IdiomDaily Life
French
FrenchVendre la mèche
Meaning: To give away a secret or a plan.
Literally: To sell the fuse
Example: “Mon petit frère a vendu la mèche : maman sait tout pour la fête surprise.” — My little brother let the cat out of the bag: Mom knows all about the surprise party.
English equivalent: To let the cat out of the bag
Equivalents in other languages
Japanese: 口が滑る (kuchi ga suberu) Literally: The mouth slips
English: let the cat out of the bag- English: spill the beans
Origin: From military mining, where the mèche was the fuse to the powder charge: selling it to the enemy betrayed the whole operation. The earlier form was éventer la mèche, to expose the fuse to air and ruin it.
More French idioms
- Je vous le donne en mille You will never guess.
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- Être dans les bras de Morphée To be fast asleep.
- Prendre au mot To hold someone to exactly what they said.
- Un moulin à paroles Someone who talks incessantly.
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