Lingua Flowing
French idioms

What does “Être à côté de la plaque” mean?

FrenchEveryday lifeInformal

Être à côté de la plaque

Word for word

To be beside the plate

What it really means

To be completely mistaken or talking about something else entirely. It also describes someone switched off who has not grasped the context.

How we say it in English

To be wide of the mark

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