French Expression of the Day: Naîre avant la honte
Do you want a truly epic condemnation for a person (or football club)?
Do you want a truly epic condemnation for a person (or football club)?
It's a funny expression that might come up in French media or even in every day conversations.
The French expression naître avant la honte, roughly pronounced neh-truh ah-vahn lah ohnt , literally translates to "to be born before shame". It is a humorous and sarcastic expression used to describe someone who seems to have been born without any sense of shame or embarrassment.
It is often said about someone who has the nerve to do something outrageous, or seems completely unbothered by what other people think. Depending on the context, it can be teasing or quite critical.
When talking about someone with no shame, you use the grammatical form: né(e) avant la honte .
Elle a demandé un remboursement après avoir utilisé le produit pendant six mois. Elle est née avant la honte ! - She asked for a refund after using the product for six months. She has some nerve!
Il drague tout le monde sans se poser de questions, il est né avant la honte . - He flirts with everyone without a second thought. He has no shame.
Manchester City, ce club de “méchants nés avant la honte”, de retour sur les terrains ( Courrier International ) - Original title in English: Shame? Man City don’t know the meaning of the word ( The Daily Telegraph )
