Francophonie· medium· informal
être bonne poire
“to be a good pear”
Meaning
to be a pushover
Explanation
This expression means to be gullible or easily taken advantage of. In English, you might call someone "a soft touch."
Example
Arrête d'être bonne poire, il profite de toi depuis des mois.
Stop being such a pushover, he's been taking advantage of you for months.
Origin
In the 19th century, 'poire' became slang for a naive face, possibly because a pear-shaped face suggested softness and gullibility. Caricaturists of the era, notably Charles Philipon mocking King Louis-Philippe in 1831, drew him as a pear to suggest he was foolish and easily manipulated.
Source
More like this
- arriver comme un cheveu sur la soupeTo turn up at the worst possible moment
- avoir de la bouteilleTo have plenty of experience
- avoir du bléto have money
- avoir du pain sur la plancheTo have a lot of work still to do
- avoir les yeux plus gros que le ventreTo take on more than one can handle
- courir sur le haricot à quelqu'unto get on someone's nerves