au pied
The English command 'heel' to a dog is translated into French as au pied.
This phrase is used as a command to tell a dog to walk closely beside its owner's heels.
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, au pied means 'at the foot'.
Did you know?
- The French word pied shares a common ancient root with the Persian word pâ and the Lithuanian word pėda.
- In French, the word pied is used in dozens of idioms that have nothing to do with anatomy, such as mettre le pied à l'étrier, which means to get a start in a career.
- While au pied is the standard command, French owners may use à gauche if they want the dog to specifically stay on the left side, as 'heel' in English can sometimes be ambiguous.
Examples in context
- Viens au pied !Come to heel!
- Viens, au pied !Come, heel!
- Il marche bien au pied.He walks well at heel.
- Tu dois lui dire 'au pied'.You have to tell him 'heel'.
Example conversation
Manon and Nathan are walking their dog in the park.
- ManonLe chien tire trop sur la laisse.The dog is pulling too much on the leash.
- NathanJe vais lui dire : au pied !I will tell him: heel!
- ManonÇa a marché, il est calme.It worked, he is calm.
- NathanIl écoute bien aujourd'hui.He is listening well today.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pied, CC BY-SA 4.0.
