French phrase of the day: Comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles
Like a dog doing what?
Why do I need to know comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles ?
Just in case you find something or someone unwelcome
What does it mean?
Comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles - pronounced komm un she-enn donz un jer de kee - literally translates as like a dog in a game of skittles. A more modern version may be 'like a dog in a bowling alley'.
The animal simile, surprisingly gentle for a country that came up with comme vache qui pisse (like a pissing cow) for heavy rain, describes an unwelcome event, an incongruous situation or an uninvited visitor as being similar to an over-excitable animal spoiling a quiet game.
It dates from the 18th century, when the game of skittles - an ancestor of bowling and bowling alleys - was hugely popular. A dog bounding in to the middle of such a game, knocking over the pins and trying to steal the ball, would - you'd agree - be unpopular with the players.
Perhaps the closest English equivalent is to describe a person turning up 'like the spectre at the feast' - which implies they are both unwelcome and killing the mood.
Somewhat similar in French is Y avoir une couille dans le potage (to have a testicle in the soup) which also uses the idea of something being where it should not, but means 'we have a problem'.
Use it like this
Personne ne l’attendait, il est arrivé comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles - No one was expecting him, he arrived out of nowhere
Il m’a reçu comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles, il m’a très mal reçu - He received me very badly, I felt like the spectre at the feast
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Why do I need to know comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles ?
Just in case you find something or someone unwelcome
What does it mean?
Comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles - pronounced komm un she-enn donz un jer de kee - literally translates as like a dog in a game of skittles. A more modern version may be 'like a dog in a bowling alley'.
The animal simile, surprisingly gentle for a country that came up with comme vache qui pisse (like a pissing cow) for heavy rain, describes an unwelcome event, an incongruous situation or an uninvited visitor as being similar to an over-excitable animal spoiling a quiet game.
It dates from the 18th century, when the game of skittles - an ancestor of bowling and bowling alleys - was hugely popular. A dog bounding in to the middle of such a game, knocking over the pins and trying to steal the ball, would - you'd agree - be unpopular with the players.
Perhaps the closest English equivalent is to describe a person turning up 'like the spectre at the feast' - which implies they are both unwelcome and killing the mood.
Somewhat similar in French is Y avoir une couille dans le potage (to have a testicle in the soup) which also uses the idea of something being where it should not, but means 'we have a problem'.
Use it like this
Personne ne l’attendait, il est arrivé comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles - No one was expecting him, he arrived out of nowhere
Il m’a reçu comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles, il m’a très mal reçu - He received me very badly, I felt like the spectre at the feast
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