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French Expressions
| Literal meaning | to put the finger | |
| Register | normal, informal | |
| Pronunciation |  |
[meh tr(eu) leu dwa] |
| IPA | [mɛ tʁə lə dwa] | |
Usage notes: Mettre le doigt can be used literally to talk about putting a finger over the hole of a musical instrument, such as a flute or trumpet, but it’s more commonly used in one of several idiomatic French expressions:
1) Mettre le doigt sur le problème / Mettre le doigt sur la difficulté
To put one’s finger on the problem / difficulty, to figure out a problem / difficulty
| Nous avons enfin mis le doigt sur le problème. | We finally figured out the problem. |
2) Mettre le doigt dans l’engrenage
To get involved
Literally, "To put the finger in the gears"
| Je ne veux pas mettre le doigt dans l’engrenage. | I don’t want to get involved. |
3) Mettre le doigt sur la plaie
To touch/hit a (raw) nerve, to mention a sensitive subject
Literally, "To put the finger on the wound"
| Avec ma question innocente, j’ai mis le doigt sur la plaie par hasard. | With my innocent question, I inadvertently hit a nerve. |
4) Se mettre le doigt dans l’œil (jusqu’au coude)
Informal: To be kidding oneself, to have another think coming
Literally, "To put one’s finger in one’s eye [up to the elbow]"
| Elle se mettait le doigt dans l’œil. | She was kidding herself. |
Variation: se fourrer le doigt dans l’œil
5) Entre l’arbre et l’écorce il ne faut pas mettre le doigt.
Proverb: Don’t meddle in other people’s business.
Literally, "Between the tree and the bark you mustn’t put your finger."
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