Tomber dans l'escarcelle de quelqu'un
Meaning: To end up in someone's possession, often without their working for it.
Language: French
Literally: To fall into someone's purse
Category: Daily Life
Origin: The escarcelle was a large purse hung from the belt in the Middle Ages. The phrase is used almost entirely of money, contracts and territory.
More idioms — Daily Life
- À bon escient — Advisedly; with proper judgment about when to do it.
- Des espèces sonnantes et trébuchantes — Hard cash, as opposed to promises or credit.
- D'estoc et de taille — With everything one has, by every available means.
- Ne connaître ni d'Ève ni d'Adam — Not to know someone at all.
- Fauché comme les blés — Completely broke.
- S'inscrire en faux — To formally deny something and challenge its truth.
More French idioms
- Cherchez la femme — There is a woman behind this somewhere.
- Jeter l'argent par les fenêtres — To spend recklessly and pointlessly.
- Croire dur comme fer — To believe something with complete and unshakeable conviction.
- Le fer de lance — The leading element of an effort; the part that goes in first.
- Avoir le feu sacré — To be driven by genuine, burning vocation.
- Être tout feu tout flamme — To be full of ardent enthusiasm.
From our tongue twisters
- Un chasseur sachant chasser doit savoir chasser sans son chien. — The classic French 'ch' / 's' tangler.
- Les chaussettes de l'archiduchesse sont-elles sèches, archi-sèches? — A merciless duel between 'ch' and 's'.
- Si six scies scient six cyprès, six cents scies scient six cents cyprès. — An 's' / 'si' minefield.
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