French Expressions Quiz – Printable Version
20 multiple-choice questions with an explained answer key, ready to print.
Print the sheet (or save it as a PDF from the print window), hand it out, then mark it together using the answer page: every answer is explained. Perfect for a party, a birthday, a classroom, a care home or a team activity.
Name: ………………………………Score: ……… / 20
- What does the expression 'Poser un lapin' mean?
- A. To pay a compliment
- B. To ask a favor
- C. To give a gift
- D. To not show up for a date
- What does the expression 'Couper les cheveux en quatre' mean?
- A. To get a very precise haircut
- B. To argue over nothing
- C. To look for unnecessary complications
- D. To be very meticulous
- What does the expression 'Être haut comme trois pommes' mean?
- A. To love fruit
- B. To be very short
- C. To be very tall
- D. To be three years old
- What does the expression 'Être dans les nuages' mean?
- A. To be afraid of heights
- B. To travel by plane
- C. To be very tall
- D. To daydream or be distracted
- What does the expression 'Tourner autour du pot' mean?
- A. To avoid saying something directly
- B. To clean the kitchen
- C. To dance around an object
- D. To go for a drive
- What does the expression 'Avoir la puce à l'oreille' mean?
- A. To hear poorly
- B. To be suspicious or wary
- C. To have an itch
- D. To love animals
- What does the expression 'Jeter l'argent par les fenêtres' mean?
- A. To invest
- B. To save money
- C. To spend money irresponsibly
- D. To throw coins out the window
- What does the expression 'Mettre les bouchées doubles' mean?
- A. To eat twice as much
- B. To prepare a meal
- C. To work or act with more intensity
- D. To go on a diet
- What does the expression 'Tomber à pic' mean?
- A. To be clumsy
- B. To have an accident
- C. To happen at just the right time
- D. To fall to the ground
- What does the expression 'Faire un carton' mean?
- A. To play cards
- B. To succeed brilliantly
- C. To make a box
- D. To fail
- What does the expression 'Ne pas être dans son assiette' mean?
- A. To not feel well
- B. To eat standing up
- C. To not be hungry
- D. To be in a bad mood at a meal
- What does the expression 'Il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tué' mean?
- A. Respect wild animals
- B. Be careful when hunting
- C. Don't brag
- D. Don't count on something before you've gotten it
- What does the expression 'Coûter les yeux de la tête' mean?
- A. To damage one's eyesight
- B. To be unnecessarily complicated
- C. To require a lot of effort
- D. To be extremely expensive
- What does the expression 'Rire jaune' mean?
- A. To laugh awkwardly while hiding one's annoyance
- B. To laugh at a tasteless joke
- C. To laugh heartily
- D. To be jealous
- What does the expression 'Se lever du pied gauche' mean?
- A. To be clumsy
- B. To be late in the morning
- C. To have a sore foot
- D. To start the day in a bad mood
- What does the expression 'Passer l'arme à gauche' mean?
- A. To switch hands to carry a sword
- B. To be left-handed
- C. To die
- D. To make a fresh start
- What does 'jeter l'éponge' mean and where does it come from?
- A. To cancel a debt: it comes from trade and the wiped slate
- B. To drop a lawsuit: it comes from Roman law
- C. To wash one's hands of something: it comes from a religious rite
- D. To give up: it comes from boxing, where the second throws the sponge into the ring
- What does the French expression « payer en monnaie de singe » (literally 'to pay in monkey money') mean?
- A. To pay in foreign coins
- B. Not to pay, or to pay with empty words
- C. To pay far too much
- D. To pay in instalments
- What does the French expression « faire chou blanc » (literally 'to make white cabbage') mean?
- A. To fail, to come away with nothing
- B. To cook without meat
- C. To draw attention to yourself
- D. To win effortlessly
- What does the French expression « avoir maille à partir avec quelqu'un » mean?
- A. To owe them money
- B. To have a quarrel with them
- C. To go travelling with them
- D. To knit with them
Answer key — French Expressions Quiz
- D. To not show up for a date'Poser un lapin' (literally 'to put down a rabbit') means to stand someone up without notice.
- C. To look for unnecessary complications'Couper les cheveux en quatre' (literally 'to cut hairs into four') means to look for unnecessary complications or details.
- B. To be very short'Être haut comme trois pommes' (literally 'to be as tall as three apples') means to be very short, often used to describe a child.
- D. To daydream or be distracted'Être dans les nuages' (literally 'to be in the clouds') means to daydream or be distracted, as if one's mind were elsewhere, up in the clouds.
- A. To avoid saying something directly'Tourner autour du pot' (literally 'to circle the pot') means to avoid saying something directly, often out of hesitation or to delay a response.
- B. To be suspicious or wary'Avoir la puce à l'oreille' (literally 'to have a flea in one's ear') means to be suspicious or wary, as if a flea in the ear made you attentive to the smallest details.
- C. To spend money irresponsibly'Jeter l'argent par les fenêtres' (literally 'to throw money out the windows') means to spend money irresponsibly or waste resources.
- C. To work or act with more intensity'Mettre les bouchées doubles' (literally 'to put double bites') means to work or act with more intensity or effort, as if taking two bites at once.
- C. To happen at just the right time'Tomber à pic' (literally 'to fall straight down') means to happen at exactly the right time, as if something landed precisely where needed.
- B. To succeed brilliantly'Faire un carton' (literally 'to make a cardboard'/'to hit the target') means to succeed brilliantly, as if scoring a decisive hit (literally or figuratively).
- A. To not feel well'Ne pas être dans son assiette' (literally 'to not be in one's plate') means to not feel well, to be unwell.
- D. Don't count on something before you've gotten itThis expression (literally 'don't sell the bear's skin before killing it') warns against premature optimism.
- D. To be extremely expensive'Coûter les yeux de la tête' (literally 'to cost the eyes of one's head') means to be extremely expensive, to the point the buyer would have to sacrifice their eyes to pay.
- A. To laugh awkwardly while hiding one's annoyance'Rire jaune' (literally 'to laugh yellow') means to laugh in a forced way, hiding one's annoyance or disappointment.
- D. To start the day in a bad mood'Se lever du pied gauche' (literally 'to get up on the left foot') means to start the day in a bad mood or negative frame of mind.
- C. To dieUncertain origin, perhaps linked to the tradition of passing one's sword (right hand) to the left hand to surrender arms, or to the position of the body after death.
- D. To give up: it comes from boxing, where the second throws the sponge into the ringIn English boxing, a trainer who judged his fighter unfit to continue would throw the sponge used to wipe him down between rounds into the ring, signalling surrender.
- B. Not to pay, or to pay with empty wordsUnder Saint Louis, monkey showmen were exempted from the toll on the Petit-Pont in Paris, provided their animal performed a trick.
- A. To fail, to come away with nothingIt probably comes from skittles: in the Berry region, « faire coup blanc » (a blank shot), pronounced « chou », meant knocking down no pins at all.
- B. To have a quarrel with themIn the Middle Ages the maille was a tiny coin, and « partir » meant 'to share'.