The only fly in the ointment

Anita P.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

The only fly in the ointment

I didn’t have a clue what the colloquial for “The only fly in the ointment” was, so I had a wee search online and one suggestion was “Un seul cheval dans la soupe”, which made me laugh so I used that. I know you marked me wrong in favour of “La seule ombre au tableau”, but can the used ?

This question relates to:French writing exercise "Gluten-free living"

Freeform Writing Exercise C1

Asked 5 years ago
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CécileKwiziq team memberCorrect answer

Hi Anita,

Do you mean 'cheveu' rather than 'cheval'? 

There are several expressions for 'the only fly in the ointment' including -

Le seul petit hic/ l'ombre au tableau /le seul écueil/accroc restant 

and

cheveu dans la soupe ...

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Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

The horse in the soup (le cheval dans la soupe) would be more like the elephant in the room rather than the fly in the ointment.

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Anita P. asked:View original

The only fly in the ointment

I didn’t have a clue what the colloquial for “The only fly in the ointment” was, so I had a wee search online and one suggestion was “Un seul cheval dans la soupe”, which made me laugh so I used that. I know you marked me wrong in favour of “La seule ombre au tableau”, but can the used ?

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