Au diable vauvert
Meaning: Miles from anywhere; the back of beyond.
Language: French
Literally: At the devil's Vauvert
Category: The Absurd
Origin: The château de Vauvert, outside Paris, stood abandoned and was widely held to be haunted after Philippe Auguste's excommunication. Going there meant going somewhere both remote and ill-omened, and the phrase kept the distance while shedding the demons.
More idioms — The Absurd
- Il n'y a pas le feu au lac — There's no rush.
- Par l'opération du Saint-Esprit — By some unexplained miracle — said sarcastically of something nobody will account for.
- À la Saint-Glinglin — Never — on a day that will never come.
- Une guerre picrocholine — A furious conflict over something trivial.
- Est-ce que je te demande si ta grand-mère fait du vélo ? — Mind your own business — a retort to an intrusive question.
- Décrocher la lune — To achieve the impossible — or, promised, to offer what cannot be delivered.
More French idioms
- Au creux de la vague — At a low point, with the expectation that things will rise again.
- Nager entre deux eaux — To avoid committing to either side.
- Une coupe sombre — A drastic reduction, especially of staff or budget.
- Nettoyer les écuries d'Augias — To clear up a vast accumulated mess, usually of corruption.
- Aux quatre coins de — All over; in every part of a place.
- Frappé au coin du bon sens — Manifestly sensible; bearing the stamp of sound judgment.
From our compliments & insults
- Tu es un as — You're brilliant at what you do — the very best.
- Tu as de la répartie — You're brilliantly quick-witted — always ready with the perfect comeback.
- T'as pas inventé le fil à couper le beurre — You're not exactly a genius — the wire to cut butter is about the most obvious tool imagi…
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