IdiomNature
French
FrenchVeiller au grain
Meaning: To stay alert for trouble.
Literally: To watch for the squall
Example: “Les marchés sont nerveux ; la banque préfère veiller au grain.” — The markets are jittery, so the bank is keeping its eyes peeled.
English equivalent: To keep one's eyes peeled
Other ways to say this
English: keep one's eyes peeled- French: Allumer ses quinquets Literally: To light one's quinquets
Origin: Un grain at sea is a sudden squall, not a seed, and a lookout watched for the darkening water that announced one. The phrase is about anticipation rather than caution.
More French idioms
- De fil en aiguille One thing leading to another.
- Un fil d'Ariane A guiding thread through something impossibly complicated.
- En file indienne In single file, one behind another.
- Conter fleurette To woo someone with sweet talk.
- Des manœuvres florentines Devious, elaborately indirect political scheming.
- De bonne foi Sincerely, without intent to deceive.
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