FrenchVaincre le signe indien
Meaning: To break a run of bad luck.
Literally: To defeat the Indian sign
Example: “Après dix finales perdues, le club a enfin vaincu le signe indien.” — After ten lost finals, the club finally broke its losing streak.
Origin: A straight translation of American English indian sign, which reached French from the Far West of the popular imagination. The belief attached to it was that a shaman could curse an enemy by marking his forehead, in the mind's eye, with a picture of whatever calamity was intended for him, and that only the pure of heart and conspicuously brave had any hope of shrugging it off — a qualification that will have thinned the field considerably. Anyone carrying such a mark had no further need of ladders to walk under or mirrors to break; the work was already done. To beat the Indian sign is therefore to come out the far side of a long, unbroken run of disasters into a stretch where things simply go right, which is rarer and more suspicious than it sounds.
More French idioms
- Un coup de tabac A sudden violent squall at sea; by extension, a brutal turn of events.
- À tire-larigot In enormous quantities; to excess.
- Y a pas à tortiller du cul Enough hesitating — a decision has to be made. Also: this is simply undeniable.
- Ne pas valoir tripette To be worthless; to be of no interest whatsoever.
- Ne pas avoir les yeux en face des trous To be unable to see what is right in front of you — usually because you are barely awake.
- Manger de la vache enragée To live in real poverty; to go through a long stretch of hardship.
Explore another collection: Proverbs
Short sayings of timeless wisdom from more than 50 cultures, each with its meaning and origin.
- Chaque chose en son temps Deal with things one at a time, when the right moment comes.
- À chacun son goût Everyone has their own preferences, and that's fine.
- C'est dans les vieux pots qu'on fait la meilleure soupe Experience, and older people, often do things best.
Keep exploring