How do you say “Fly off the handle” in French?
The closest natural French equivalent is sortir de ses gonds, which literally means “to come off one's hinges”. English speakers use fly off the handle to mean to suddenly become very angry and react without much self-control. A close match with a different image: a door coming off its hinges. Register: informal. Usage frequency: common.
Closest natural French
sortir de ses gonds
/sɔʁtiʁ də se ɡɔ̃/
- Literal meaning
- “to come off one's hinges”
- Register
- informal
- How often it's used
- common
- Equivalence
Near-exact equivalent
95 out of 100
What a native French speaker would actually say
French pictures a door coming off its hinges. Like the English phrase, it describes anger rather than the tears or laughter that “lose it” can also mean.
The words change with the speaker: “Je suis sorti de mes gonds” means “I flew off the handle.” “S'emporter” is a simpler alternative.
How close is the meaning?
- Meaning5 out of 5
- Tone5 out of 5
- Context5 out of 5
- Literal similarity3 out of 5
These ratings are editorial approximations, not measurements.
What are other ways to say it in French?
s'emporter
Literally: “to be carried away”
A simple verb for getting angry.
piquer une colère
Literally: “to have a fit of anger”
Often suggests a sudden tantrum-like episode.
In context
English
He flew off the handle when I mentioned the mistake.
French
Il est sorti de ses gonds quand j'ai mentionné l'erreur.
English
Don't fly off the handle before you've heard the explanation.
French
Ne t'emporte pas avant d'avoir entendu l'explication.
Related expressions
- What “Fly off the handle” means in English
- Lose it, Suddenly lose emotional control.
- Drive someone up the wall, Make someone extremely annoyed.
Last updated 2026-09-16