FrenchAvoir des étoiles dans les yeux
Meaning: Being dreamy, hopeful, or enchanted by romantic ideals.
Literally: To have stars in the eyes
Example: “En sortant du concert, les enfants avaient des étoiles dans les yeux.” — Coming out of the concert, the kids had stars in their eyes.
English equivalent: To have stars in one's eyes
Origin: The comparison needs no explaining and no source manages to date it precisely: eyes lit up with joy or wonder are being likened to stars against a dark sky, a bright point standing out against the ordinary. Related expressions built the same way are much older — compter les étoiles, to count the stars, meaning to chase something unreachable, is on record from 1531 — but this particular phrasing, describing what happiness or infatuation does to someone's expression, does not appear to have a documented first use of its own.
Equivalents in other languages
English: have stars in one's eyes
More French idioms
- Faire un couac Making an embarrassing mistake or producing a discordant sound.
- Quand les poules auront des dents Never — it describes something that will simply never happen.
- Il y a anguille sous roche Something suspicious is quietly going on beneath the surface.
- Ménager la chèvre et le chou To try to please both sides of a conflict without committing to either.
- Avoir la gueule de bois To be hungover.
- Filer à l'anglaise To leave discreetly without saying goodbye.
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