IdiomThe Absurd
French
FrenchLe rocher de Sisyphe
Meaning: A labor that must be repeated forever and never completes.
Literally: The rock of Sisyphus
Example: “Ranger la chambre des enfants, c'est le rocher de Sisyphe.” — Tidying the kids' room is a Sisyphean task.
English equivalent: A Sisyphean task
Equivalents in other languages
English: a Sisyphean task
Origin: Sisyphus was condemned to roll a boulder uphill for eternity, watching it roll back each time. Camus made it the central image of the absurd and insisted one must imagine him happy.
More French idioms
- Les petits ruisseaux font les grandes rivières Small contributions accumulate into something substantial.
- Un soleil de plomb A crushing, oppressive heat.
- Une planche de salut A last resort; the only remaining hope.
- Sentir le sapin To be close to death.
- Mettre à pied To suspend someone from their duties.
- Jeter la première pierre To be the first to condemn someone.
Explore another collection: Tongue Twisters
Tricky phrases to practice out loud, from languages around the world.
- Didon dîna, dit-on, du dos d'un dodu dindon dont le dodu dos dodine. A 'd' / 'din' / 'dod' avalanche that seems designed to jam the tongue in third gear.
- Un chasseur sachant chasser doit savoir chasser sans son chien. The classic French 'ch' / 's' tangler.
- Les chaussettes de l'archiduchesse sont-elles sèches, archi-sèches? A merciless duel between 'ch' and 's'.
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