| English |
French |
Literal translation |
| An apple a day keeps the doctor away. |
Il vaut mieux aller au moulin qu'au médecin. |
It's better to go to the mill than to the doctor. |
| A bad workman blames his tools. |
À mauvais ouvrier point de bons outils. |
To a bad worker no good tools. |
| Beggars can't be choosers. |
Nécessité fait loi. |
Necessity makes law |
| Clothes don't make the person. |
L'habit ne fait pas le moine. |
The habit doesn't make the monk. |
| Don't judge a book by its cover. |
Il ne faut pas juger les gens sur la mine. |
One shouldn't judge people on their appearance. |
| Do your work well and never mind the critics. |
Bien faire et laisser dire. |
Do well and let (them) speak. |
| Every Jack has his Jill. |
Il n'est si méchant pot qui ne trouve son couvercle. |
There's no such mean jar that can't find his lid. |
| Givers of advice don't pay the price. |
Les conseilleurs ne sont pas les payeurs. |
Dispensers of advice are not the payers. |
| A guilty conscience needs no accuser. |
Qui s'excuse, s'accuse. |
He who excuses himself accuses himself. |
| Heaven helps those who help themselves. |
Aide-toi, le ciel t'aidera. |
Help yourself, heaven will help you. |
| Honor to whom honor is due. |
À tout seigneur tout honneur. |
|
| In the kingdom of the blind the one-eyed man is king. |
Au royaume des aveugles les borgnes sont rois. |
|
| It's better to talk to the organ-grinder than the monkey. |
Il vaut mieux s'adresser à Dieu qu'à ses saints. |
It's better to address God that his saints. |
| A man's home is his castle. |
Charbonnier est maître chez lui. |
A coalman is master at home. |
| The miser's son is a spendthrift. |
À père avare fils prodigue. |
To a stingy father prodigal son. |
| New converts are the most pious. |
Quand le diable devient vieux, il se fait ermite. |
When the devil gets old, he turns into a hermit. |
| No man is a prophet in his own country. |
Nul n'est prophète en son pays. |
|
| Opportunity makes a thief. |
L'occasion fait le larron. |
|
| The rich man is the one who pays his debts. |
Qui paie ses dettes s'enrichit. |
He who pays his debts gets richer. |
| Robbing Peter to pay Paul. |
Il ne sert à rien de déshabiller Pierre pour habiller Paul. |
It serves no purpose to undress Peter to dress Paul. |
| The shoemaker's son always goes barefoot. |
Les cordonniers sont toujours les plus mal chaussés. |
Shoemakers are always the worst shod. |
| The sky is the limit. |
Tout soldat a dans son sac son batôn de maréchal. |
Every soldier has his marshall's baton in his bag. |
| To err is human |
L'erreur est humaine |
The error is human |
| To know a friend is to respect him. |
Comme on connaît ses saints, on les honore. |
As one knows his saints, one honors them. |
| Too many cooks spoil the broth. |
Autant de têtes, autant d'avis.
Deux patrons font chavirer la barque.
|
So many heads, so many opinions.
Two bosses capsize the boat
|
| The tree is known by its fruit. |
C'est au pied du mur qu'on voit le maçon. |
It's at the foot of the wall that you see the mason. |
| A word to the wise is enough. |
À bon entendeur, salut. |
To a good listener, safety. |
| You can tell an artist by his handiwork. |
À l'oeuvre on reconnaît l'artisan. |
By his work one recognizes the workman. |
