IdiomThe Absurd
French
FrenchUne solution de continuité
Meaning: A break or gap — not, despite appearances, a solution to anything.
Literally: A solution of continuity
Example: “Il y a une solution de continuité entre les deux parties du mur, et l'eau s'infiltre.” — There's a gap between the two sections of the wall, and water is seeping in.
Origin: One of French's most dependable traps: solution here is Latin solutio, a loosening or breaking apart, so the phrase means an interruption. Une solution de continuité is a discontinuity, and it is misread constantly, including in print.
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