FrenchScier la branche sur laquelle on est assis
Meaning: To destroy the thing your own position depends on.
Literally: To saw the branch one is sitting on
Example: “En critiquant ses propres clients sur les réseaux, le patron scie la branche sur laquelle il est assis.” — By attacking his own customers online, the boss is shooting himself in the foot.
English equivalent: To shoot oneself in the foot
Equivalents in other languages
Portuguese: dar um tiro no pé Literally: To give a shot in the foot
English: shoot oneself in the foot
Origin: The picture is the classic fool's mistake: sitting astride a branch while sawing through it, so the cut brings down the sawyer along with the wood. Versions of the image exist in many languages. Wiktionnaire credits the phrase to a Molière play but gives no source, and the attribution could not be confirmed; its first use is undocumented.
More French idioms
- Proposer la botte à quelqu'un To proposition someone sexually.
- Pousser le bouchon un peu loin To go too far; to overstep.
- Tirer à boulets rouges To attack someone ferociously and without restraint.
- Sans bourse délier Without spending a penny.
- Un branle-bas de combat Frantic preparation; a general commotion.
- Battre en brèche To attack a position or argument until it collapses.
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- Après la pluie, le beau temps Bad times are followed by good ones.
- Il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tué Don't count on a gain before you actually have it.
- Loin des yeux, loin du cœur When people are apart, their feelings for each other fade.
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