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Être soupe au lait

Meaning: To be quick-tempered and flare up easily.

Language: French

Literally: To be milk soup

Category: Food & Drink

Origin: Milk soup boils over the instant it heats, picturing someone whose temper rises in a flash.

More idioms — Food & Drink

  • Avoir la pêche — To be full of energy and on top form.
  • Faire chou blanc — To draw a complete blank; to fail.
  • Ramener sa fraise — To butt in or show off uninvited.
  • To bite off more than you can chew — To take on more than you can handle.
  • To take with a pinch of salt — To regard a claim with healthy scepticism.
  • To butter someone up — To flatter someone to win their favour.

More French idioms

  • Ne pas être sorti de l'auberge — To be far from done with one's troubles.
  • Avoir une araignée au plafond — To be a little crazy.
  • Ça m'en touche une sans faire bouger l'autre — I couldn't care less; it leaves me utterly indifferent.
  • Prendre son pied — To take intense pleasure; to have a wonderful time.
  • Il pleut comme vache qui pisse — It's pouring down — a crude, vivid way to say the rain is coming down extremely hard.
  • Mettre la puce à l'oreille — To arouse someone's suspicion or make them uneasy about something.

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