All about the French expression "Poser un lapin"

We are going to show you everything you ever wanted to know about the funny expression "Poser un lapin". To be more specific, it includes a detailed explanation of what it is and how to use it in a conversation with an audio example. Plus, we also added some useful things like slow pronunciation audio, dialogue example, synonyms and more!

Translation in English

Translation : To stand someone up
Literal meaning : To put a rabbit
Register : Informal - Funny

How to pronounce

Slow

Normal

IPA : / poze ɛ̃ lapɛ̃ /

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What does poser un lapin mean?

Definition

It literally means:

Poser→ To put
un → a
lapin → rabbit

The origin of this saying is quite unclear, one theory is that back in time, an incredible and fictional story was called "un lapin" (a rabbit). Then, with time, the expression "Poser un lapin" (To put a rabbit) became a way to say "To stand someone up", because the story of the date was a lie: a rabbit.

So "Poser un lapin" (To put a rabbit) nowadays basically means: "To not go on a date without telling the person who is expecting us".

How to use it

If someone stood you up, you can say: "Il/Elle m'a posé un lapin" (He/She put me a rabbit).

But instead, if you didn't show up to your date, you can say: "Je lui ai posé un lapin" (I put him/her a rabbit)

Synonyms

Faire faux bond → To let down
Ne pas se pointer → To not show up (Informal)

Example in a dialogue with French audio

Dialogue

Ton premier rendez-vous s'est bien passé ?

Did your first date went well?

Non, il m'a posé un lapin...

No, he put me a rabbit...*

Je suis désolé pour toi

I'm sorry for you