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vendre la peu de l’ours avant de l’avoir tué

“Vendre la peu de l’ours avant de l’avoir tué” is a fun metaphorical French expression that translates directly to “to sell the bear’s hide before having killed it”.

English meaning:

  • to count your chickens before they hatch

French meanings:

  • trop s’avancer quant à un résultat to get ahead of yourself with regards to a result
  • se féliciter trop tôt d’un succès pas encore acquis to congratulate yourself excessively before having attained it.

Example sentence:

  • Abderrahim parlait sans cesse du restaurant qu’il voulait lancer mais j’avais l’impression qu’il vendait la peu de l’ours avant de l’avoir tué. Abderrahim spoke incessantly about the restaurant that he wanted to start but I had the impression he was counting his chickens before they hatched.

more French expressions

David Issokson

David Issokson is the founder and French teacher of Frenchlearner.com. With over 30 years of experience as a French learner and speaker, he is passionate about making the language accessible and enjoyable for everyone. David is dedicated to providing clear, practical, and effective resources to help you master French. Learn more about FrenchLearner on our about us page. Visit davidissokson.com, David's personal website.

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