ne pas se bousculer au portillon
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French
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Literally, “not to jostle at the gate”.
Pronunciation
[edit]- IPA(key): /nə pa s(ə) bus.ky.le.ʁ‿o pɔʁ.ti.jɔ̃/ ~ /nə pɑ s(ə) bus.ky.le.ʁ‿o pɔʁ.ti.jɔ̃/
Audio (Paris): (file)
Verb
[edit]ne pas se bousculer au portillon
- (figuratively, informal, of people) not to line up, not to queue up, not to crowd in, not to fall over each other (with the implied meaning that something meets with little success)
Usage notes
[edit]- Chiefly used in the negative.
- Often used as an impersonal verb: ça ne se bouscule pas au portillon, "people are not exactly lining up".