
IdiomAnimals
French
Un boute-en-train
Meaning: The life and soul of the party.
Literally: A put-in-motion
Example: “Mon oncle est le boute-en-train de toutes les fêtes de famille.” — My uncle is the life of every family party.
English equivalent: The life of the party
Equivalents in other languages
Polish: dusza towarzystwa Literally: Soul of societyEnglish: the life of the party
Origin: In breeding, the boute-en-train was the teaser stallion led to a mare to arouse her before the chosen sire was brought in — the animal whose job was to get things going without finishing them. The phrase moved to people who liven up a gathering.
More French idioms
- Monter sur ses grands chevaux To take offense and react with indignant superiority.
- Un cheval de Troie A gift or arrangement that conceals a hostile purpose.
- C'est le chien de Jean de Nivelle Said of someone who makes himself scarce precisely when he is called.
- Les chiens ne font pas des chats Children inevitably resemble their parents.
- Les chiens aboient et la caravane passe Criticism from bystanders does not stop those who are getting on with it.
- Ne pas attacher son chien avec des saucisses To be extremely tight-fisted.
Explore another collection: Tongue Twisters
Tricky phrases to practice out loud, from languages around the world.
- Un beau ver vert dans un verre vert verra un ver vert. Ver (worm), vert (green), and verre (glass) are near-homophones — distinguishing them at…
- Didon dîna, dit-on, du dos d'un dodu dindon dont le dodu dos dodine. A 'd' / 'din' / 'dod' avalanche that seems designed to jam the tongue in third gear.
- Un chasseur sachant chasser doit savoir chasser sans son chien. The classic French 'ch' / 's' tangler.
Keep exploring