Today we’ll look at the fun French expression poser un lapin, which translates literally to “to place a rabbit” and means “to stand somebody up” or “to miss an appointment”.
poser un lapin
to stand up, miss an appointment
Expression origin
At the end of the 19th century, the expression poser un lapin meant “ne pas rétribuer les faveurs d’une fille” (not paying for the favors of a girl) or leaving without paying. Over time the meaning gradually became missing an appointment without notifying the other person.
Example sentences
These two example sentences are in the passé composé, a frequently used French past tense. Tout seul in this sentence means “all alone” while the adjective seul(e) means lonely.
Elle m’a posé un lapin et j’ai regardé le film tout seul.
She stood me up and I watched the movie alone.
J’ai attendu mon ami pendant une heure au restaurant et il m’a posé un lapin !
I waited for my friend at the restaurant for an hour and he stood me up!
French expressions | Lessons by David Issokson
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