IdiomDaily Life
French
FrenchNe pas être sorti de l'auberge
Meaning: To be far from done with one's troubles.
Literally: To not be out of the inn yet
Example: “On a fini le premier chapitre, mais on n'est pas sortis de l'auberge.” — We've finished the first chapter, but we're not out of the woods yet.
English equivalent: Not out of the woods yet
Origin: Auberge (inn) was slang for prison, so not being out of the inn is not being out of trouble yet. The phrase is sometimes linked to the Auberge de Peyrebeille, the "red inn" in the Ardèche whose keepers were tried in 1833 for murdering travelers, but Wiktionnaire calls that attribution mistaken.
Equivalents in other languages
Czech: Je to za vodou Literally: It's past the water
English: out of the woods
More French idioms
- Avoir la pêche To be full of energy and on top form.
- Faire chou blanc To draw a complete blank; to fail.
- Avoir une araignée au plafond To be a little crazy.
- Ramener sa fraise To butt in or show off uninvited.
- 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.
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- Le singe est toujours singe, fût-il vêtu de pourpre Finery can't change someone's true nature.
- Vent au visage rend un homme sage Hardship makes a person wiser.
- Un tiens vaut mieux que deux tu l'auras A certain small gain beats a larger promised one.
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