“Remettre les pendules à l’heure” is fun figurative French expression that translates literally to “to put the clocks back to the [right] hour.” Here are a few English meaings: to set the record straight to lay it on the line to make no bones about something A French meaning of the expression according to expressio.fr …
David Issokson
Au nez et à la barbe de quelqu’un is a French idiom that translates literally to “at somebody’s nose and beard of somebody” and means “right under your nose”.
The French expression “découvrir le pot aux roses” translates literally to “to discover the pot of roses”. This is a slightly poetic expression with the English meaning: In French “un pot aux roses” (pot of roses) can translate to a secret, mystery or a reality that’s been well hidden. Marie a découvert le pot aux …
The French expression “mettre quelqu’un au pied du mur” translates literally to “to put somebody at the foot of the wall”. This expression is almost the same in English: to have somebody up against a wall A French meaning of this expression is “enlever toute échappatoire à quelqu’un” or to remove all ways-out or loop-holes …
The French expression “vendre la mèche” translates literally to “to sell the fuse”. English meanings include: to let the cat out of the bag to spill the beans to give the game away The idea behind the expression is that the fuse on a bomb isn’t supposed to be discovered. A French definition of the …

