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Informal French Expression
| Meaning | to be a big hit, very successful | |
| Literally | to make a storm | |
| Register | informal | |
| Pronunciation |  |
[feh roo(n) tah bah] |
| IPA | [fɛ ʁœ̃ ta ba] | |
Usage notes: The French expression faire un tabac evolved along a somewhat roundabout path that has nothing to do with tobacco. Tabac has another, less common meaning: battle, volley of blows. Sailors refer to a sudden, violent storm as un coup de tabac due to the similarity between the noise of battle and thunder. A similar sound is found in the theater: le tonnerre d’applaudissements, which of course is only heard during a very successful performance. Thus, faire un tabac means "to be very successful, to be a big hit" and is not limited to the theater.
Par exemple…
| Sa nouvelle pièce fait un tabac ! | His new play is a big hit! | |
| Ce film a fait un tabac en Europe. | This movie was very successful in Europe. | |
| Je suis sûr que cette chanson va faire un tabac. | I’m sure this song is going to be a big hit. |
In fact, it’s not even limited to performances:
| On peut jouer au Pictionary lors de la fête, ça fait toujours un tabac. | We could play Pictionary at the party, that’s always a big hit. | |
| Ma tarte au citron a fait un tabac ! | My lemon pie was a big hit! |
Synonyms
- avoir beaucoup de succès
- connaître un grand succès
- faire fureur
- obtenir un franc succès
- remporter un franc succès
(informal) - casser la baraque
- faire un carton
- faire un malheur
Related expressions
- Quel tabac ! – What a hit!
- passer quelqu’un à tabac – to beat someone up
- tabasser (informal) – to beat someone up
- se faire tabasser* (inf) – to get beat up
Related lessons
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