| English |
French |
Literal
translation |
| All cats are grey
in the dark. |
La nuit, tous les
chats sont gris. |
At night, all the
cats are grey. |
| The apple doesn't
fall far from the tree. |
Les chiens ne font
pas des chats. |
Dogs don't make
cats. |
| A barking dog does
not bite. |
Chien qui aboie
ne mord pas. |
|
| Beggars can't be
choosers. |
Faute de grives,
on mange des merles. |
Lack of thrushes,
one eats blackbirds. |
| Better safe than
sorry. |
Souris qui n'a qu'un
trou est bientôt prise. |
A mouse that has
ony one hole is soon caught. |
| Big fish eat little
fish. |
Les gros poissons
mangent les petits. |
|
| A bird in the hand
is worth two in the bush |
Un tiens vaut mieux
que deux tu l'auras.
Un chien vivant vaut mieux qu'un lion mort. |
One of yours is
better than two that you will have
A live dog is worth more than a dead lion. |
| Birds of a feather
flock together |
Qui se ressemble
s'assemble |
Those who resemble
assemble |
| A cat may look at
a king. |
Un chien regarde
bien un évêque. |
A dog looks well
at a bishop. |
| Different strokes
for different folks. |
On ne marie pas
les poules avec les renards. |
One does not wed
hens with foxes. |
| Don't count your
chickens before they're hatched. |
Il ne faut pas vendre
la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tué. |
You shouldn't seel
the bearskin before killing the bear. |
| Don't jump to conclusions. |
Il y a plus d'un
âne à la foire qui s'appelle Martin. |
There's more than
one donkey named Martin at the fair. |
| Don't put the cart
before the horse. |
Il ne faut jamais
mettre la charrue avant les boeufs. |
One should never
put the plow before the oxen. |
| Don't try to do
two things at once. |
Il ne faut jamais
courir deux lièvres à la fois. |
One should never
run after two hares at the same time. |
| Every little bit
helps. |
Petit à petit,
l'oiseau fait son nid. |
Little by little,
the bird builds its nest. |
| Give a little to
get a lot. |
Il faut savoir donner
un oeuf pour avoir un boeuf. |
You have to know
how to give an egg to get an ox. |
| Give an inch and
he'll take a mile. |
Qui vole un oeuf
vole un boeuf. |
He who steals an
egg will steal an ox. |
| Give some and keep
the rest. |
Donne au chien l'os
pour qu'il ne convoite pas ta viande. |
Give the dog the
bone so that he doesn't go after your meat. |
| The guilty dog barks
the loudest. |
C'est la poule qui
chante qui a fait l'oeuf. |
It's the chicken
that sings who laid the egg. |
| If you lie down
with dogs you get up with fleas. |
Qui se couche avec
les chiens se lève avec des puces. |
|
| A leopard can't
change his spots. |
Qui naît poule
aime à caqueter.
Qui a bu boira. |
He who was born
a hen likes to cackle.
He who has drunk will drink. |
| Let sleeping dogs
lie. |
Ne réveillez
pas le chat qui dort. |
Don't wake the sleeping
cat. |
| Like breeds like.
Like father like son. |
Bon chien chasse
de race. |
Good dog hunts [thanks
to] its ancestry. |
| Nice guys finish
last. |
Qui se fait brebis
le loup le mange. |
He who makes himself
a ewe the wolf eats. |
| Once bitten, twice
shy. |
Chat échaudé
craint l'eau froide. |
Scalded cat fears
cold water. |
| One always goes
back to one's roots. |
Le loup retourne
toujours au bois. |
The wolf always
goes back to the woods. |
| Talkers are not
doers. |
Ce n'est pas la
vache qui crie le plus fort qui fait le plus de
lait. |
It's not the cow
that moos the loudest who gives the most milk. |
| There's no substitute
for experience. |
Ce n'est pas à
un vieux singe qu'on apprend à faire la
grimace. |
It's not an old
monkey that one teaches to make faces. |
| Tit for tat. |
À bon chat
bon rat. |
To good cat good
rat. |
| To each his own. |
Les chiens aboient,
la caravane passe. |
The dogs bark, the
caravan goes by. |
| What's bred in the
bone will come out in the flesh. |
La caque sent toujours
le hareng. |
The herring barrel
always smells like herring. |
| When the cat's away,
the mice will play. |
Le chat parti, les
souris dansent. |
The cat gone, the
mice dance. |
