The French French expression “être la douche écossaise” translates literally to “to be the Scottish shower.
English meanings:
- to come as quite a shock
- to be on a roller-coaster, roller-coaster ride
French meanings:
- alternance de bonnes et mauvaises infos – alternating between good and bad news
- contraster entre agréable, désagréable – to contrast between pleasant and unpleasant
Example sentences:
- Pour moi c’est la douche écossaise : la semaine dernière je cherchais un appartement et cette semaine je loue une maison entière ! I’m on a roller-coaster ride. Last week I was looking for an apartment and this week I’m renting an entire house!
- C’était la douche écossaise pour Martin. Le mois dernier il était sur le point de se faire licencier, mais cette semaine il a eu une promotion ! It came as a shock for Martin. Last month he was about to get fired and this week he got a promotion!
Related expression:
- faire un tour en montagne russe – to be on a roller-coaster ride (figuratively; “montagne russe” means roller-coaster.
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