| Compound Forms/Formes composées |
| a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush | expr | proverb (sth that you already have is better than the promise of sth better) | un tiens vaut mieux que deux tu l'auras expr |
| I'm told I can do better if I keep looking for opportunities, but I'll stay at this job for now: a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. |
| a drop in the bucket | n | US, informal (sth relatively trivial) | une goutte d'eau (dans la mer, dans l'océan) nf |
| The U.S. needs to redevelop passenger rail; Amtrak funding is just a drop in the bucket. |
| | | bagatelle nf |
| a drop in the ocean | n | UK (a negligible amount) | une goutte d'eau (dans la mer, dans l'océan) expr |
| The money I give to charity is a drop in the ocean compared to some people. |
| L'argent que j'ai donné à cette association n'est qu'une goutte d'eau dans la mer mais j'espère que cela aidera tout de même. |
| | | une misère nf |
| Ce que j'ai donné est une misère si l'on considère les besoins de cette association, mais j'espère que cela l'aidera tout de même. |
| a night out on the town | n | (evening spent at a bar, club or party) | une virée nocturne en ville nf |
| After I got my promotion, my friends and I went for a night out on the town to celebrate. |
| a pat on the back | | | tape dans le dos nf |
| a piece of the action | | (want) vouloir | prendre part vi |
| a word to the wise is enough | | | à bon entendeur salut ! expr |
| about the bush | | | autour du pot |
| about to disappear off the face of the Earth | | | qui va disparaître phrase |
| above the law | adj | (not legally accountable) | au-dessus des lois loc adv |
| Many polititians think that they are above the law, and should not be punished for any wrong doing. |
| Les chefs d'État sont-ils au dessus des lois ? |
| above the line | | | au-dessus de la ligne |
| absorb the shock | v | literal (soften a physical impact) | amortir (un choc, un coup, un impact) vtr |
| Egg boxes absorb the shock of shipping so the eggs don't crack. |
| The pile of pillows would absorb the shock from the fall. |
| Ces chaussures à semelle épaisse permettent d'amortir les chocs. |
| absorb the shock | v | figurative (take in bad news) | encaisser le coup vtr |
| The telephone fell from her hand as she tried to absorb the shock of her father's death. |
| I gave him a moment to absorb the shock from the bad news. |
| absorb the shock | v | figurative (lessen a financial burden) fig | amortir le(s) choc(s) vtr |
| My pension fund took a beating in the stock market crash, but at least I had bank certificates to absorb the shock. |
| Je garde une petite réserve d'argent sur un compte épargne, pour amortir les chocs en cas de coup dur. |
| accept the responsibility | v | (be willing to take on duties) | accepter la responsabilité vtr |
| She accepted the responsibility of planning the office Christmas party. |
| | | accepter d'endosser, d'assumer la responsabilité vtr ind+v |
| | | prendre la responsabilité vtr |
| Elle a bien voulu prendre la responsabilité de l'organisation de la soirée. |
| according to the agreement | adv | (by the terms of the agreement) | conformément à l'accord, aux accords adv |
| According to the agreement, the buyer will purchase all the product that the seller can produce. |
| according to the contract | adv | (by the terms of the contract) | conformément au contrat, aux clauses du contrat adv |
| According to the contract you may take three days of bereavement leave for your uncle's funeral, but only one for your nephew's. |
| according to the evidence | | | selon les preuves phrase |
| according to the letter | adv | (according to law) | selon la loi adv |
| | | d'après la loi adv |
| D'après la loi, elle est dans son tort. |
| according to the rules | adv | (by the rules, as stated in the rules) | conformément aux règles, au règlement adv |
| According to the rules, he had to be taken off the field. |
| | | d'après les règles, selon les règles |
| ace in the hole | n | (advantage hidden from opponents) | atout dans sa manche nm |
| across the board | | | dans l'ensemble |
| across the city | | | à travers toute la ville |
| across the continent | | | à travers tout le continent |
| across the grain | | | à contre-courant |
| across the sea | | | par-delà la mer |
| across the street | | | en face adv |
| across the world | adv | (all over the Earth) | sur Terre adv |
| It sure would be nice if peace broke out across the world for a change. |
| | | dans le monde entier adv |
| across-the-board | adj | (global, universal) | général adj |
| Across-the-board tax increases hurt the poor far more than the rich. |
| Une augmentation générale des impôts sur le revenu devrait renflouer les caisses de l’État. |
| act in the interests of | vtr | (act to protect or help) | agir dans l'intérêt de vi |
| An attorney will always act in the best interests of her client. |
| Un avocat agit toujours dans l'intérêt de son client. |
| Acts of the Apostles | npl | (Bible: New Testament book) Bible | Actes des apôtres nmpl |
| For the second reading, the Lector read from the Acts of the Apostles. |
| La deuxième lecture fut tirée des Actes des apôtres. |
| add fuel to the fire | v | figurative (exacerbate the issue) expr | jeter⇒, mettre de l'huile sur le feu vtr |
| Shouting at angry pupils is only likely to add fuel to the fire. |
| add the sound track | | un film | sonoriser v |
| affair of the heart | n | (love affair, romantic involvement) | affaire de cœur nf |
| Romance novels describe affairs of the heart. |
| afraid of the dark | adj | (scared of darkness) | avoir peur du noir v |
| She kept a nightlight on because she was afraid of the dark. |
| L'enfant ne veut pas que sa mère ferme la porte de sa chambre car il a peur du noir. |
| after the fact | adj | (added after a matter seemed concluded) | postérieurement adv |
| Conditions added to a contract after the fact are invalid unless both parties agree to them. |
| after the Fall | | | après la chute nf |
| after the flood | | | après le déluge |
| after the war | | | après la guerre |
| against all the evidence | | | contre toute évidence loc |
| against the clock | adv | (under pressure of time) | contre la montre loc adv |
| It's seems as though I am always working against the clock! These deadlines are ridiculous. |
| against the current | | | à contre-courant |
| against the flow | adv | (opposite the current) | à contre-courant adv |
| She set her kayak against the flow and began to paddle upstream. |
| against the flow | adv | (against general movement) | à contre-courant adv |
| As the crowd of lemmings moved toward the cliff, a single animal went against the flow, heading back to the tundra. |
| against the flow | adv | (contrary to conventional opinion) | à contre-courant adv |
| All my friends are going to college next year, but I'm going against the flow and attending a technical school. |
| against the grain | | | à contre-courant |
| against the grain | | | en travers |
| against the law | adj | (illegal) | illégal adj |
| Smoking marijuana is against the law. |
| Vendre de la marijuana est illégal. |
| against the law | adv | (illegally) | illégalement adv |
| He was driving against the law as he had just guzzled down seven pints of beer. |
| | | en infraction |
| Il était en infraction conduisant après avoir bu sept whiskys. |
| against the sun | | | contre le soleil |
| against the tide | | | contre vents et marées |
| against the tide | | | à contre-courant |
| against the wind | | | contre le vent |
| ahead of the game | | | bien placé |
| all along the line | | | tout le long de la ligne phrase |
| all for the best | | | pour le mieux phrase |
| all in the mind | | | psychologique adj |
| all over the map | adv | (in many places) | un peu partout adv |
| When he looked up the nearest ATM, they came up all over the map. |
| | | dans tous les coins adv |
| | | à chaque coin de rue adv |
| On trouve des coiffeurs à chaque coin de rue. |
| all over the place | adv | (in many places) | partout adv |
| There is dust all over the place; I really need to clean house! |
| He scattered the toys all over the place. |
| Il y a de la poussière partout : il faut vraiment que je fasse le ménage ! |
| | | dans tous les coins loc adv |
| Il traîne des mégots dans tous les coins de la cave de l'immeuble. |
| all over the world | adv | (in many countries) | dans le monde entier adv |
| Santa Claus is known all over the world. |
| Il a voyagé dans le monde entier. |
| all the | | | tout le |
| all the best | adv | (regards, best wishes) | tous mes vœux |
| I wish you all the best in your new career. |
| Tous mes vœux pour ton nouvel emploi ! |
| | formule de politesse | bien à vous |
| all the better | | | pour le mieux phrase |
| all the better | | | pour mieux phrase |
| all the better for | | | d'autant mieux |
| all the comforts of home | npl | (amenities, facilities) | tout confort loc adj |
| The hotel room has all the comforts of home. |
| Cet hôtel est tout confort. |
| all the day long | | | toute la journée adv |
| all the days of your life | npl | (for the rest of your life) | chaque jour que Dieu fait loc adv |
| Arrête de penser à la faillite de ton ancienne entreprise chaque jour que Dieu fait. |
| all the more | adv | (even more) | d'autant plus loc adv |
| Crying in front of her embarrassed him, but it made her love him all the more. |
| Pleurer devant elle l'embarrassait, mais ça la faisait l'aimer d'autant plus. |
| all the more so | | | d'autant plus que |
| all the rage | adj | (very popular, in fashion) | faire fureur loc v |
| Polka dots are all the rage this season. |
| Les minijupes ont fait fureur dans les années 60. |
| all the same | adv | (even so) | malgré tout loc adv |
| Max promised to change, but all the same I decided to end the relationship. |
| Max a promis de changer mais j'ai décidé de le quitter malgré tout. |
| | | quand même loc adv |
| Max a promis de changer mais j'ai décidé de le quitter quand même. |
| all the thing | | | le dernier cri nm |
| all the time | adv | (always) | tout le temps adv |
| I help people all the time. |
| Arrête de critiquer ton frère tout le temps. |
| | | en permanence adv |
| En Angleterre, il pleut en permanence. |
| all the way | adv | informal (to the end, through to completion) | jusqu'à loc prép |
| This train goes all the way to Grand Central Station. |
| Ce train va jusqu'à la Gare Centrale. |
| all the way | adv | slang (go all the way: have sex) fig | jusqu'au bout loc adv |
| Tu crois que ce joueur de foot est allé jusqu'au bout avec cette mineure ? |
| all the way to | adv | (during the entire journey to) | pendant tout le chemin jusqu'à |
| We had to listen to him snore all the way from New York to Rome. |
| Nous avons dû l'écouter ronfler pendant tout le chemin jusqu'à Rome. |
| all the while | adv | (at the same time, meanwhile) | pendant tout ce temps adv |
| He said he was working hard at the univeristy but all the while he was going to the race track. |
| all the world | | | le monde entier nm |
| all the year round | | | toute l'année phrase |
| all through the night | adv | (throughout the night) | toute la nuit adv |
| All through the night we could hear the loud music from the floor above. |
| | | tout au long de la nuit adv |
| all to the good | | | pour le mieux phrase |
| along the length | | | dans la longueur |
| along the length of | prep | (all along, alongside) | tout le long de prép |
| She had strung minirature lights along the length of the patio for the party. |
| Des bacs de fleurs sont disposés tout le long de la terrasse. |
| | | d'un bout à l'autre de prép |
| Des bacs de fleurs sont disposés d'un bout à l'autre de la terrasse. |
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