Francophonie· easy
appeler un chat un chat
“to call a cat a cat”
Meaning
to speak plainly and directly
Explanation
This idiom means saying things frankly, without euphemisms.
Example
Dans ce rapport, il faut appeler un chat un chat: le projet a échoué.
In this report, we need to call things as they are: the project failed.
Origin
The expression appears in 17th-century French and was popularized by Nicolas Boileau's line 'J'appelle un chat un chat'.
Source
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- avoir la chair de pouleTo get little bumps on the skin
- avoir un chat dans la gorgeto have a scratchy voice
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- avoir une mémoire d'éléphantTo have an excellent memory
- chercher la petite bêteTo fuss over tiny, unimportant details