Idiom
French leave
Meaning
A departure taken quietly and unnoticed, without asking for permission or informing anyone.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“He took French leave when the party became too boring.”
“The employee took French leave during the meeting because he had an urgent personal matter to attend to.”
“Disenchanted by the tedious nature of the gala, the diplomat took French leave, slipping out through the side door before the speeches began.”
Examples
simple
“He took French leave when the party became too boring.”
contextual
“The employee took French leave during the meeting because he had an urgent personal matter to attend to.”
complex
“Disenchanted by the tedious nature of the gala, the diplomat took French leave, slipping out through the side door before the speeches began.”
Origin
The term dates to the 18th century and is said to originate from a French social custom of departing a reception without formally taking leave of the host or hostess. By omitting the ceremony of the farewell, the guest avoided the inconvenience of a prolonged exit. The English attributed the habit to the French, resulting in the phrase French leave, and the Spanish and Portuguese followed suit with *irse a la francesa* and *sair à francesa*.
The French, however, returned the compliment. In a display of continental disagreement, the French term for such a departure is *filer à l’anglaise*, or leaving in the English manner. This attribution to English manners is shared by the Italian *filarsela all'inglese* and the Polish *wyjść po angielsku*, suggesting that the identity of the person slipping out the back door depends entirely on who is watching them leave.
Key words
Related idioms
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