take+French+leave

  • 11French leave —    unauthorized absence    Originally of a soldier, implying a propensity in French soldiers for desertion. Some civilian and figurative use:     We could still, if we wished, take French leave of Vietnam. (M. McCarthy, 1967) …

    How not to say what you mean: A dictionary of euphemisms

  • 12French leave — {n.} The act of slipping away from a place secretly and without saying good bye to anyone. * / It s getting late, Rob whispered to Janet. Let s take French leave and get out of here. / …

    Dictionary of American idioms

  • 13French leave — {n.} The act of slipping away from a place secretly and without saying good bye to anyone. * / It s getting late, Rob whispered to Janet. Let s take French leave and get out of here. / …

    Dictionary of American idioms

  • 14French\ leave — noun the act of slipping away from a place secretly and without saying good bye to anyone. It s getting late, Rob whispered to Janet. Let s take French leave and get out of here …

    Словарь американских идиом

  • 15French leave — Leave Leave, n. [OE. leve, leave, AS. le[ a]f; akin to le[ o]f pleasing, dear, E. lief, D. oorlof leave, G. arlaub, and erlauben to permit, Icel. leyfi. [root]124. See {Lief}.] 1. Liberty granted by which restraint or illegality is removed;… …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 16French leave — is Leave of absence without permission or without announcing one s departure , [ Brewer s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (Millennium Edition; London: Cassell, 1999)] including leaving a party without bidding farewell to the host. The intent… …

    Wikipedia

  • 17French — (adj.) O.E. frencisc of the Franks, from Franca (see FRANK (Cf. Frank)). The noun is from O.E. Frencisc. As the name of a language, from late 13c. Euphemistic meaning bad language (pardon my French) is from 1895. Used in many combination words,… …

    Etymology dictionary

  • 18leave — 1 /li:v/ verb past tense and past participle left LEAVE A PLACE, VEHICLE 1 LEAVE (I, T) to go away from a place or a person: What time did you leave the office? | They were so noisy that the manager asked them to leave. (+ for): They re leaving… …

    Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • 19French — 1 noun 1 the language of France, and some other countries: How do you ask for directions in French? 2 the language and literature of France as a subject of study: She s studying French at London University. 3 the French the people of France: The… …

    Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • 20French — I UK [frentʃ] / US noun 1) [uncountable] the language that people speak in France, Belgium, and several other countries Max speaks fluent French. The people here have French as a second language. 2) the French the people of France. You refer to… …

    English dictionary