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.
Bonjour! My name is David Issokson. I'm based in Victor, Idaho and have helped hundreds of students to learn French via Skype or Zoom since 2014. 
