take French leave
Meaning: To leave without saying goodbye or asking permission.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “Halfway through the speeches, my uncle took French leave.”
Category: Daily Life
Origin: Recorded from 1751, mocking a custom fashionable in 18th-century France of leaving a party without saying goodbye to the host. The French return the compliment with filer à l'anglaise, to slip away English-style.
Equivalents in other languages
- French: Filer à l'anglaise — literally: To slip away English-style
More idioms — Daily Life
- dress to the nines — To dress very smartly or elaborately.
- have friends in high places — To know influential people who can help one.
- get to the bottom of it — To discover the real cause or truth of a matter.
- be taken for a ride — To be cheated or deceived.
- have a short fuse — To lose one's temper easily.
- not to give a hoot — Not to care at all.
More English idioms
- with one hand tied behind one's back — Very easily; or, when forced on someone, at a great disadvantage.
- have a heart of gold — To be very kind and generous.
- be full of beans — To be lively and full of energy.
- have a blast — To have a very good time.
- set alarm bells ringing — To make someone suspect that something is wrong.
- get back on one's feet — To recover after an illness or a setback.
From our untranslatable words
- Komorebi — The dappled light that filters through leaves and scatters across the ground.
- Schadenfreude — The guilty little pleasure of taking satisfaction in someone else's misfortune.
- Wabi-sabi — Finding beauty in imperfection, impermanence, and the worn or incomplete.