Matching game
French food idioms: match the expression to its meaning
C'est la fin des haricots, raconter des salades, avoir la pêche: match ten French food idioms to their meanings, then see how they're used.
- B1
- 10 pairs
- Tap to match
- Learn this in the B1 notebook →
In short
French uses food to talk about almost everything. Avoir la pêche is to be full of energy, raconter des salades is to tell lies, c'est la fin des haricots means it's the last straw, and ce n'est pas ma tasse de thé means it's not my cup of tea.
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Tap one on the left, then its partner on the right.
How are French food idioms used in real life?
Ne t'inquiète pas pour l'examen, c'est du gâteau !
Don't worry about the exam, it's a piece of cake!
Il a vu le prix et il est presque tombé dans les pommes.
He saw the price and nearly fainted.
Ce petit boulot le soir, ça met du beurre dans les épinards.
This little evening job brings in a bit of extra money.
Many of these idioms are informal and playful. Tomber dans les pommes may come from an old word pâmes (fainting), not apples at all; en faire tout un fromage compares a fuss to the long work of making cheese. Use them with friends, not in a job interview.
- J'ai la pomme aujourd'hui.J'ai la pêche aujourd'hui.
The fruit is fixed: la pêche (or la banane).
- C'est un morceau de gâteau.C'est du gâteau.
No morceau: the idiom is short.