bercé trop près du mur
The English phrase "nincompoop" can be translated into French in several ways, such as bercé trop près du mur. If unsure, use bercé trop près du mur. Wiktionary also lists démoulé trop tôt and mal cuit.
Meaning: foolish or silly person (noun)
Ways to say it
| French | IPA |
|---|---|
| bercé trop près du mur | |
| démoulé trop tôt | |
| mal cuit | |
| nigaud | /ni.ɡo/ |
These terms are used to describe a foolish, silly or dim-witted person.
Which one should you use?
The phrase bercé trop près du mur implies that a person's flaws or lack of intelligence are the result of how they were raised or brought up. In contrast, nigaud is a more direct, standard term for a simpleton or a silly person. Other options include démoulé trop tôt and mal cuit.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The term nigaud is a milder, slightly old-fashioned and playful way to call someone a fool. For more informal and sharper insults, you might use crétin to mean someone is silly or foolish or abruti to describe a numskull or blockhead.
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun nigaud is masculine. To refer to a foolish woman, you can use the feminine form nigaude.
Did you know?
- Calling someone démoulé trop tôt suggests they were 'unmoulded too early', much like a pastry or jelly that lost its shape before it was ready.
- The phrase bercé trop près du mur translates literally to 'rocked too close to the wall', suggesting that a person's foolishness is a result of their upbringing.
- The word cuit in the phrase mal cuit comes from the Latin coctus, which means both 'cooked' and 'ripened'.
Examples in context
- Tu te comportes comme un imbécile.You're behaving like a nincompoop.
- Je ne peux pas travailler avec quelqu'un d'aussi inepte.I can't work with someone so incompetent.
- Arrête d'être un crétin et aide-moi !Stop being a nincompoop and help me out!
- Il est toujours en train de faire des bêtises, c'est un abruti.He's always up to mischief, he's a blockhead.
Example conversation
Lucas accidentally puts the salt in his coffee.
- ChloéLucas, qu'est-ce que tu as fait ?Lucas, what did you do?
- LucasJe me suis trompé de pot.I grabbed the wrong jar.
- ChloéTu es vraiment bercé trop près du mur !You really are a nincompoop!
- LucasD'accord, je vais tout recommencer.Okay, I'll start all over again.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “nincompoop” translations and entries nigaud, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cuit, du, mal, mur, près, trop, tôt, CC BY-SA 4.0.
