Se mettre sur son trente-et-un

Meaning: To dress up in your very best clothes.

Language: French

Literally: To put oneself on one's thirty-one

Category: Daily Life

Origin: Likely from 'trentain', a luxurious fine cloth woven with thirty hundreds of threads; dressing in it meant dressing splendidly.

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From our untranslatable words

  • L'esprit de l'escalier — Thinking of the perfect comeback only after the moment has passed — on your way down the…
  • Terroir — The unique character that a place — its soil, climate and tradition — gives to a wine or…
  • Râler — To complain and grumble with a certain national flair — a beloved French pastime.

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