; He who has lost his reputation is a dead man among the living. [Ceinture here refers to the purse which was in, or attached to, the girdle. Compare Proverbs xxii. 1, “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches,” and “The purest treasure mortal times afford
Is spotless reputation; that away,
Men are but gilded loam or painted clay.”
Shakespeare, Richard II. i. 1.]
C’est parler cela = That is what I call talking. C’est ceci, c’est cela = It is sometimes one thing, sometimes another. Pour Ça, non! = Not a bit of it; Certainly not. Il est comme cela = That is his way. C’est bien comme cela! = That is just it!! C’est cela mÊme! = That’s the very thing! Pour cela mÊme = For that very reason. N’est-ce que cela? = Is that all? En un mot comme en cent = Once and for all. Je vous le donne en cent = I bet you 100 to 1 you will not guess it. *Cent ans banniÈre, cent ans civiÈre = Up to-day, down to-morrow; Every dog has his day. [BanniÈre is here used as the mark of nobility. Also: Aujourd’hui chevalier, demain vacher. German: Heute mir, morgen dir. Latin: Hodie mihi, cras tibi.] Cent ans de chagrin ne paient pas un sou de dettes = Worrying will not pay your debts. Le scÉlÉrat se brÛla la cervelle = The scoundrel blew his brains out. [Also, more pop., “se faire sauter le caisson.”] *A la cour du roi chacun pour soi = Every man for himself and the devil take the hindmost. (See Sauver.) Chacun cherche son semblable = Like will to like. (See Pot and Tel.) [“Entre gens de mÊme nature
L’amitiÉ se fait et dure
Mais entre gens de contraire nature
Ni amour ni amitiÉ dure.”]
Cela fait venir la chair de poule = That makes one’s flesh creep. Je l’ai vu en chair et en os = I saw him in flesh and blood. Ni chair ni poisson = Neither fish, flesh, nor fowl. Être assis entre deux chaises = To fall between two stools. (See Chasser.) Il y a bien des chambres À louer dans sa tÊte = He is an empty-headed fellow. Rejeter le moucheron et avaler le chameau = To strain at a gnat and swallow a camel. Il est fou À courir les champs = He is as mad as a March hare. Nous prendrons la clef des champs = We shall take the key of the street (i.e., run away). Un rien le met aux champs = A trifle throws him into a passion, bewilders him. Être aux champs = To be put out, bewildered, angry. Prendre du champ = To take a run (before leap); To have room before one (for an effort). [“Ils prirent du champ et coururent l’un sur l’autre avec furie.”—Chateaubriand, Dernier des AbencÉrages, 185.] Chance vaut mieux que bien jouer = Luck is better than wit or brains. Il n’est chance qui ne retourne = The luck must change. *A chaque saint sa chandelle = Honour to whom honour is due; Every lawyer must have his fee. Il vous doit une belle chandelle = He ought to be very grateful to you. [An allusion to the custom of burning candles before the altars of Saints, as a mark of gratitude, considered due to them.] Voir des chandelles (or, mille chandelles) = “To see stars.” (See Étoile.) Donner une chandelle À Dieu et une au diable = To try and keep in with both parties. Le jeu ne vaut pas la chandelle = The game is not worth the candle; It is not worth while. [i.e., when the stakes are not sufficient to pay for the candle burnt during the game.] *C’est une Économie de bouts de chandelle = That is penny-wise and pound-foolish; That is spoiling the ship for a ha’porth (halfpennyworth) of tar; That is a cheese-paring policy. BrÛler la chandelle par les deux bouts = To burn the candle at both ends. Donner le change = To put off the scent, to mislead. Vous ne me ferez pas prendre le change = You will not impose upon me, put me on the wrong scent. [Expressions taken from hunting, where the dogs leave the track of the game they have raised, to run on another scent.] Je lui ai rendu le change = I paid him back in his own coin. (See Monnaie.) Changer son cheval borgne contre un aveugle = To lose in an exchange. Il en a l’air et la chanson = He looks it every inch; He has both the appearance and the actuality. C’est l’air qui fait la chanson = Words depend much on the tone in which they are spoken; It is not so much what you say as the way in which you say it. *Il chante toujours la mÊme chanson = He is always harping on the same string. [“Cantilenam eandem canere.”
Terence, Phormio, iii. 2, 10.
“Chorda qui semper oberrat eadem.”
Horace, Ars Poet., 356.]
*Tel chante qui ne rit pas = The heart may be sad though the face be gay. C’est comme si je chantais = It is like talking to the air, preaching in the desert. Je lui ai chantÉ sa gamme = I lectured him severely. Une porte mal graissÉe chante = One must pay well to keep persons quiet. Elle chante À faire pitiÉ = She sings most wretchedly. Chanter juste = To sing in tune. Si Ça vous chante (fam.) = If you are in the mood for it. Voici la reine, chapeau bas! = Here is the Queen, hats off. Le chapelet commence À se dÉfiler = The association is beginning to break up. DÉfiler (or, dire) son chapelet = To say all one has to say. Il n’a pas gagnÉ cela en disant son chapelet = He did not get that for nothing. *Qui chapon mange, chapon lui vient = He that has plenty shall have more. *Charbonnier est maÎtre chez lui (or, chez soi) = Every one is master in his own house; An Englishman’s house is his castle. [In the Commentaires de Blaise de Monluc, MarÉchal de France (ed. Alphonse de Ruble, pour la SociÉtÉ de l’Histoire de France, tome iii. p. 482, Paris, 1867), in a remonstrance to the king he says: “car chacun est roy en sa maison, comme respondit le charbonnier À votre ayeul.” M. de Ruble appends this note: “FranÇois Ier, À la suite d’une chasse qui l’avait sÉparÉ de sa suite, se perdit dans une forÊt et chercha un asile dans la cabane d’un charbonnier. L’homme Était absent; le roi ne trouva que la charbonniÈre, s’empara du meilleur siÈge et demanda À souper. La femme voulut attendre l’arrivÉe de son mari. A son retour, celui-ci reprit brusquement son siÈge et offrit un simple escabeau au roi: ‘Je prendz cette chaise,’ dit-il, ‘parce qu’elle est À moi: Or, par droit et par raison,
Chacun est maÎtre en sa maison.’
Le roi, charmÉ de n’Être point reconnu, obÉit À son hÔte. On soupa d’un quartier de chevreuil tuÉ en cachette, on mÉdit du roi, des tailles qu’il venait d’ordonner et surtout de sa sÉvÉritÉ pour la chasse. Le lendemain, FranÇois se fit connaÎtre. Le charbonnier se crut perdu, mais le roi le rassura, et, pour prix de son hospitalitÉ, lui accorda de grandes faveurs, entre autres le droit de chasser. A son retour À la cour, il rapporta le rÉcit de son aventure et surtout le proverbe qu’il venait d’apprendre.” Also in La Belle ArsÈne, comÉdie-fÉerie de C. S. Favart, acted before the king in 1773, we find this proverb (Act iv. Sc. 2).] Cela est À ma charge = I have to pay for it; That falls on me. Cela m’est À charge = That is a burden to me. C’est entendu, À la charge d’autant (or, de revanche) = I will do the same for you; One good turn deserves another. *CharitÉ bien ordonnÉe commence par soi-mÊme = Charity begins at home. [“Proximus sum egomet mihi.” = I myself am nearest to myself.—Terence.] La charitÉ, s’il vous plaÎt! = Please give me a penny! Faire Charlemagne = To leave off a winner, without giving one’s adversaries a chance of revenge. [GÉnin explains this as a shortened form of faire comme Charlemagne, who died without losing any of the conquests he had made.] Mettre la charrette (or, charrue) devant les boeufs = To put the cart before the horse. [Lucian says: ? ?a?a t?? ??? ???e? = The waggon drags the ox.] Mieux vaut Être cheval que charrette = Better lead than be led. Faire un chassÉ-croisÉ = To go to and fro in all directions; to exchange places; to play at “puss in the corner.” “Chassez le naturel, il revient au galop” = What is bred in the bone will never come out of the flesh. [Destouches, Le Glorieux, iii. 5. Comp. Horace, Ep. I., x. 24: “naturam expellas furca, tamen usque recurret,” and La Fontaine, Fables, ii. 18: “Tant le naturel a de force!
Il se moque de tout...
Qu’on lui ferme la porte au nez
Il reviendra par les fenÊtres.”
Frederick the Great wrote to Voltaire (19th March 1771): “Chassez les prÉjugÉs par la porte, ils reviendront par la fenÊtre.” Also: Qui naquit chat court aprÈs les souris.] *Qui deux choses chasse, ni l’une ni l’autre ne prend = Between two stools one falls to the ground. Ne chassez pas deux liÈvres À la fois = Do not have too many irons in the fire. Il chasse de race = He is a chip of the old block. Un clou chasse l’autre = One idea drives away another. *A bon chat bon rat = A Roland for an Oliver; Tit for tat; Diamond cut diamond. *Chat ÉchaudÉ craint l’eau froide = A burnt child dreads the fire; Once bit, twice shy. [The Jewish Rabbis said: “One bitten by a serpent is afraid of a rope’s end.” Hesiod says: “Even a fool after suffering gets him knowledge”; the Italians: “Can scotato da l’acqua calda ha paura poi della fredda” = A dog burnt by hot water afterwards fears cold.] J’appelle un chat un chat = I call a spade a spade. (See Appeler.) Avoir un chat dans la gorge = To have phlegm (or, frog) in the throat; To be hoarse. *Nous avons d’autres chats (or, chiens) À fouetter = We have other fish to fry. Il n’y a pas lÀ de quoi fouetter un chat = It is not worth getting angry about. *Ne rÉveillons pas le chat qui dort = Let sleeping dogs lie. *Le chat parti les souris dansent = When the cat’s away the mice will play. *La nuit tous les chats sont gris = At night one may easily be mistaken; At night beauty is of no account; When candles are away, all cats are grey. *Chat bottÉ n’attrape pas de souris = A muffled cat catches no mice. Comme chat sur braise = Like a cat on hot bricks. Il n’y a pas un chat = There is not a soul. Aller comme un chat maigre = To run like a lamplighter. (See Verrier.) Faire des chÂteaux en Espagne = To build castles in the air. [This expression is found from the thirteenth century. The explanation that would ascribe it to the followers of the Duc d’Anjou when he became Philippe V. of Spain must therefore be incorrect. The phrases “ChÂteaux en Asie, en Albanie” were also used, so that it comes to mean “to build castles in foreign countries, where one is not,” and hence “to indulge in illusions.”—LittrÉ, s.v. “Chatiaus en Espagne.”—Guillaume de Lorris, Roman de la Rose, l. 2530. “De quoi sert-il de bastir des chasteaux en Espagne puisqu’il faut habiter en France?” St. FranÇois de Sales, lettre 856.] Pleurer À chaudes larmes = To cry bitterly. *Tomber de fiÈvre en chaud mal = To fall out of the frying-pan into the fire. Cela ne me fait ni froid ni chaud = That is indifferent to me. Il a les pieds bien chauds = He is in very easy circumstances. *Petit chaudron, grandes oreilles = Little pitchers have long ears. Chauffer C’est un bain qui chauffe = There is a shower coming on. [When it feels close, or when the sun is seen for a few minutes through the clouds, it is looked upon as a sign of rain.] Ce n’est pas pour vous que le four chauffe = All these preparations are not for you. Les cordonniers sont les plus mal chaussÉs = The shoemaker’s wife goes the worst shod. Chauve comme mon genou (fam.) = As bald as a coot, as a billiard ball. Elle a une grande fortune de son chef = She has a large fortune in her own right. Faire une chose de son chef = To do a thing on one’s own responsibility. Chemin faisant = On the way. Le chemin de velours = The primrose path. En tout pays il y a une lieue de mauvais chemin = (fig.) In every enterprise difficulties have to be encountered. Il ne faut pas y aller par quatre chemins = You must not beat about the bush; You must go straight to the point; You must not mince matters; It’s no good shilly-shallying. *Qui trop se hÂte reste en chemin = The more haste, the less speed; Slow and sure wins the race. (See HÂte.) *Le chemin le plus long est souvent le plus court = The longest way round often proves to be the shortest; A short cut may be a very long way home. Prendre le chemin de l’École (or, des Écoliers) = To take the longest way (a roundabout way). *À chemin battu il ne croÎt pas d’herbe = (fig.) There is no profit in an affair in which many are engaged. Se frayer un chemin avec les coudes = To elbow one’s way through a crowd. Il faut faire une croix À la cheminÉe = “We must chalk it up” (of an event that seldom happens.) Sous le manteau de la cheminÉe = Secretly, sub rosa. *À cheval donnÉ on ne regarde pas À la bride (or, À la dent) = One does not look a gift-horse in the mouth. [Late Latin: “Si quis det mannos, ne quaere in dentibus annos.”] On loge À pied et À cheval = Good entertainment (accommodation) for man and beast. L’oeil du maÎtre engraisse le cheval = Matters prosper under the master’s eye. [“Il n’est pour voir que l’oeil du maÎtre.”
La Fontaine, Fables, iv. 21.] Il est aisÉ d’aller À pied quand on tient son cheval par la bride = It is easy to stoop from state when that state can be resumed at will. Il n’est si bon cheval qui ne bronche = The best horse may stumble; Accidents will happen. [Also: Il n’est si bon charretier qui ne verse.] Il a changÉ son cheval borgne contre un aveugle = He has changed for the worse; He has made a bad bargain. Monter sur ses grands chevaux = To ride the high horse. [A reference to the big war horses used by knights in battle.] Je lui ai Écrit une lettre À cheval = I wrote him a severe letter. Il est toujours À cheval sur l’Étiquette = He is a stickler for etiquette. Il est bon cheval de trompette = He is not easily dismayed. Un cheval À deux fins = A horse for riding or driving. J’ai une fiÈvre de cheval = I am in a high fever. Chevalier Un chevalier d’industrie = A swindler, a man who lives by his wits. Cette comparaison est tirÉe par les cheveux = That comparison is somewhat far-fetched. On ne peut prendre aux cheveux un homme rasÉ = One cannot get blood from a stone. (See Huile.) En cheveux (of a woman) = Bareheaded. [Of a man: tÊte nue.] Les cheveux en brosse = Hair cut short (standing up like the bristles of a brush). Prendre l’occasion aux cheveux = To take time by the forelock. (See Balle.) Avoir mal aux cheveux (fam.) = To have a head (i.e. a head-ache in the morning after a drinking bout.) Vous ne lui allez pas À la cheville = You are a pigmy compared with him; You are no match for him at all. La cheville ouvriÈre = The mainspring, pivot. *MÉnager la chÈvre et le chou = To run with the hare and hunt with the hounds. [The French refers to the tale of the man in charge of a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage. He came to a river which he had to cross; but the ferry-boat was so small that he could only take one of his charges with him. His difficulty was to get them across, for if he left the wolf and goat together, the wolf would eat the goat; and if he left the goat with the cabbage the goat would eat it.] *OÙ la chÈvre est attachÉe il faut qu’elle broute = One must put up with the inconveniences of one’s position if one can get nothing better; We must not expect more from life than life can give us. *Il n’y a pas de petit chez soi = There is no place like home; Home is home, be it ever so humble; East, west, home is best. [Also: Un petit chez soi vaut mieux qu’un grand chez les autres. “My house, my house, though thou art small,
Thou art to me the Escuriall.”
George Herbert, Jacula Prudentium.]
C’est le chien de Jean de Nivelle, il s’enfuit quand on l’appelle = The more you call him, the more he runs away, like John de Nivelle’s dog. [Jean de Nivelle was the eldest son of Jean II., Duc de Montmorency, and was born about 1423. Having been summoned to appear before the Judges at Paris for having espoused the cause of the Duke of Burgundy against the wishes of the king, Louis XI., and of his father, who disinherited him, he fled to Flanders, where his wife had property. He therefore became an object of scorn to the people for refusing to answer the summons of his king, and they called him chien: the saying ought to run: C’est CE chien de Jean de Nivelle. La Fontaine evidently thought the phrase referred to a real dog when he wrote:— “Une traÎtresse voix bien souvent vous appelle,
Ne vous pressez donc nullement,
Ce n’Était pas un sot, non, non et croyez m’en.
Que le chien de Jean de Nivelle.”
Compare the Italian:—
Far come il can d’Arlotto que chiamoto se la batte.] *Qui veut noyer son chien l’accuse de la rage = Give your dog a bad name and hang him. [Quos Jupiter vult perdere prius dementat.] Je jette ma langue aux chiens = I give it up (of riddles, etc.). [Also: Je donne ma langue aux chats.] Nous sommes sortis entre chien et loup = We went out at dusk, between the lights. [i.e. when you could easily mistake a wolf for a dog; or, as others say, between the time when the watch-dog is let loose and the time when the wolf comes out of the wood.] Un chien regarde bien un ÉvÊque = A cat may look at a king. Il fait un chien de temps (or, un temps de chien) (fam.) = It is wretched weather. C’est saint Roch et son chien que ces deux personnes-lÀ = These two persons are inseparable. *Bon chien chasse de race = Like sire, like son; Cat after kind. C’est le chien du jardinier qui ne mange pas de choux et n’en laisse pas manger aux autres = He is a dog in the manger. Écorcher son chien pour en avoir la peau = To sacrifice something important for a small return. Chien qui aboie ne mord pas = His bark is worse than his bite. [Also: Tel fiert qui ne tue pas, and Chat miauleur ne fut jamais bon chasseur, non plus qu’homme sage caqueteur.] Autant vaut Être mordu d’un chien que d’une chienne = As well be hanged for a sheep as a lamb; What is the use of choosing between two evils? On l’a reÇu comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles = He was as welcome as a dog at a wedding. *Il ne faut pas se moquer des chiens (or, du loup) avant qu’on ne soit hors du bois = Do not holloa before you are out of the wood. Il n’attache pas ses chiens avec des saucisses = He is a regular miser. Chien hargneux a toujours l’oreille dÉchirÉe = Quarrelsome folk are always in the wars. Jamais bon chien n’a rongÉ bon os = A good dog rarely gets a good bone; Men rarely get their deserts. Se regarder en chiens de faÏence = To look at one another without talking (like stuck pigs). Nous causions chiffons (of women) = We were chattering about dress. Elle a une petite mine chiffonnÉe = She has irregular features, but her expression is pleasing. *ChÔmer les fÊtes avant qu’elles ne soient venues = To count one’s chickens before they are hatched. [“Laissons venir la fÊte avant que la chÔmer.”
MoliÈre, Le DÉpit Amoureux, i. 1.] C’est un saint qu’on ne chÔme point = He is in no great repute. [“L’honneur est un vieux saint que l’on ne chÔme plus.” RÉgnier, Satires, xiii.]
Dites bien des choses de ma part À votre frÈre = Remember me kindly to your brother. Rester tout chose = To be confused. Il Était tout chose = He was out of sorts; out of spirits; cast down. Monsieur Chose (or, Machin) = “Mr. What’s-his-name.” On l’envoya planter ses choux = He was dismissed. Aller planter ses choux (or, garder les dindons) = To retire into the country. Chou pour chou = Taking one thing with another. [The whole expression is: Chou pour chou, Aubervilliers vaut bien Paris = Aubervilliers is as good as Paris, if it come to counting cabbages, i.e., each thing has its particular merits. Aubervilliers is a suburb of Paris, noted for its market gardens.] BÊte comme (un) chou (un pot, une cruche, une oie) = As stupid as an owl. Mon petit chou = My little darling. [This has nothing to do with a cabbage, but with a kind of puff pastry filled with cream, in the shape of a cabbage.] Faire ses choux gras d’une chose = To enjoy a thing that others despise. Remuer ciel et terre = To move heaven and earth; To leave no stone unturned. Circulez, Messieurs! = Move on, please! (cry of policemen). Parler clair et net = To speak plainly. Je n’y vois pas clair = I cannot see, it is too dark. Clair comme le jour (or, comme le soleil en plein midi) = As plain as a pikestaff; As clear as noonday. À la rentrÉe des classes = When school reopens. Mettre la clef sous la porte = To run away from one’s creditors; “To bolt.” La clef dont on se sert est toujours claire = One does not get rusty in what one does every day. Un pas de clerc = A blunder; A false step. Il ne faut pas parler latin devant les clercs = Do not correct a specialist on his subject. [“Les plus grands clercs ne sont pas les plus fins.”
RÉgnier, Satires, iii.]
Ses plaisanteries ne sont que des clichÉs = His jokes are stereotyped. En un clin d’oeil = In a twinkling. *Qui n’entend qu’une cloche n’entend qu’un son = One should hear both sides of a question. Il est temps de fondre la cloche = The time for action has arrived. DÉmÉnager À la cloche de bois (fam.) = To shoot the moon; To leave a house without paying one’s rent or one’s creditors. Il n’a jamais perdu son clocher de vue = He has never been out of his parish. Il faut placer le clocher au milieu du village = What is meant for the benefit of all should be within reach of all. [e.g. a lamp in the middle of the table.] Avoir la maladie du clocher = To be homesick. [Also more often: Avoir le mal du pays.] Ce n’est pas mal, mais il y a encore quelque chose qui cloche = It is not bad, but there is still something wrong. *Toute comparaison cloche [or, pÈche] = Comparisons are odious. Cela ne vaut pas un clou À soufflet = That is not worth a straw (lit. a tin-tack). Je lui ai rivÉ son clou (pop.) = I shut his mouth; That was a poser for him. [“Vous avez fort bien fait de lui river son clou.”
Regnard, Le Distrait, iv. 7.] Un clou chasse l’autre = One idea drives away another. Le clou de l’Exposition = The chief attraction of the Exhibition. C’est un pays de cocagne = It is a land flowing with milk and honey. [“Paris est pour le riche un pays de cocagne;
Sans sortir de la ville il trouve la campagne.”
Boileau, Satires, vi.]
Le mÂt de cocagne = The greasy pole. C’est la mouche du coche = He is a regular busybody. [La Fontaine, Fables, vii. 9, imitated from Æsop.] Nous n’avons pas gardÉ les cochons ensemble (pop.) = We have not been dragged up together. [The reply to a man who presumes upon acquaintance, and needs putting down.] À contre coeur = Reluctantly. À coeur joie = To one’s heart’s content. De gaietÉ de coeur = Out of sheer wantonness. Il l’a fait de bon coeur = He did it willingly. DÎner par coeur = To go without a dinner; To dine with Duke Humphrey. [Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, son of Henry IV., was renowned for his hospitality. At his death it was reported that he would have a monument in S. Paul’s, but he was buried at S. Alban’s Abbey. S. Paul’s was at that time the common lounge of the town, and when the promenaders left for dinner, those who had no dinner to go to, used to say they would stay behind and look for the monument of the Good Duke. A similar saying was, “To sup with Sir Thomas Gresham,” the Exchange, built by him, being a place of resort.] Vous l’avez blessÉ au coeur = You have wounded his feelings. C’est un crÈve coeur = It is a heart-rending thing. *Loin des yeux, loin du coeur = Out of sight, out of mind. Il a cela À coeur = 1. He is striving hard to do it. 2. He takes a lively interest in it. Cela me tient au coeur = I have set my heart upon it. Il a mal au coeur = He is feeling sick. Il a une maladie de coeur = He has heart disease. Elle fait la bouche en coeur = She puts on a captivating look; She purses up her lips. Elle a le coeur gros = She is ready to cry; She is heavy-hearted. Si le coeur vous en dit = If you feel like it; If you have a mind to. Je veux en avoir le coeur net = I must clear that up. Il a le coeur sur les lÈvres = 1. He always says what he thinks (and this is always something good and kind); He is open-hearted. 2. He feels sick. Être plein de coeur = To be full of generosity; To be noble-minded; To have a high sense of one’s duties towards others. Avoir le coeur sur la main = To be open-hearted, frank. Un serrement de coeur = A sinking at the heart; A feeling of oppression and sadness. VoilÀ l’homme dont elle est coiffÉe = There is the man with whom she is smitten. Être nÉ coiffÉ = To be born with a silver spoon in one’s mouth (literally, with a caul). Coiffer sainte Catherine = To remain an old maid. Cet homme mourra au coin d’un bois (or, d’une haie) = That man will die in a ditch. Il est franc du collier = (of a horse) He pulls freely; (of a man) He never shirks his work. Reprendre le collier de misÈre = To return to drudgery, to the old routine. Le feu dÉtruisit le bÂtiment de fond en comble = The fire completely gutted the building. Elle est au comble de ses dÉsirs = She is at the very height of her wishes. Pour comble de malheur, il tomba malade = To crown his misfortune, he fell ill. Venez demain, nous serons en petit comitÉ = Come to-morrow, there will be only a few intimate friends. Comme ci, comme Ça = So-so; indifferently. Je ne l’ai pas dit, mais c’est tout comme = I did not say so, but it is just as if I did. C’est tout comme = It comes to the same thing. *N’a pas fait qui commence = The beginning is not everything. [“Qui commence le mieux ne fait rien s’il n’achÈve.”
Corneille.] A moitiÉ fait qui commence bien = Well begun is half done; A good beginning is half the battle. [“Unes vespres bien sonnÉes sont À demy dictes.”
Rabelais, Gargantua, cxl. Also: Matines bien sonnÉes sont À moitiÉ dites. Barbe bien savonnÉe est À moitiÉ rasÉe.] *Qui commence mal finit mal = A bad day never has a good night. Le patron n’est pas commode (fam.) = The master (boss) knows all our tricks, is not easily taken in, is very strict, is not an easy customer to deal with. Il m’a faussÉ compagnie = He gave me the slip; He did not keep his appointment. Vous me traitez comme si j’Étais compagnie = You treat me as if I were somebody. Il n’y a si bonne compagnie qui ne se quitte = The best of friends must part. Traiter quelqu’un de pair À compagnon = To treat any one as an equal; To be “hail-fellow-well-met” (cheek by jowl) with any one. *Qui a compagnon a maÎtre = One is often obliged to give way to the wishes of those with whom one is associated. Avoir le compas dans l’oeil (fam.) = To have a good eye for distances. C’est un rusÉ compÈre = He is a sly dog, a cunning old fox. (See Fin and Mouche.) [Other equivalents are: un fin (or, fÛtÉ) matois (vide MoliÈre, George Dandin, i. 2, ad fin.), une fine mouche.] Sans compliment = Really; sincerely; I mean really what I say. Voici votre argent, voyez si vous avez votre compte = Here is your money, see if it is right. Erreur n’est pas compte = Errors excepted. Je renonce À ce commerce, car je n’y trouve pas mon compte = I am giving up this business, for I make nothing by it. Ne l’offensez pas, car vous n’y trouverez pas votre compte = Do not offend him, for you would get more than you cared for. Nous nous amusons À bon compte = We amuse ourselves at a small cost. Vous Êtes loin du compte = You are out in your reckoning. On peut toujours À bon compte revenir = There is no harm in examining an account twice. Je mets cela en ligne de compte = I take that into account. Faisons un compte rond = Let us make it even money. Pour se rendre compte de la chose = To get a clear idea of the matter. Nous sommes de compte À demi dans l’entreprise = We are partners on equal terms in the venture; We are going halves in the venture. À chacun son compte = To give every one his due. Au bout du compte = Upon the whole; After all. Enfin de compte = (lit.) When the addition is made; (fig.) When all is told; When all is said and done. Il a son compte (or, Son compte est rÉglÉ) = 1. (lit.) He has his due. 2. (pop.) He is done for. (See Affaire.) Il lui compte les morceaux = He grudges him the very food he eats. *Qui compte sans son hÔte compte deux fois = He who reckons without his host must reckon again; Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched. (See ChÔmer and Peau.) Comptez dessus = Depend upon it. Vous pouvez faire des commandes en mon nom jusqu’À concurrence de 5,000 francs = You can order goods in my name to the amount of £200. Il conduit bien sa barque = (fig.) He plays his cards well. Tous ses camarades lui firent la conduite = All his companions saw him off. C’est le diable À confesser = It is terribly hard to do. On lui donnerait le bon Dieu sans confession = They would trust him to any extent (because of his saintly appearance). En connaissance de cause = Knowingly. Je suis en pays de connaissance = I am among people I know, among old friends. Il est connu comme le loup blanc = He is known to everybody. Il gagne À Être connu = He improves upon acquaintance. Je ne le connais ni d’Ève ni d’Adam = I do not know him from Adam. Je ne le connais ni de prÈs ni de loin = I do not know him at all. En chiffres connus = In plain figures. Vous y connaissez-vous en vins? = Are you a judge of wine? Je m’y connais = I understand all about it; I am an authority on it. Connu! (fam.) = That is an old tale. Je la connais, celle-lÀ (pop.) = That is nothing new; I’ve been “had” before. *À parti pris pas de conseil = Advice is useless to one who has made up his mind. *La nuit porte conseil = Sleep upon it; Time will show a plan. Il a bientÔt assemblÉ son conseil = He makes up his mind without consulting any one. “Aimez qu’on vous conseille et non pas qu’on vous loue” = Prefer advice to praise. [Boileau, Art PoÉtique, i. 192.] *Qui ne dit mot consent = Silence gives consent. Cela ne tire pas À consÉquence = That is of no importance. Des contes À dormir debout = Tedious, nonsensical tales; Old wives’ tales. *Contentement passe richesse = Enough is as good as a feast. Il vous en conte de belles = He is deceiving you finely; He is telling you fine tales. Vous Êtes portÉ sur le contrÔle = Your name is placed on the roll. Une chaÎne contrÔlÉe = A hall-marked chain. Vous prÊchez un converti = You are talking to a man who thinks with you. Il est comme un coq en pÂte = He is in clover. [Lit. one kept separately from the others to be fattened; pÂte is its food. Comme rats en paille is sometimes used.] Il est le coq du village = He is the cock of the walk. Des coq-À-l’Âne = Cock and bull stories; Disconnected rigmaroles. À qui vendez-vous vos coquilles? = Tell that to the marines. (See Autre.) [Charles d’OrlÉans, Rondeau, 148.] Rentrer dans sa coquille = To draw in one’s horns. Il fait bien valoir ses coquilles = He praises his goods too much. À cor et À cri = With hue and cry; Vehemently. Demander À cor et À cri = To clamour for. Être au bout de sa corde (or, son rouleau) = To be at the end of one’s tether; To have no more to say. Vous verrez beau jeu si la corde ne rompt = You will see fine fun if no accident happens, if no hitch occurs. Cette affaire a passÉ À fleur de corde = That business only just succeeded. Cet homme file sa corde = That man will bring himself to the gallows. Il ne faut pas parler de corde dans la maison d’un pendu = We must not make personal remarks; We must not allude to the skeleton in the cupboard. (See Boiteux.) Il a de la corde de pendu dans sa poche = He has the devil’s own luck. [A piece of the rope with which a man had been hanged was, and is even now, considered as a charm against ill-luck. Archbishop Trench adduces other proverbs in reference to the man whose luck never forsakes him, so that from the very things which would be another man’s ruin, he extricates himself not only without harm but with credit: e.g. the Arabic: “Cast him into the Nile, and he will come up with a fish in his mouth”; the German: “WÜrf er einen Groschen aufs Dach, fiel ihm ein Taler herunter” = If he threw a penny on to the roof, a dollar would come back to him.] Il tient la corde = He is leading; He is first favourite. Vous touchez la corde sensible = You are touching the sore point. Ne touchez pas cette corde = (fig.) Do not speak of that. Cela est usÉ jusqu’À la corde = (lit.) That is worn threadbare; (fig.) That is thoroughly hackneyed. Aux États-Unis les rues sont tirÉes au cordeau = In the United States the streets are perfectly straight. Cordon, s’il vous plaÎt = Open the door, please (to porters in Paris). Ne faites pas de cornes À ce livre = Do not dog’s-ear that book. Bayer aux corneilles = To stare (or, gape) about vacantly. C’est un drÔle de corps = He is an odd fellow, a queer fish. Nous verrons ce qu’il a dans le corps = We will see what he is made of. Il s’est jetÉ À corps perdu dans cette affaire = He threw himself headlong (or, with might and main) into the matter. Je le saisis À bras le corps = I seized him round the waist (in a struggle). Ils se sont battus corps À corps = They fought hand to hand. Je l’ai fait À mon corps dÉfendant = I did it reluctantly, in self-defence. Prendre du corps = To get fat. Il a l’Âme chevillÉe dans le corps = He has as many lives as a cat. *À corsaire, corsaire et demi = Set a thief to catch a thief. [“Ars deluditur arte.”—Cato. “A trompeur, trompeur et demy.”—Charles d’OrlÉans, Rondel, 46.] *Corsaires contre corsaires ne font pas leurs affaires = Dog does not eat dog. (See Loup.) [“Corsaires contre corsaires,
L’un l’autre s’attaquant ne font pas leurs affaires.”— La Fontaine, Tribut envoyÉ par les animaux À Alexandre, imitating RÉgnier, Satire xii., ad fin., who took it from the Spanish De corsario a corsario no se llevan que los barriles.] C’est une vraie corvÉe! = What a nuisance! What a bore! [CorvÉe originally referred to feudal forced labour. It is now a military term, and means “fatigue duty”; hence, any unpleasant task.] On lui compterait les cÔtes = He is nothing but skin and bone. Être sur le cÔtÉ (or, flanc) = To be on one’s back, ill. Mettre les rieurs de son cÔtÉ = To turn the laugh against a man. Vous Êtes du bon cÔtÉ = You are on the right side. Vous Êtes du cÔtÉ du manche = You are on the winning side. Donner À cÔtÉ = To miss the mark. Depuis sa faillite il file un mauvais coton (fam.) = Since his failure, his health (or, reputation) has entirely broken down. On est plus couchÉ que debout = Life is short compared with eternity. Je l’ai couchÉ en joue = I aimed at him. Coucher dans son fourreau = To go to sleep without undressing; To turn in all standing (nav.). *Comme on fait son lit, on se couche = As you make your bed, so you must lie on it. Se coucher comme les poules = To go to bed with the sun, very early. Coucher sur la dure = To lie on the ground, on the floor. Il ne se mouche pas du coude (fam.) = 1. He is no fool. 2. He does things in grand style. (See Pied.) Il a mal au coude (fam.) = He is very lazy. (See Main.) Avoir les coudÉes franches = (lit.) To have elbow-room; (fig.) To have full scope. On ne sait quelle piÈce y coudre = One does not know how to prevent (or, cure) it. C’est un homme À la coule (pop.) = He is a smart, knowing chap. [Compare: Il la connaÎt dans les coins, celui-lÀ = He knows his business in every corner.] Ce qu’il dit coule de source = What he says comes from the heart, comes fluently from his lips. Cela coule de source = That follows naturally. Couler À fond = (of ships) To founder; (of persons) To be ruined. *Il faut laisser couler l’eau = What can’t be cured must be endured. Faire les yeux en coulisse = To make sheep’s eyes; To ogle. *Faire d’une pierre deux coups = To kill two birds with one stone. Cette dÉmarche a portÉ coup = That step told, had its effect. Sans coup fÉrir = Without striking a blow. Il a fait un bon coup = He has made a good bargain. Il vient de faire un mauvais coup = He has just committed a crime. Pour le coup il ne m’Échappera pas = This time he will not escape me. J’irai À coup sÛr = I shall go to a certainty. C’est donner un coup d’ÉpÉe dans l’eau = It is an unsuccessful attempt. (See Eau.) Il m’a portÉ un coup fourrÉ = He struck me a blow in the dark. [This is a term derived from fencing; un coup fourrÉ is a blow struck at an adversary at the same moment that he strikes.] Le coup vaut la balle = It is worth trying. Il faut toujours qu’elle donne son coup de patte = She always makes sarcastic (or, unpleasant) remarks. C’est un coup montÉ = It is a pre-arranged affair. On lui a montÉ le coup = They induced him to do it; They deceived him. Il a bu un coup de trop = He has had a drop too much. C’est venu aprÈs coup = It came too late, after the event. Faire les cent coups = To amuse oneself noisily; To play all sorts of tricks. Être aux cent coups = To be half mad (distracted) with anxiety; To be in the greatest difficulties. C’est un coup qui porte = That is a home-thrust. Avoir un coup de marteau = To be a little touched. J’ai Écrit trois lettres coup sur coup = I wrote three letters one after the other. Un coup de sang = A rush of blood to the head. Un coup de Jarnac = A treacherous blow; A blow below the belt. [In a duel before the whole Court in 1547, Gui Chabot, Seigneur de Jarnac, wounded his adversary, La ChÂtaigneraie, with an unfair stroke. La ChÂtaigneraie refused to survive such an affront, tore off the bandages placed over his wound, and bled to death.] Un coup de fouet = (lit.) A crack of a whip; (fig.) A sudden contraction of the muscles of the leg (or back). Un coup d’État = A sudden, unexpected act of policy; A violent change in the Government (e.g. 18 brumaire 1799, or 2 dÉcembre 1851). Un coup de fion (fam.) = A finishing touch. Donner le coup de grÂce = To give the finishing stroke. Il gagna mille francs tout d’un coup = He won £40 at one shot, all at once, at one “go.” Il s’en alla tout À coup = He went away suddenly, abruptly. [Tout d’un coup and tout À coup are frequently used indiscriminately, even by French people.] Un coup de tÊte = A moment of passion; a rash action. Donner un coup de main = To give a helping hand. J’ai manquÉ mon coup = I missed my shot; I failed. Ils l’ont moulu de coups = They beat him black and blue. [A well-known quotation from Corneille runs: “Mes pareils À deux fois ne se font pas connaÎtre
Et pour leurs coups d’essai veulent des coups de maÎtre.”—Le Cid, ii. 2.] *Il y a loin de la coupe aux lÈvres = There is many a slip ’twixt the cup and the lip. [The Greek p???? eta?? p??e? ??????? ?a? ?e??e?? ????? is said to have had its origin in the following circumstances:—Anceaus, an ancient King of Samos, treated with extreme cruelty his slaves who were planting a vineyard for him; until at length one more ill-used than the rest prophesied that for his cruelty he should never drink of its wine. When the first vintage was over the master bade this slave fill him a goblet, and, taking it in his hands, he taunted him with the failure of his prophecy. The slave answered with these words; and as he was speaking news was brought of a huge wild boar that was wasting the vineyard. Setting down the untasted cup and snatching up a spear the master went out to meet the wild boar and was slain in the encounter. Compare the Latin: Inter calicem et os multa cadunt; and the Spanish: De la mano a la boca se pierde la sopa. Other variants in French are: Entre la bouche et le verre
Le vin souvent tombe À terre.
Vin versÉ n’est pas avalÉ.
En amour, en cour, et À la chasse.
Chacun ne prend ce qu’il pourchasse.]
Mettre en coupe rÉglÉe = (lit.) To cut down periodically (of forests); (fig.) To lay regularly under contribution. Couper Il s’est coupÉ dans ses rÉponses = He contradicted himself in his answers. Il lui a coupÉ la parole = He interrupted him. Son pÈre lui a coupÉ les vivres = His father stopped his allowance. Ce verre de biÈre m’a coupÉ les jambes = My legs feel shaky after that glass of beer. Couper un cheveu en quatre = To split hairs. Coupons le cÂble = Let us take the decisive step. [SieyÈs, June 10, 1789.] Cela lui a coupÉ le sifflet (pop.) = That stopped his mouth; That shut him up. Je vais y couper (pop.) = I am going to “cut” that; I am not going to do it. Prenez votre courage À deux mains = Summon up all your courage. Courage! tout finira bien = Cheer up! all will yet be well. Je vous Écrirai fin courant (commercial) = I will write to you at the end of the present month. Je ne suis pas au courant de l’affaire = I have not the latest information on the point; I am not up (well posted) in the matter. Par le temps qui court = Nowadays; As times go. Être fou À courir les champs = To be as mad as a March hare. Nous courons mÊme fortune = We are rowing in the same boat. “Rien ne sert de courir, il faut partir À point” = It is no good hurrying if you have not started in time. [La Fontaine, Le liÈvre et la tortue, vi. 10.] RÉpondez par retour du courrier = Answer by return of post. Faire son courrier (commercial) = To write one’s letters. Il faut lui serrer la courroie = We must curtail his allowance; We must keep him on short commons. Faire du cuir d’autrui large courroie = To be generous with other people’s money. Les piÈces des États du Pape n’ont plus cours = The coins of the Papal States are no longer legal tender. Un capitaine au long cours = A captain of a trading vessel going to foreign ports. Je suis restÉ court = I did not know what to say. Je l’ai pris À court = I took him unawares. Il se trouve À court (d’argent) = He is short of money. Dites cela tout court = Say that and no more. Il l’a appelÉ Jean tout court = He called him simply (or, just) John (without Mr. or surname). Ils sont À couteaux tirÉs = They are at daggers drawn. [Formerly: Ils en sont aux couteaux tirÉs.] Aller en Flandre sans couteau = To embark in an enterprise without the necessary resources. [Also: Aller aux mÛres sans crochet.] C’est comme le couteau de Jeannot = That is like the Irishman’s gun (said of anything that has been mended so often as to have nothing of the original left). Rien ne lui coÛte = He sticks at nothing; He spares no trouble. CoÛte que coÛte = Cost what it may. CoÛter les yeux de la tÊte = To cost a small fortune, a fearful lot of money. *Une fois n’est pas coutume = It is only this once; One swallow does not make a summer; Once does not count. Il est coutumier du fait = It is not the first time he has done it. Ils Étaient battus À plate couture = They were beaten hollow. Couvercle digne du chaudron = The lid matches the caldron; They are a precious pair; Arcades ambo. Mettez le couvert = Lay the cloth (for dinner). Mettez un couvert de plus = Put another knife and fork (for another guest); Lay for one more. C’est son pÈre tout crachÉ (fam.) = He is the very spit (or, less fam., image) of his father. Il a crachÉ en l’air et Ça lui est retombÉ sur le nez (pop.) = He wished to do harm to another but it recoiled on himself. Il ne crache pas dessus = He does not despise it; He likes it very much. Pendre la crÉmaillÈre = To give a house warming. [CrÉmaillÈre = tige de fer suspendue au dessus du foyer d’une cheminÉe garnie de crans, qui permettent de la fixer plus ou moins haut, et terminÉe par un bout recourbÉ auquel on accroche une marmite. Compare Longfellow’s poem “The Hanging of the Crane.”] Le roi Jean a crevÉ les yeux À Arthur = King John caused Arthur’s eyes to be put out. Je ne voyais pas mon livre, cependant il me crevait les yeux = I did not see my book, yet it was staring me in the face (right under my nose). Il n’y a qu’un cri sur son compte = There is only one opinion about him. Elle poussa les hauts cris = She screamed at the top of her voice; She complained loudly. C’est le dernier cri = It is the last thing out. CriblÉ de mitraille = Riddled with grape-shot. CriblÉ de dettes = Over head and ears in debt. Crier famine sur un tas de blÉ = To cry out for what one has in plenty. Plumer la poule sans la faire crier = To fleece a person adroitly, without his perceiving it. Un rÉpublicain À tous crins = Every inch a republican. [Properly of a horse with flowing mane and tail, hence thorough, strong.] Il a trente ans, et cependant il vit aux crochets de sa mÈre = He is thirty years old, and yet his mother has to keep him. Il s’en croit beaucoup = He thinks a great deal of himself. C’est À n’y pas croire = It is not to be believed; It is so extraordinary (incredible, preposterous) that we can hardly believe it. A l’en croire il a eu tous les prix = If he is to be believed he won all the prizes. “Et chacun croit fort aisÉment
Ce qu’il craint et ce qu’il dÉsire.”
= The wish is father to the thought. [La Fontaine, Fables, i. 6. Le loup et le renard. Compare 2 Henry IV., iv. 5. “Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt.”—CÆsar, iii. 18.] Aller au devant de quelqu’un avec la croix et la banniÈre = To receive any one with great fuss and ceremony (often used ironically). Votre enfant est gentil À croquer = Your child is a charming little fellow. Il croquait le marmot = He was dancing attendance; He was cooling his heels. [LittrÉ gives as the explanation of this obscure expression that artists while waiting for their patrons used to draw pictures of little monkeys (marmot) in the vestibule. Others assert that in the antechambers of the rich were to be found dishes of cakes in the form of little monkeys, which visitors used to eat (croquer) whilst waiting. But both explanations need confirmation.] S’agenouiller À cru = To kneel on the bare ground, on the cold stone (without a hassock or carpet). [Literally, to kneel on the bare knee, but the quality has passed from the person to the object.] C’est de son cru = That is of his own creation. C’est une vraie cruche (fam.) = She is a silly goose. Pester entre cuir et chair (fam.) = To fume inwardly. Faire des cuirs = To drop one’s h’s. [Really these are faults made by uneducated French people in pronunciation, consisting in sounding s for t, or vice versa, when running their words together or in pronouncing these letters when they do not occur, as: ils Étaient zici, for ils Étaient ici.] Les observations glissent sur lui comme sur une cuirasse = Blame slips off him as water off a duck’s back. Vous viendrez cuire À mon four = Some day you will need my assistance. Il vous en cuira = You will smart for it. Avoir son pain cuit = To have one’s bread and cheese, a competency. *Au bout du fossÉ la culbute = At the end of the run comes the fall. [This expression refers to those who, from carelessness or wrong-headedness, are resigned to the consequences of their bad conduct.] Cuver son vin = To sleep oneself sober.
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