avoir une langue de vipère
Meaning: Speaking maliciously, spreading rumors, or being verbally cruel.
Language: French
Literally: to have a viper's tongue
Category: Animals
Origin: On record from 1643, in a poem by Paul Scarron, and probably older than that in speech. The viper supplies two things at once: real venom, which maps cleanly onto words designed to wound, and a long-standing cultural suspicion of the snake as devious and dangerous, reinforced in a Christian context by the serpent of Genesis standing in for the Devil himself. A viper met in a field was also a genuine, well-founded fear in the period the phrase took hold, which will have done nothing to soften the animal's reputation.
More idioms — Animals
- faire ses griffes — Practicing or preparing oneself for a challenging task or confrontation.
- jemandem einen Bären aufbinden — To tell someone a deliberate lie or deceptive story for amusement or manipulation.
- mit jemandem Katz und Maus spielen — To tease or toy with someone's emotions, alternating between kind and cruel treatment for…
- tener un rabo de paja — To feel guilty or anxious about something, fearing exposure of a personal fault or secret.
- essere un osso duro — Be a difficult, stubborn person who is challenging to deal with or influence.
- медведь на ухо наступил (medved' na ukho nastupil) — To lack musical ability or have poor sense of pitch and rhythm.
More French idioms
- être sur la brèche — Being actively engaged in battle or difficult work.
- manger du bout des lèvres — Eating without appetite or showing disinterest in the meal.
- avoir une peur bleue — Being terrified or extremely frightened of something.
- être du voyage — Being involved in an illicit or questionable scheme.
- faire le gendarme — Acting authoritarian or enforcing rules with excessive zeal.
- avoir des étoiles dans les yeux — Being dreamy, hopeful, or enchanted by romantic ideals.
From our untranslatable words
- Épanouissement — The full flourishing of a person — blooming into your most complete, radiant self. More t…
- Ressourcement — The act of returning to one's roots or origins to find renewal — going back to a place, t…
- Dépaysement — The disorienting yet often pleasant feeling of being far from home, immersed in the unfam…