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Informal French Expression
| Meaning | to lose it, freak out, go ballistic | |
| Literally | to burst a cable | |
| Register | informal | |
| Pronunciation |  |
[pay tay oo(n) kahbl] |
| IPA | [pe te œ̃ kablə] | |
Usage notes: The informal* meaning of the French verb péter is "burst, pop, snap," and this is the key to understanding the French expression péter un câble (as well as several synonyms). When a person gets really angry and has a fit, the French say that he "bursts a cable," which always makes me think of that vein you sometimes see throbbing on a furious person’s temple.
Par exemple…
| Quand il a entendu la nouvelle, il a pété un câble. | When he heard the news, he went ballistic. | |
| Je commence à péter un câble ! | I’m starting to freak out! |
Synonyms
- disjoncter – literally, "to disconnect, trip a breaker"
- exploser de colère – "to explode with anger"
- péter une durite – “to burst a radiator hose”
- péter les plombs – “to blow the fuses”
- péter un plomb – “to blow a fuse”
- piquer une crise – “to provoke a crisis”
* Péter also has a familiar meaning that can only be used intransitively (without a direct object): "to pass gas, fart."
Conjugations: Péter is a stem-changing verb.
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