The French expression “ne pas y aller de main morte” translates literally to: “to not go there with a dead hand”.
English meaning:
- to not pull any punches
- to be heavy-handed
French meaning:
- agir sans retenue – to act without restraint
Example sentence:
- Le médecin n’y est pas allé de main morte en expliquant la situation à la famille. The doctor didn’t pull any punches while explaining the situation to the family.
Related expression:
- ne pas faire dans la dentelle – be rather indelicate
- ne pas y aller avec le dos de la cuillère – to not mess about
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. 
