| Dictionary of French Expressions - C |
| Idiomatic French expressions, phrasal verbs, and French formulas |
More than 2,000 French expressions, including idiomatic expressions, proverbs, phrasal verbs, and French formulas. Expressions are arranged alphabetically by the first word in the French expression, not including articles.
| Abbreviations | |||
| (fam) | familiar | (inf) | informal |
| qqun | quelqu'un | qqch | quelque chose |
| s.o. | someone | s.t. | something |
Dictionary of French Expressions
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
| Ça a porté un coup sévère (à leur moral) | That dealt a sharp blow (to their morale). | |
| Ça bouge ? | How's it going? | |
| Ça coûte les yeux de la tête. | That costs an arm and a leg. | |
| Ça donne ! | (fam) | It's cool! Brilliant! |
| Ça entre ? |
informal |
You get it? Are you getting the hang of it? |
| Ça fait mon affaire | That suits me just fine, that's just what I need | |
| Ça fait monter les prix. | It makes prices go up. | |
| Ça fait un (bon) bout (de chemin). | (inf) | That's a long way. |
| Ça lui a fait un coup. | (inf) | It was a bit of a shock for him. |
| Ça lui fera du bien. | That will do him / her some good. | |
| Ça me dit quelque chose. | That rings a bell. | |
| Ça me donne des frissons. | That sends shivers up my spine. | |
| Ça me fait froid dans le dos | That gives me the shivers | |
| Ça me prend la tête ! | That drives me crazy! | |
| Ça m'est égal. | I don't care. | |
| Ça ne casse pas des briques (inf) | That's no great shakes. | |
| Ça ne casse pas trois pattes à un canard. | It / He is nothing special, nothing to get excited about | |
| Ça ne casse rien. | It's nothing special, nothing to get excited about | |
| Ça n'entre pas dans mes fonctions. | That's not my job. | |
| Ça ne fait rien | That's OK, it doesn't matter. | |
| Ça ne me dit pas grand-chose. | I don't think much of that. | |
| Ça ne me dit rien. | That does nothing for me; I don't feel like doing that. | |
| Ça ne se fait pas | That isn't done, one doesn't do that | |
| Ça ne se fera pas | That won't happen | |
| Ça ne vaut pas la peine. | It's not worth it. | |
| Ça remonte à la nuit des temps | That goes back to the dawn of time, That's as old as the hills | |
| Ça roule ? | (fam) | How's life? How's it going? |
| Ca s'arrangera. | It'll all work out. | |
| Ça se perd dans la nuit des temps | It's lost in the mists of time | |
| Ça se tire. | The end is in sight. | |
| Ça se voit. | That's obvious. | |
| Ça te dit ? | Do you feel like doing that?; Does that sound good to you? | |
| Ça va ? | How are you? | |
| Ça va bien | I'm doing well | |
| Ça va être génial ! | That'll be cool! | |
| Ça va être sympa ! | That'll be nice! | |
| Ça va mal | Not well | |
| Ça va sans dire | That goes without saying | |
| Ça va. | Fine | |
| Ça vaut le coup d'oeil. | It's worth seeing. | |
| Ça vaut le coup. | It's worth it. | |
| Ça vient de ce que... | It stems from the fact that... | |
| ça y est | that's it, it's done | |
| La caque sent toujours le hareng. | What's bred in the bone will come out in the flesh. | |
| carte blanche | free hand, ability to do whatever one wants | |
| casse la figure | to fall on one's face | |
| casser du sucre sur le dos de qqun | to talk about s.o. behind his back. | |
| casser en (morceaux, trois) | to break in(to) (pieces, two) | |
| casser la baraque (inf) | to bring the house down | |
| casser la baraque à qqun (inf) | to screw everything up for s.o. | |
| casser la croûte (inf) | to have a bite to eat | |
| casser la figure à qqun (inf) | to smash s.o.'s face in | |
| casser la graine (inf) | to have a bite to eat | |
| casser la gueule à qqun (fam) | to smash s.o.'s face in | |
| casser la tête à qqun | to deafen s.o., to bore s.o. stiff | |
| casser le morceau (fam) | to spill the beans, come clean, give the game away | |
| casser les oreilles à qqun (inf) | to deafen s.o. | |
| casser les pieds à qqun (inf) | to bore s.o. stiff, get on s.o.'s nerves | |
| casser les reins à qqun | to ruin, break s.o. | |
| casser sa pipe (inf) | to kick the bucket, snuff it | |
| Casse-toi ! (fam) | Get the hell out of here! | |
| Ceci dit | That said, Having said this | |
| Cela dépasse les bornes ! | That's the limit! | |
| Cela dépend de | That depends on | |
| Cela donne chaud/soif | It makes you (feel) hot/thirsty. | |
| Cela donne des maux de tête | It gives you a headache. | |
| Cela fait passer le temps | It passes the time | |
| Cela me ferait grand plaisir. | I would be delighted. | |
| Cela n'a rien à voir avec... | That has nothing to do with... | |
| Cela ne laisse pas d'être vrai. | It's true nonetheless. | |
| Cela ne laisse pas de me surprendre. | That couldn't fail to surprise me. | |
| Cela ne rime à rien. | There's no point to that. | |
| Cela ne se demande pas ! | That's a stupid question! | |
| Cela ne se dit pas. | That (just) isn't said. | |
| Cela ne te regarde pas. | It's none of your business. | |
| Cela prend trop de temps | It takes (up) too much time, It's too time-consuming | |
| Cela saute aux yeux. | It's as plain as day. | |
| Cela se voit. | It / That happens; I can tell. | |
| Cela te dirait de...? | How does... sound? | |
| Cela te dit de (sortir, manger)? | How does (going out, eating) grab you? What do you think of... | |
| Cela va de soi | That goes without saying | |
| Cela va sans dire. | It goes without saying. | |
| Cela va te donner des forces | It will give you strength. | |
| Cela vous dérange si je fume ? | Do you mind if I smoke? | |
| Ce ne sont pas toujours les meilleurs qui sont récompensés. | The best don't always win/reap the rewards. | |
| Ce n'est ni le temps ni le lieu de | This is neither the time nor the place for/to | |
| Ce n'est pas le bout du monde ! | It won't kill you! It's not the end of the world! | |
| Ce n'est pas à un vieux singe qu'on apprend à faire la grimace. | There's no substitute for experience. | |
| Ce n'est pas grand-chose. | It's no big deal. | |
| Ce n'est pas la vache qui crie le plus fort qui fait le plus de lait. | Talkers are not doers. | |
| Ce sont les tonneaux vides qui font le plus de bruit. | Empty vessels make the most noise. | |
| ces derniers temps | lately, recently | |
| ces temps-ci | these days | |
| ces temps derniers | lately, recently | |
| cesser de | to stop, cease ___-ing | |
| c'est | it is | |
| c'est + date | it's (date) | |
| C'est ___ à l'appareil. | ___ is calling. | |
| C'est à des années-lumières de mes préoccupations | It's the last thing on my mind. | |
| c'est-à-dire | that is, in other words | |
| C'est-à-dire...? | And that means...? | |
| C'est à se rouler (par terre) ! | It's hilarious! It's a riot! | |
| C'est à souhaiter | It's to be hoped | |
| C'est à toi de donner | it's your deal | |
| C'est au pied du mur qu'on voit le maçon. | The tree is known by its fruit. | |
| C'est beaucoup dire. | That's saying a lot. | |
| C'est bien ce que je pensais ! | Just what I thought! | |
| C'est bien fait pour toi ! | It serves you right! | |
| C'est bien le fils de son père. | He's a chip off the old block. | |
| C'est bien un coup à lui. | That's just like him (to do that). | |
| C'est bizarre | It's odd | |
| C'est bon | It's good | |
| c'est ça | that's it, that's right | |
| C'est ce qui se fait de mieux. | It's the best there is. | |
| C'est ce qu'on m'a donné à entendre | That's wahat I was led to believe, given to understand | |
| C'est certain | It's certain | |
| C'est clair | It's clear | |
| C'est convenable | It's proper/fitting | |
| C'est dans la poche. | It's in the bag. | |
| C'est de la bouillie pour les chats. | It's gibberish. | |
| C'est de la part de ___. | ___ is calling. | |
| C'est de la part de qui ? | Who is calling? | |
| C'est difficile | It's hard | |
| C'est dingue, ça ! | That's wild! | |
| C'est difficile | It's difficult | |
| C'est dommage | It's too bad | |
| C'est dommage, mais... | It's too bad, but... | |
| C'est donnant donnant. | Nothing is free; He never does anything for free. | |
| C'est douteux | It's doubtful | |
| C'est du moins ce qu'il raconte. | At least that's what he claims. | |
| C'est du moins mon opinion. | At least, that's my opinion. | |
| C'est du pipi de chat. | (informal) | It's dishwater (tastes terrible); It's pathetic, a waste of time. |
| C'est en forgeant qu'on devient forgeron. | Practice makes perfect. | |
| C'est entré comme dans du beurre. | It's like a knife through butter. | |
| C'est essentiel | It's essential | |
| C'est étonnant | It's amazing | |
| C'est étrange | It's strange | |
| C'est évident | It's clear/obvious | |
| C'est facile | It's easy | |
| C'est facile comme tout | It's as easy as pie | |
| C'est faux | It's false | |
| C'est gentil | It's/That's kind | |
| C'est gentil de votre part. | That's kind of you. | |
| C'est gentil, mais... | That's kind, but... | |
| C'est heureux | It's fortunate | |
| C'est honteux | It's shameful | |
| C'est important | It's important | |
| C'est impossible | It's impossible | |
| C'est improbable | It's improbable | |
| C'est indispensable | It's essential | |
| C'est injuste | It's unfair | |
| C'est inutile | It's useless | |
| C'est juste | It's fair/right | |
| C'est l'artiste qui monte. | He's an up-and-coming artist. | |
| C'est l'homme qui monte. | He's on the way up (to fame). | |
| C'est la poule qui chante qui a fait l'oeuf. | The guilty dog barks the loudest. | |
| C'est la vie ! | That's life! | |
| C'est le comble ! | That's the last straw! | |
| C'est le coup de barre ici. | (inf) | You pay through the nose here. |
| C'est le meilleur des hommes. | He's the best of men. | |
| C'est le moment ou jamais | It's now or never | |
| C'est ma bête noire. | It's my pet peeve. | |
| C'est mal vu. | People don't like that. | |
| C'est mathématique. | It's bound to happen. | |
| C'est moi qui paie. | It's on me / My treat. | |
| C'est moi qui te le dis. | Take my word for it. | |
| C'est naturel | It's natural | |
| C'est nécessaire | It's necessary | |
| C'est normal | It's normal | |
| C'est obligatoire | It's obligatory | |
| C'est on ne peut mieux. | It's just perfect. | |
| C'est peu dire. | That's an understatement. | |
| C'est peu probable | It's not likely | |
| C'est plus facile à dire qu'à faire. | Easier said than done. | |
| C'est possible | It's possible | |
| C'est probable | It's probable | |
| C'est qqch qui ne se voit pas tous les jours. | There's s.t. you don't see every day. | |
| C'est rare | It's rare | |
| C'est regrettable | It's regrettable | |
| C'est son père en plus jeune | He's a younger version of his father | |
| C'est sûr | It's sure/surely/certain | |
| C'est surprenant | It's surprising | |
| C'est temps | It's time | |
| C'est toi le chat ! | You're it! | |
| C'est toi qui le dis. | That's what you say. | |
| C'est tombé du ciel. | It was a godsend. | |
| C'est toujours la même routine : métro - boulot - dodo. | It's always the same routine: commute - work - sleep. | |
| C'est toujours le même refrain. | It's always the same old song. | |
| C'est tout vu. | It's a foregone conclusion. | |
| C'est triste | It's sad | |
| C'est un bien pour un mal. | It's a blessing in disguise. | |
| C'est un coup à se dégoûter ! | (inf) | It's enough to make you sick! |
| C'est un coup à se tuer ! | (inf) | That's a good way to get killed! |
| C'est un signe des temps | It's a sign of the times | |
| C'est un vrai casse-pieds ! | He's a real pain in the neck! | |
| C'est une bonne poire | He's a real sucker. | |
| C'est une cloche ! | He's an idiot! | |
| C'est une histoire montée de toutes pièces. | It's a complete fabrication. | |
| C'est une question de point de vue. | It all depends on your point of view. | |
| C'est urgent | It's urgent | |
| C'est utile | It's useful | |
| C'est vrai | It's true | |
| C'était le bon temps | Those were the days | |
| Chacun son goût. | To each his own. | |
| Chacun voit midi à sa porte. | To each his own. | |
| un champ clos | combat area | |
| un champ d'action | sphere of activity | |
| un champ d'activité | sphere of activity | |
| un champ d'aviation | airfield | |
| un champ d'avoine | field of oats | |
| un champ de bataille | battlefield | |
| un champ de blé | field of corn, wheat | |
| un champ de courses | racecourse | |
| un champ de foire | fairground | |
| un champ de manoeuvre | parade ground | |
| un champ de mines | minefield | |
| un champ de neige | snowfield | |
| un champ de tir | shooting range; field of fire | |
| un champ de trèfle | field of clover | |
| un champ de vision | visual field | |
| un champ d'honneur | field of honor | |
| un champ électrique | electric field | |
| Le champ est libre. | The coast is clear. | |
| un champ magnétique | magnetic field | |
| un champ opératoire | operative field | |
| un champ optique | optical field | |
| un champ ouvert | open field | |
| un champ visuel | visual field | |
| les champs | country(side) | |
| les Champs Élysées | Elysian Fields (mythology), street in Paris | |
| changer de (train) | to change (trains) | |
| changer de l'argent (en Euros) | to change money (into Euros) | |
| changer en mieux | to change for the better | |
| Charbonnier est maître chez lui. | A man's home is his castle. | |
| un chat à neuf queues | cat-o'-nine-tails | |
| un chat de gouttière | ordinary/alley cat | |
| Chat échaudé craint l'eau froide. | (proverb) | Once bitten, twice shy. |
| Le chat parti, les souris dansent. | When the cat's away, the mice will play. | |
| Un chat retombe toujours sur ses pattes. | Cats have nine lives. | |
| un chat sauvage | wildcat | |
| chercher à | to attempt to | |
| chercher à comprendre | to try to understand | |
| chercher à faire | to attempt to do | |
| chercher dans (la boîte) | to look in (the box) | |
| chercher des crosses à qqun (inf) | to try to pick a fight with s.o. | |
| chercher des histoires à qqun | to try to make trouble for s.o. | |
| chercher des poux dans la tête de qqun | to try to make trouble for s.o. | |
| chercher la bagarre | to be spoiling for a fight | |
| chercher la petite bête | to split hairs | |
| chercher le danger | to court danger | |
| chercher midi à 14 heures | to complicate the issue | |
| chercher noise à qqun | to pick a fight | |
| chercher partout qqun/qqch | to look everywhere for s.o./thing | |
| chercher qqch à tâtons | to fumble for s.t. | |
| chercher qqun des yeux | to look for s.o. | |
| chercher qqun du regard | to look for s.o. | |
| chercher querelle à qqun | to pick a fight with s.o. | |
| chercher sa voie | to search for one's path in life | |
| chercher ses mots | to look for words | |
| chercher son salut dans la fuite | to seek refuge in flight | |
| chercher une aiguille dans une botte/meule de foin | to look for a needle in a haystack | |
| Chien qui aboie ne mord pas. | A barking dog does not bite. | |
| Les chiens aboient, la caravane passe. | To each his own. | |
| Les chiens ne font pas des chats. | The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. | |
| Un chien regarde bien un évêque. | A cat may look at a king. | |
| Un chien vivant vaut mieux qu'un lion mort. | A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush | |
| choisir de | to choose to | |
| ci-dessous... | below... | |
| ci-dessus... | above... | |
| ci-inclus... | enclosed... | |
| ci-joint... | attached... | |
| claquer des dents | to be chattering one's teeth | |
| claquer des doigts | to click/snap one's fingers | |
| claquer des talons | to click one's heels | |
| claquer du bec (fam) | to be famished | |
| La clé est sur la porte | The key is in the door | |
| Un clou chasse l'autre. | Life goes on. | |
| Combien coûte... ? | How much does ... cost? | |
| combien de temps | how much time | |
| Comme ci, comme ça | So-so | |
| Comme le temps passe ! | How time flies! | |
| Comme on connaît ses saints, on les honore. | To know a friend is to respect him. | |
| comme on dit | so to speak, as they say | |
| Comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles | Like a bull in a china shop | |
| commencer à | to begin to / ___-ing | |
| commencer par | to begin by ___-ing | |
| Commençons par un bout. | Let's get started / make a start. | |
| Comment allez-vous ? | How are you? | |
| Comment ça va ? | How are you? | |
| Comment dirais-je ? | How shall I put it?; What can I say? | |
| Comment se fait-il ...? | How come ...? | |
| Comment se fait-il que (+ subjunctive) | How is it that... / How does it happen that... | |
| Comment vas-tu ? | How are you? | |
| le complément de temps | (grammar) | complement of time, temporal complement |
| composer un numéro | to dial a number | |
| compter pour | to be worth | |
| compter sur | to count on | |
| concentrer sur | to concentrate on | |
| la concordance de temps | (grammar) | sequence of tenses |
| condamner pour (meurtre) | to sentence for (murder) | |
| congés payés | paid vacation | |
| connaître le dessous des cartes | to have inside information | |
| connaître un bout de | (inf) | to know a thing or two about |
| conseiller à qqun | to advise s.o. | |
| conseiller de faire qqch | to advise to do s.t. | |
| Les conseilleurs ne sont pas les payeurs. | Givers of advice don't pay the price. | |
| consentir à | to consent to | |
| continuer à | to continue to / ___-ing | |
| continuer de | to continue ___-ing | |
| convenir à Jean | to please, to be suitable for Jean | |
| convenir de | to agree to | |
| convertir qqch en | to convert s.t. into | |
| copier sur qqun | to copy from s.o. | |
| Les cordonniers sont toujours les plus mal chaussés. | The shoemaker's son always goes barefoot. | |
| un coup à la porte | knock on the door | |
| coup de chance | piece of luck | |
| coup de crayon | pencil stroke | |
| coup de destin | blow dealt by fate | |
| coup de marteau | hammer blow | |
| coup de pinceau | brush stroke | |
| coup de plume | pen stroke | |
| coup de pot (fam) | stroke of luck | |
| coup de salaud (fam) | dirty trick | |
| coup de veine (inf) | stroke of luck | |
| coup d'oeil | glance | |
| coup du sort | blow dealt by fate | |
| coup dur | hard blow | |
| coup en traître | stab in the back | |
| coup en vache | (fam) | dirty trick |
| couper en (deux) | to cut in (two) | |
| Le coup est parti. | The gun went off. | |
| coup monté | frame-up | |
| un coup pour rien | a waste of time | |
| coup sur coup | one after another | |
| coups et blessures | (law) | assalt and battery |
| Les coups pleuvaient. | Blows rained down. | |
| Les coups tombaient dru. | Blows fell thick and fast. | |
| courbé sous le poids des ans | bent under the weight of age | |
| courir à perdre haleine | to run as fast as one can | |
| courir dans (l'herbe) | to run through (the grass) | |
| cours du soir | night classes | |
| le coût de la vie | cost of living | |
| coûter dans (les cent Euros) | to cost about (100 Euros) | |
| craindre de | to fear ___-ing | |
| craindre pour (sa vie) | to fear for (one's life) | |
| la crème de la crème | cream of the crop | |
| creuser pour | to dig for | |
| crier casse-cou à qqun | to warn s.o. | |
| croire en | to believe in | |
| croire qqun sur parole | to take s.o.'s word | |
Dictionary of French Expressions
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
French Dictionaries Expressions Index Verbs with Prepositions
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