If you’ve ever eavesdropped on a conversation between two French people, you may have found yourself thinking, “Wait, what do chickens have to do with this?” or “Did they just say it’s raining ropes?” Welcome to the wonderfully quirky, colorful, and absolutely essential world of French idioms.

Learning French idioms is one of the quickest ways to level up your fluency—and sound like someone who actually lives and breathes the language, not just studies it in a classroom. Idioms reveal a lot about culture, personality, and everyday communication. So, let’s dive in. Here are 30 French idioms that’ll instantly make you sound more native—and a lot more fun at parties. 

1. Avoir le cafard 🪳

Literal meaning: To have the cockroach
Real meaning: To feel down / depressed
Use it when: You’re having a rough day.

Aujourd’hui, j’ai le cafard. Je ne sais pas pourquoi.

2. Tomber dans les pommes 🍎

Literal meaning: To fall into the apples
Real meaning: To faint / pass out
Use it when: Someone suddenly collapses.

Elle a eu si peur qu’elle est tombée dans les pommes !

3. C’est la fin des haricots 🫘

Literal meaning: It’s the end of the beans
Real meaning: That’s the last straw / all hope is lost
Use it when: Everything's gone wrong.

Il a perdu son travail et sa voiture. C’est la fin des haricots.

4. Avoir un poil dans la main 👋

Literal meaning: To have a hair in your hand
Real meaning: To be incredibly lazy
Use it when: Someone avoids work like it’s the plague.

Il ne fait jamais rien, ce mec a un poil dans la main.

5. Raconter des salades 🥗

Literal meaning: To tell salads
Real meaning: To tell lies or tall tales
Use it when: Someone’s story sounds suspicious.

Arrête de raconter des salades, personne ne te croit.

6. Avoir la pêche 🍑

Literal meaning: To have the peach
Real meaning: To feel great, full of energy
Use it when: You’re buzzing with positivity.

Ce matin, j’ai la pêche !

7. Être dans la lune 🌕

Literal meaning: To be in the moon
Real meaning: To daydream / be absent-minded
Use it when: Someone’s spaced out.

Tu ne m’écoutes pas, t’es encore dans la lune !

8. C’est pas la mer à boire 🌊

Literal meaning: It’s not the sea to drink
Real meaning: It’s not that hard / It’s manageable
Use it when: Someone is being overly dramatic.

Allez, fais-le. C’est pas la mer à boire.

9. Donner sa langue au chat 👅🐱

Literal meaning: To give your tongue to the cat
Real meaning: To give up guessing
Use it when: You’re stumped and want the answer.

Je ne sais pas, je donne ma langue au chat.

10. Faire la grasse matinée 💤

Literal meaning: To do the fat morning
Real meaning: To sleep in
Use it when: You indulge in some extra sleep.

Dimanche, j’adore faire la grasse matinée.

11. Il pleut des cordes 🪢

Literal meaning: It’s raining ropes
Real meaning: It’s raining heavily
Use it when: It’s pouring outside.

Prends un parapluie, il pleut des cordes.

12. Avoir le coup de foudre ⚡️

Literal meaning: To have the lightning strike
Real meaning: To fall in love at first sight
Use it when: Cupid hits hard.

J’ai eu le coup de foudre en la voyant.

13. Mettre son grain de sel 🧂

Literal meaning: To put in one’s grain of salt
Real meaning: To add your two cents (often unwanted)
Use it when: Someone inserts their opinion unnecessarily.

Il met toujours son grain de sel dans nos discussions.

14. Ne pas être dans son assiette 🍽️

Literal meaning: To not be in one’s plate
Real meaning: To feel unwell / off
Use it when: You or someone is under the weather.

Tu as l’air bizarre. Tu n’es pas dans ton assiette ?

15. Casser les pieds 🦶

Literal meaning: To break the feet
Real meaning: To annoy someone
Use it when: Someone is getting on your nerves.

Tu me casses les pieds avec tes histoires !

16. Faire l’andouille 🌭

Literal meaning: To act like a sausage
Real meaning: To act silly / be a clown
Use it when: Someone’s being goofy.

Arrête de faire l’andouille, on est en public !

17. Être au taquet 🔥

Literal meaning: To be at the stopper
Real meaning: To be on fire / at your peak
Use it when: You’re highly motivated or productive.

Aujourd’hui, je suis au taquet, je vais tout déchirer.

18. Faire d’une pierre deux coups 🪨

Literal meaning: To hit two birds with one stone
Real meaning: To accomplish two things at once
Use it when: You’re being efficient.

J’ai vu ma sœur et j’ai acheté du pain. Deux coups d’une pierre.

19. Avoir un chat dans la gorge 🐱

Literal meaning: To have a cat in the throat
Real meaning: To have a frog in your throat
Use it when: You’re hoarse or losing your voice.

Excuse-moi, j’ai un chat dans la gorge ce matin.

20. Être sur son 31 💃

Literal meaning: To be on one’s 31
Real meaning: To be dressed to the nines
Use it when: Someone is looking extra fancy.

Tu es sur ton 31 ce soir, c’est quoi l’occasion ?

21. Se creuser la tête 🧠

Literal meaning: To dig into one’s head
Real meaning: To rack your brain
Use it when: You’re really trying to figure something out.

Je me suis creusé la tête, mais je ne trouve pas.

22. Avoir la gueule de bois 🪵

Literal meaning: To have a wooden mouth
Real meaning: To have a hangover
Use it when: You partied too hard.

Ouh là, j’ai la gueule de bois ce matin.

23. Faire chou blanc 🥬

Literal meaning: To make white cabbage
Real meaning: To fail / come up empty
Use it when: You try something and it doesn’t work.

J’ai essayé de la convaincre, mais j’ai fait chou blanc.

24. Être haut comme trois pommes 🍎

Literal meaning: To be as tall as three apples
Real meaning: To be very small (often said of kids)
Use it when: Referring to a tiny human.

Il est mignon, ce petit, il est haut comme trois pommes.

25. Avoir la tête dans les nuages ☁️

Literal meaning: To have your head in the clouds
Real meaning: To be distracted or dreamy
Use it when: Someone’s zoning out.

Tu rêves ou quoi ? T’as la tête dans les nuages.

26. Appeler un chat un chat 🐱

Literal meaning: To call a cat a cat
Real meaning: To tell it like it is / be blunt
Use it when: Being brutally honest.

Je vais appeler un chat un chat : ton idée est nulle.

27. Poser un lapin 🐰

Literal meaning: To put down a rabbit
Real meaning: To stand someone up
Use it when: Someone doesn’t show up to a meeting or date.

Il m’a posé un lapin hier soir, j’étais furieuse.

28. Avoir la flemme 

Literal meaning: To have the laziness
Real meaning: To not feel like doing something
Use it when: Motivation is at zero.

J’ai la flemme de sortir ce soir.

29. Se faire rouler dans la farine 

Literal meaning: To get rolled in flour
Real meaning: To get fooled or scammed
Use it when: You’ve been tricked.

J’ai payé 50€ pour ça ? Je me suis fait rouler dans la farine.

30. Péter un câble 

Literal meaning: To blow a cable
Real meaning: To lose it / freak out
Use it when: Someone goes off the rails emotionally.

Il a pété un câble quand il a vu la facture.

There you have it—30 French idioms that real French people use all the time. These aren’t textbook expressions. They’re the kind of phrases you hear at the dinner table, at the office, or yelled across a café terrace when someone’s espresso spills.

If you want to go beyond grammar and really connect with the French language, idioms are your golden ticket. They make your French sound authentic, and honestly—they’re just a lot of fun to use.

So the next time you’re “dans la lune,” “péter un câble,” or just feeling “la flemme,” now you know how to say it like a true French speaker.