French Phrase of the day: Mettre la puce à l'oreille
Why do I need to know mettre la puce à l'oreille?
Once you know this expression, it will come up in more social situations than you think, whether you want to subtly warn a friend about something or notice someone acting off.
What does it mean?
Mettre la puce à l'oreille
, roughly pronounced met-ruh lah poos ah lor-ay, literally translates to to put a flea in somebody's ear.
However, it really means to make someone suspicious or cause them to worry about something. You might come across this expression in the news or a true crime story where someone comes across a clue or suspect.
There isn't quite an English equivalent to this phrase, but the closest ones would be to put an idea in someone's head, to raise suspicions or tip someone off.
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English does have a phrase 'to give someone a flea in their ear' - but the meaning is different to the French version, referring to telling someone off, scolding them or generally giving them a piece of your mind. The most common use would be "I sent him/her away with a flea in his/her ear".
Mettre la puce à l'oreille
first appeared in France in the 13th century, at a time when fleas were a part of daily life for many people. At that time, the expression meant to provoke or romantically desire someone.
It was only in the 17th century that the idiom began to be used in its current meaning.
Fleas do still have a romantic connotation, though -
ma puce
(my flea) is a common pet name, usually used between lovers.
READ ALSO
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Language of love - 15 of the best romantic French phrases✎
Use it like this
Le fait qu'elle ait changé son histoire à plusieurs reprises devrait vous mettre la puce à l'oreille
- The fact that she changed her story several times should make you suspicious.
Ne dis rien à la police qui pourrait leur mettre la puce à l'oreille
– Don't say anything to the police that might tip them off.
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