Faux Amis (adjectives)
-
ancien - old/ancient if after the noun, former/ex if before
- extra - first-rate/terrific
- formidable - great (almost the opposite of the English!)
- génial - brilliant
-
propre - clean if after the noun, own if before
- rentable - profitable
- sensible - sensitive
- sympathique - nice, likeable (not sympathetic)
List of French Idioms
appuyer sur le champignon - to go very fast, accelerate (lit: to push on the mushroom)
avoir d'autres chats à fouetter - to have better things to do; other fish to fry (lit: to have other cats to whip)
avoir un chat dans la gorge - to have a frog in your throat (lit: to have a cat in your throat)
avoir les dents longs - to be ambitious (lit: to have long teeth)
être dans ses petits souliers - to not feel comfortable (lit: to be in little shoes)
être haut comme trois pommes - to be small (lit: to be high like three apples)
faire d'une pierre deux coups - to kill two birds with one stone (lit: to do one stone, two blows)
ne pas être dans son assiette - to not feel yourself (lit: to not be in your plate)
ne pas être de la dernière pluie - to not be born yesterday (lit: to not be born with the last rain)
passer une nuit blanche - to have a sleepless night (lit: to spend a white night)
pendre la crémaillère - to have a house-warming party (lit: to hang a chimney hook)
se creuser la tête - to think really hard (lit: to dig in one's head)
se croire sorti de la cuisse de Jupiter - to think oneself is better than everyone else (lit: to come out of Jupiter's thigh)
se mettre le doigt dans l'œil - to make a mistake (lit: to put one's finger in one's eye)
sucrer les fraises - to be senile, crazy (lit: to sugar the strawberries)
tomber dans les pommes - to faint, pass out (lit: to fall in the apples)
être maquillé(e) comme une voiture volée - wear too much make up (lit: to be made up like a stolen car)
