On this page, we are going to teach you everything you need to know about the funny idiom "C'est pas la mer à boire". More precisely, this includes a complete definition of what it is and how you can use it in a normal conversation with an audio example. And that's not all, we also added some useful things like slow pronunciation audio, synonym, dialogue example and more!
Translation : I'm not asking the impossible
Literal meaning : It's not the sea to drink
Register : Informal - Funny
Slow
Normal
IPA : / sɛ pa la mɛʁ a bwaʁ /
I don't know for you, but for me drinking the whole sea sounds, at least, like an extraordinarily laborious task... The expression "C'est pas la mer à boire" helps to put things in perspective.
Whatever you are trying to do, it's not as difficult as drinking the sea. That's why we use it when talking about something very simple, easy or obvious, to make the comparison clear.
Well, when it comes to using this expression: "C'est pas la mer à boire" (It's not as difficult as drinking the sea).
Simply replace any mention of "It's super easy" or "It's really simple/obvious" by "C'est pas la mer à boire" and you are done.
Dialogue
C'est dur d'apprendre le Français ?
Is it hard to learn French?
Non. C'est pas la mer à boire
No. It's not the sea to drink*
Je commence aujourd'hui alors !
I'm starting right now then!
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