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panier de crabes. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
panier de crabes, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
panier de crabes in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
panier de crabes you have here. The definition of the word
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panier de crabes, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
French
Etymology
Literally, “basket of crabs”.
Pronunciation
Noun
panier de crabes m (plural paniers de crabes)
- rat race; any organization where people metaphorically claw at one another to come out on top
1888, Maurice Thompson, The Story of Louisiana, D. Lothrop company, page 204:
1945, Jacques Maritain, Pour la justice: Articles Et Discours (1940–1945), Éditions de la Maison française, page 188:
1988, Elie Fournier, La guerre de Vendée n'aura pas lieu, Editions Uinversitaires, →ISBN, page 268:Marat, envolé au Panthéon des grands hommes, a laissé après lui sur terre une Assemblée dont il avait fait un panier de crabes.- (please add an English translation of this quotation)
1970, Albert Merglen, La naissance des mercenaires, Arthaud, page 135:
Usage notes
This idiom is not generally used with "ouvrir". The phrase "ouvrir un panier de crabes" is a conflation of this idiom with the different idiom "ouvrir une boîte de Pandore" ("to open Pandora's box, a can of worms").