h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

This phrase means literally to pee into a violin, and figuratively, to do something that is going to prove totally useless. So you could says that responding to trolls is like "pisser dans un violon", and achieves nothing.

Not elegant, but not obscene, in current usage in this household.

This is really useful. All I was taught in French was how to say "the pen is on the table" and where the tourist information office/ hospital was and stuff like that which isn't really useful if trying to have a conversation in French.

Better than what I was taught Moo, which largely amounted to asking French people if they could speak French,"pisser dans un violon" you might well say.

Martine,

How much more elegant the French " pee into a violin " is than the English equivalent "p*ss against the wall".

The English phrases I'm familiar with are "pissing into the wind" (achieves nothing) "pissing it away" (wasting money on drink). If you piss into the violin don't you ruin it?

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Quite. And the cost of violins today.

Seriously Martine, if I had read this unforewarned, I would have assumed there was an implication of despoiling something precious or of fine potential.

pj

We French are pragmatic, unsentimental people; we only mean it doesn't produce good music.

Only just discovered these posts - Martine, I feel inspired!

Alas, a tad late on the violin front, I fear.

Katy

Showed your piece to teenage fiddle-player (and gcse french candidate).
Response that maybe this was Stradivarius' long-buried secret. Don't try this one at home chidren.

pj