L'été indien
Meaning: A spell of unseasonably warm weather in autumn.
Language: French
Literally: The Indian summer
Category: Nature
Origin: Borrowed from North American English, where it is recorded from the 18th century, though why it is Indian was never settled even there. French adopted it wholesale in the 20th century.
More idioms — Nature
- La partie émergée de l'iceberg — The small visible portion of a much larger problem.
- Faire flèche de tout bois — To use every available means to achieve an end.
- Blanchir sous le harnais — To grow old in a profession.
- Entre le marteau et l'enclume — Caught between two opposing forces with no way out.
- Un pavé dans la mare — A revelation or intervention that disturbs a settled situation.
- Il y a de l'orage dans l'air — Trouble is brewing.
More French idioms
- De fil en aiguille — One thing leading to another.
- Un fil d'Ariane — A guiding thread through something impossibly complicated.
- En file indienne — In single file, one behind another.
- La fin justifie les moyens — A worthwhile goal excuses whatever it takes to reach it.
- Conter fleurette — To woo someone with sweet talk.
- Des manœuvres florentines — Devious, elaborately indirect political scheming.
From our proverbs
- A close mouth catcheth no flies. — Silence protects you from inadvertently spreading rumors, revealing secrets, or inviting…
- It is good keeping his clothes who is going to swim. — Prudent preparation prevents loss; secure your valuables before undertaking risky venture…
- Clouds that the sun builds up darken him. — What we create to serve our purposes can ultimately obscure our vision and hinder our goa…
Loading the full interactive collection…