8 French Sayings Involving Dogs: A Journey Through Language and Culture

Man's best friend holds a significant place in French culture, as reflected in the enduring dog-related sayings that have traversed centuries. However, as we'll explore, these sayings often portray dogs negatively or convey negative sentiments. This indicates that the historical relationship with dogs, our beloved quadrupeds, was complex and not always filled with love and affection.

Bad Days for Dogs in French Sayings

Un temps de chien

Historically, dogs have been viewed as dirty, nasty, and despicable animals. Consequently, the “de chien” suffix is used to emphasize an excess of something that’s usually negative; in this case, of bad weather. Similarly, “humeur de chien” translates to a very bad mood. Or, “j’ai un mal de chien”, “je suis malade comme un chien” would convey the idea that “I’m feeling very, very bad”.

Coming back to “un temps de chien”, check out another expression that describes a very cold weather, literally a duck weather - Il fait un froid de canard.

Le chien de (Jean de) Nivelle

Now here’s an interesting example of how you don’t want to go down in history. Jean de Nivelle, a French nobleman, lived in the 15th century. When called upon by his father to assist the king, Louis XI, in a conflict against the Duke of Bourgogne, de Nivelle ran off and allied himself with Bourgogne. Consequently, he was disinherited by his father and forever remembered in this expression. Translating this French saying into English, we realize it is not referring to Jean’s dog; instead he is himself considered to be the “dog” - the coward. The longer version, C’est le chien de Jean de Nivelle / Il s’enfuit quand on l’appelle gives us the whole picture when it comes to understanding the idiom as describing one who is a coward, who runs away when called upon or who avoids one’s responsibilities.

Example:

🇫🇷 "Lorsqu'il s'agit de prendre des décisions importantes, Claire disparaît toujours. Elle est comme le chien de Jean de Nivelle."

You could translate that as: 🇬🇧 "Whenever it comes to making important decisions, Claire always disappears. She is shirking her responsibilities."

Avoir un regard / les yeux de chien battu

An illustration representing the French expression "un regard de chien battu" — Un regard de chien battu

This idiom literally means having the look of a beaten dog. It is used to describe a person that has a look that inspires sadness, mercy, often to elicit sympathy from others. It is similar to the English idiom “puppy dog eyes”.

🇫🇷 "Quand Marc a réalisé qu'il avait oublié d'acheter des fleurs pour leur anniversaire de mariage, il a donné à sa femme un regard de chien battu, espérant être pardonné."

🇬🇧 "When Marc realized he had forgotten to buy flowers for their wedding anniversary, he gave his wife a puppy dog look, hoping to be forgiven."

French Idioms Referring to Dogs in Everyday Life

Entre chien et loup

This is a very old French expression, dating from the 13th century. It refers to the times of the day where light is dim and objects are not easily distinguished - dusk and dawn. The idea behind it goes event further back in time, as we are able to find it in a 2nd century B.C. Hebrew text. The Romans also had the same saying in Latin: “inter canem et lupum”

Example: 🇫🇷 En rentrant chez moi, il était l'heure entre chien et loup, et les rues prenaient un aspect mystérieux et familier à la fois.

🇬🇧 As I was heading home, it was twilight, and the streets took on a mysterious yet familiar aspect.

Arriver comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles

The game of quilles, or skittles, is a traditional European lawn game, a predecessor to the modern ten-pin bowling. Players throw a ball or a heavy object at a group of wooden pins (known as skittles) to knock them down. Historically, skittles has been played in various forms in Europe for centuries.

The reference to a dog entering a skittles game in the French idiom "arriver comme un chien dans un jeu de quilles" conjures the image of chaos and disruption. A dog running into such a game would likely scatter the pins and interrupt the play, much like the English expression "like a bull in a china shop."

Les chiens aboient et la caravane passe

The dogs bark, the caravan moves on - things will progress regardless of criticism. It conveys one’s resistance to outside arguments or insults, a self determination in attaining goals, whether just or not.

The origines of this saying can be traced to Africa and the Middle-East. Here, dogs were used in permanent or temporary settlements to alert of approaching strangers. Caravans were thus greeted with loud barks when passing by, but camels, huge as they are compared to dogs, were not impressed with the noise and serenely continued their journey.

An illustration of a pack of dogs barking at a camel caravan — Les chiens aboient et la caravane passe

Se regarder en chiens de faïence

During the late 16th century, people warmed themselves near fireplaces adorned with ornate faience tiles. A common motif depicted a pair of dogs gazing at each other with hostility. This imagery has come to symbolize the act of looking at someone with distrust or animosity.

There is Still Hope for our Canine Companions

Avoir du chien

This is one of the rare French saying that refers to dogs in a flattering ways. Avoir du chien is a colloquial expression that means to be seductive or charismatic, often (but not always) used in reference to a woman. Throughout history, the word chien, as we saw, had negative connotations and could have been an insult to describe someone despicable or an adjective with a meaning close to ‘rascal’ or ‘scoundrel’. According to expressio.fr, it is probably the association with this latter meaning that gave birth to this expression during the late 19th century.

Here are some examples to better illustrate its meaning:

🇫🇷 Même s'il n'est pas traditionnellement beau, il a du chien.

🇬🇧 Even if he's not traditionally handsome, he is very charismatic.

🇫🇷 Cette actrice a du chien; elle dégage toujours une présence unique à l'écran.

🇬🇧 That actress has a certain charm; she always exudes a unique presence on screen.

An illustration of a charismatic, seductive business woman holding a poodle in her arms to illustrate the French expression "avoir du chien" — Avoir du chien

Conclusion

As we conclude our journey through the world of French dog sayings, it's clear that dogs, being the first domesticated animals, have left an indelible mark on both our lives and culture. Their presence is vividly captured in expressions reflecting the deep connection and influence these loyal companions have in shaping language and cultural insights across generations.

A big thank you to expressio.fr and linternaute.fr. Their expression collection provides invaluable help into researching French sayings origins and meanings.

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8 French Sayings Involving Dogs