The French expression “avaler des couleuvres” translates literally to “to swallow garter snakes.” Seemingly unpleasant, English meanings include:
- to accept something against your will
- to have something forced on you
Other definitions in French on wordreference.com include “to believe anything your told” and “to endure humiliation or insults”.
Here’s an example sentence:
- Marie ne voulait pas se marier avec Pierre: elle a dû avaler les couleuvres. Marie didn’t want to marry Pierre. She had to accept the marriage against her will.
