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Discover the French idiom "C'est pas tes oignons"

Are you ready to discover all the things you ever wanted to know about the funny expression "C'est pas tes oignons"? It includes a detailed explanation of what it is and how you can use it in a conversation with an audio example. And because we want to help you on your learning journey, we also added useful stuff like dialogue example, slow pronunciation audio, synonym and more!


Translation in English

  • Translation : None of your business

  • Literal meaning : It's not your onions

  • Register : Informal - Funny

Pronunciation example

Slow

Normal

  • IPA : / sɛ pa tez‿ ɔɲɔ̃ /

aesthetic french quote pas tes oignons

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What does it mean?

Definition

The literal meaning is:

 

This French saying is a way to express "Mind your own business / It's none of your business". Because it's informal, the closest expression in English would be "None of your beeswax".

But what's the link with onions?!

This expression comes from the 20th century, where the term "Oignon" (Onion) was slang for both the feet and the ass. It also referred to a mark of independence from women who had a piece of land to grow their onions and sell them.

So "C'est pas tes oignons" became a way to say "Mind your own business. My onion(s), my life".

How to use it

Use it like you would use "Mind your own business" in English, but beware that it's familiar, so avoid using it in formal situations. For a formal version, I recommend you to use "Ça ne vous concerne pas" (It doesn't concern you).

Synonyms

 

Example in a dialogue with French audio

Dialogue

Ton premier rendez-vous s'est bien passé ?

Did your first date went well?

C'est pas tes oignons

It's not your onions*

Je suis désolé

I'm sorry

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