FrenchNe s’être pas regardé
Meaning: to judge others harshly while being blind to one's own equal or greater faults.
Literally: Not to have looked at oneself
Example: “Il me traite de désordonné ? Il ne s'est pas regardé !” — He calls me messy? He should take a look at himself!
English equivalent: People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones
Origin: Usually a retort, il ne s'est pas regardé ! (he hasn't looked at himself): the critic would see the same fault in the mirror. It does the work of the biblical mote and beam, which French keeps in voir la paille dans l'œil du voisin, without the scripture. Its history is not documented; Antoine Blondin plays on it in a 1970 novel, with a narrator who had looked at himself but not seen himself.
More French idioms
- Ne pas tourner rond to be unwell or not functioning properly.
- Passer un mauvais quart d’heure to experience a brief but unpleasant or distressing moment.
- Envoyer des piques To make cutting or barbed remarks intended to irritate or provoke someone.
- Prendre le maquis To go into hiding or join a resistance movement to escape authority or persecution.
- Prendre le train en marche To join opportunely in an action or endeavor already underway.
- Aiguiser ses couteaux To prepare oneself for conflict or confrontation.
Explore another collection: Proverbs
Short sayings of timeless wisdom from more than 50 cultures, each with its meaning and origin.
- Pas à pas on va bien loin Slow, steady progress takes you a long way.
- Bien mal acquis ne profite jamais What is gained dishonestly brings no lasting good.
- Chaque chose en son temps Deal with things one at a time, when the right moment comes.
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