IdiomFood & Drink
French
FrenchIl y a loin de la coupe aux lèvres
Meaning: Much can still go wrong between intention and result.
Literally: It is far from the cup to the lips
Example: “Le contrat n'est pas encore signé ; il y a loin de la coupe aux lèvres.” — The contract isn't signed yet; there's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip.
English equivalent: There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip
Origin: From a Greek story in which Ancaeus, told by a seer he would never drink his own vintage, raised the cup to mock the prophecy and was called away to fight a boar that killed him. English says there's many a slip 'twixt cup and lip.
More French idioms
- Avoir les coudées franches To have complete freedom of action.
- Battre sa coulpe To publicly acknowledge one's own wrongdoing.
- Le petit doigt sur la couture du pantalon Standing rigidly to attention; obeying without question.
- Ôter une épine du pied à quelqu'un To relieve someone of a persistent difficulty.
- Un écorché vif Someone painfully hypersensitive to everything around them.
- Se croire sorti de la cuisse de Jupiter To have an absurdly high opinion of one's own importance.
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