Are these funny French expressions used in Quebec too?

Most are shared: tomber dans les pommes, poser un lapin, avoir le cafard and les doigts dans le nez work on both sides of the Atlantic. Avoir le seum and un froid de canard are France in practice (Quebec says "il fait frette"). Attache ta tuque, tire-toi une bûche and avoir les yeux dans la graisse de bine are Quebec-only and get you blank looks in Lyon. Every card note says where the phrase belongs.

Which of these are too rude for work?

One is genuinely crude: il pleut comme vache qui pisse — use il pleut à verse in a meeting. En avoir ras le bol is mildly impolite but fine among colleagues (ras le cul is not). Occupe-toi de tes oignons, une tête à claques and bête comme ses pieds are insults, so keep them for friends. Everything else, including faire la grasse matinée and pédaler dans la choucroute, is safe in a relaxed office.

Why does French say "tomber dans les pommes" for fainting?

The likeliest explanation is that pommes is a distortion of pâmes, from the old verb se pâmer, to swoon: tomber en pâmoison drifted into tomber dans les pommes, and the apples are an accident of pronunciation. Nothing is certain, but the phrase itself is completely fixed — you cannot say tomber dans une pomme or swap in another fruit.

Can I change the words inside these idioms?

Almost never. Keep anguille sous roche with no article, keep trois pattes à un canard with exactly three legs, keep un poil dans la main singular. The flexibility is in person and tense: la moutarde lui monte au nez, elle m'a posé un lapin, on s'est fait rouler dans la farine. Pédaler dans la choucroute has real variants (semoule, yaourt); the others do not.

Funny French Words and Phrases: 30 Idioms People Really Say

🇫🇷 French · 30 cards · B1 · by Théo Marchand

Translate these word for word and French sounds unhinged: you faint into the apples, you get stood up with a rabbit, you sing like a saucepan. All thirty are in daily use, not museum pieces.

Two warnings. The literal picture never gives you the meaning, so learn each phrase as one block — the words inside are fixed. And several of them are geography: un froid de canard belongs in France, attache ta tuque in Montréal, and swapping them is exactly what gives a learner away. Each note tells you where the phrase lives and how rude it is.

Say them out loud. Half the joke is in the delivery.

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How to use this deck

Flip through the cards, then switch to Quiz. Tap the play button on any row to hear it. The full table below is there to read, print or copy into your own flashcard app.

The Reji iPhone app is being rebuilt and returns to the App Store soon.

All 30 cards

#	French	English	Example
1	faire la grasse matinée Literally "to do the fat morning". Neutral register, used everywhere.	to sleep in, to have a lie-in	Dimanche, je fais la grasse matinée jusqu'à midi. On Sunday I sleep in until noon.
2	tomber dans les pommes Literally "to fall into the apples". Informal but not rude; understood everywhere.	to faint, to pass out	Il a vu l'aiguille et il est tombé dans les pommes. He saw the needle and passed out.
3	les doigts dans le nez Literally "fingers in the nose". Always follows a verb: réussir / gagner / faire quelque chose les doigts dans le nez.	easily, without breaking a sweat	L'examen ? Je l'ai eu les doigts dans le nez. The exam? I passed it without breaking a sweat.
4	avoir un chat dans la gorge French puts a cat where English puts a frog. Neutral.	to have a frog in one's throat	Excuse-moi, j'ai un chat dans la gorge ce matin. Sorry, I've got a frog in my throat this morning.
5	occupe-toi de tes oignons Literally "look after your own onions". Informal and sharp; related: "c'est pas mes oignons" = not my problem.	mind your own business	Ça ne te regarde pas, occupe-toi de tes oignons ! It's none of your concern, mind your own business!
6	en avoir ras le bol Literally "to have the bowl full to the brim". Informal; stronger variants: ras la casquette, ras le cul (vulgar).	to be fed up, to have had enough	J'en ai ras le bol de ces réunions inutiles. I'm fed up with these pointless meetings.
7	un froid de canard Literally "a duck cold". Very common in France; in Quebec you'll hear "il fait frette" instead.	freezing cold, bitter cold	Sors ta grosse doudoune, il fait un froid de canard. Get your big puffer jacket out, it's freezing cold.
8	il pleut comme vache qui pisse Literally "it's raining like a pissing cow". Crude but extremely common; say "il pleut à verse" with your boss. No article: comme vache qui pisse.	it's pouring rain	On annule le pique-nique, il pleut comme vache qui pisse. We're cancelling the picnic, it's absolutely pouring.
9	avoir le cafard Literally "to have the cockroach". Everyday and mild — passing gloom, not depression.	to feel down, to have the blues	Depuis qu'elle est partie, il a le cafard. Since she left, he's been feeling down.
10	poser un lapin Literally "to put down a rabbit". Used for dates and for any missed appointment: poser un lapin à quelqu'un.	to stand someone up	Elle m'a posé un lapin deux fois de suite. She stood me up twice in a row.
11	raconter des salades Literally "to tell salads". Playful; suggests fibbing rather than serious deceit.	to tell tall tales, to spin lies	Arrête de raconter des salades, on t'a vu hier. Stop telling tall tales, we saw you yesterday.
12	avoir les yeux plus gros que le ventre Mostly about piling too much food on your plate, but also used for over-ambitious plans.	to have eyes bigger than one's stomach	Tu as encore les yeux plus gros que le ventre ! Your eyes are bigger than your stomach again!
13	avoir un poil dans la main Literally "to have a hair in the hand" — so lazy that hair has time to grow in the palm. Teasing rather than harsh. Keep poil singular.	to be bone-idle, very lazy	Mon coloc a un poil dans la main, franchement. My roommate is bone-idle, honestly.
14	être à l'ouest Literally "to be in the west". Tiredness, jet lag or daydreaming — it does not mean drunk.	to be out of it, spaced out	Ne lui demande rien, il est complètement à l'ouest. Don't ask him anything, he's completely out of it.
15	avoir le seum From Maghrebi Arabic sèmm, "poison". Very informal, mainly under-35s in France; rarely heard in Quebec. Often "avoir trop le seum".	to be gutted, to be salty	J'ai raté mon train, j'ai trop le seum. I missed my train, I'm so gutted.
16	ça me fait une belle jambe Literally "that gives me a nice leg". Pure sarcasm; works with any pronoun: ça lui fait une belle jambe.	a lot of good that does me	Il s'est excusé, bon, ça me fait une belle jambe. He apologised — well, a lot of good that does me.
17	se faire rouler dans la farine Literally "to be rolled in flour". Informal, no vulgarity.	to get conned, to be taken for a ride	Avec ce contrat, on s'est fait rouler dans la farine. With that contract, we got completely conned.
18	être bête comme ses pieds Literally "as stupid as one's feet". An insult, though often said affectionately about someone you like.	to be as thick as two planks	Il est adorable, mais bête comme ses pieds. He's lovely, but as thick as two planks.
19	une tête à claques Feminine noun, used about men and women alike. Literally "a head for slaps". Mild insult; Quebec also says "une face à claques".	an annoying, punchable face	Ce présentateur a vraiment une tête à claques. That presenter has a really punchable face.
20	casser du sucre sur le dos de quelqu'un Literally "to break sugar on someone's back". Neutral to informal.	to badmouth someone behind their back	Ils cassent du sucre sur mon dos dès que je sors. They badmouth me the moment I leave the room.
21	chanter comme une casserole Literally "to sing like a saucepan". Teasing, never cruel; often used about yourself.	to sing terribly, to sing off-key	Je chante comme une casserole, mais j'assume. I sing terribly, but I own it.
22	la moutarde me monte au nez Literally "the mustard is rising to my nose". Change the pronoun freely: la moutarde lui monte au nez.	I'm starting to lose my temper	Encore un retard et la moutarde va me monter au nez. One more delay and I'm going to lose my temper.
23	ça ne casse pas trois pattes à un canard Literally "it doesn't break three legs off a duck" — ducks have two, which is the joke. In speech the ne usually drops: ça casse pas trois pattes à un canard.	it's nothing to write home about	Le film était correct, mais ça ne casse pas trois pattes à un canard. The film was okay, but nothing to write home about.
24	il y a anguille sous roche Literally "there's an eel under the rock". Fixed phrase: no article before anguille.	something fishy is going on	Il sourit beaucoup trop : il y a anguille sous roche. He's smiling far too much — something's fishy.
25	peigner la girafe Literally "to comb the giraffe". Office humour, mainly France.	to do pointless busywork	On a peigné la girafe tout l'après-midi. We did pointless busywork all afternoon.
26	pédaler dans la choucroute Literally "to pedal in the sauerkraut". France; accepted variants: pédaler dans la semoule / dans le yaourt.	to get nowhere, to flounder	Depuis une heure, je pédale dans la choucroute. I've been getting nowhere for an hour.
27	c'est la fin des haricots Literally "it's the end of the beans". Almost always ironic and exaggerated.	that's it, we're done for	Si la machine à café lâche, c'est la fin des haricots. If the coffee machine dies, we're done for.
28	attache ta tuque Quebec only. Literally "tie on your winter hat"; full version: attache ta tuque avec de la broche. Very informal.	brace yourself, hold on tight	Attache ta tuque, la facture va faire mal. Brace yourself, the bill is going to hurt.
29	avoir les yeux dans la graisse de bine Quebec only. Literally "eyes in the bean fat". Suggests half-asleep, lovestruck or slightly tipsy, depending on context.	to look dazed, glassy-eyed or dreamy	Il a les yeux dans la graisse de bine depuis ce matin. He's been glassy-eyed since this morning.
30	tire-toi une bûche Quebec only. Literally "pull yourself a log". Warm and very informal, between friends or family.	pull up a chair, take a seat	Entre, tire-toi une bûche, le café est prêt. Come in, pull up a chair, the coffee's ready.

Théo Marchand

Native French · Speaks English, Spanish

Born in Lyon, living in Montréal. I write the phrases the way people actually say them on both sides of the Atlantic and mark the difference when it matters.

Published 17 Sept 2026

Questions about this deck

Are these funny French expressions used in Quebec too?: Most are shared: tomber dans les pommes, poser un lapin, avoir le cafard and les doigts dans le nez work on both sides of the Atlantic. Avoir le seum and un froid de canard are France in practice (Quebec says "il fait frette"). Attache ta tuque, tire-toi une bûche and avoir les yeux dans la graisse de bine are Quebec-only and get you blank looks in Lyon. Every card note says where the phrase belongs.
Which of these are too rude for work?: One is genuinely crude: il pleut comme vache qui pisse — use il pleut à verse in a meeting. En avoir ras le bol is mildly impolite but fine among colleagues (ras le cul is not). Occupe-toi de tes oignons, une tête à claques and bête comme ses pieds are insults, so keep them for friends. Everything else, including faire la grasse matinée and pédaler dans la choucroute, is safe in a relaxed office.
Why does French say "tomber dans les pommes" for fainting?: The likeliest explanation is that pommes is a distortion of pâmes, from the old verb se pâmer, to swoon: tomber en pâmoison drifted into tomber dans les pommes, and the apples are an accident of pronunciation. Nothing is certain, but the phrase itself is completely fixed — you cannot say tomber dans une pomme or swap in another fruit.
Can I change the words inside these idioms?: Almost never. Keep anguille sous roche with no article, keep trois pattes à un canard with exactly three legs, keep un poil dans la main singular. The flexibility is in person and tense: la moutarde lui monte au nez, elle m'a posé un lapin, on s'est fait rouler dans la farine. Pédaler dans la choucroute has real variants (semoule, yaourt); the others do not.

Funny French Words and Phrases: 30 Idioms People Really Say

All 30 cards

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