Vinegar : nm Le vinaigre is a liquid obtained from wine or an alcoholic solution modified by acetic fermentation, and used as a seasoning, as a condiment.
Turn to vinegar: turn bad, get worse (like sour wine); get spoiled ; to go badly, to evolve badly, to become
dangerous, get worse, when the going gets really bad.
To have it vinegar: to have it bad.
It turns out (to) vinegar: it turns out badly.
You don't catch (catch) flies with vinegar: you don't succeed through harshness, you don't attract people by treating them like that. : you don't get anything from anyone by being disagreeable.
Vinegar ! : exclamation of the slang of children, boys and girls, when they jump rope, in order to accelerate the movement. Great vinegar! The superlative of speed.
Forty Thieves Vinegar: crystallized acetic acid.
Vinegar from the four merchants: acetic acid.
Make vinegar: hurry; to do quickly.
Fat like a liter of vinegar: very lean.
Making vinegar: causing scandal
Shout it out: shout at someone; cry for help, call for help
Pissing vinegar: cranky, morose, sad person.
Vinegar puller: prostitute, woman of bad morals.
The metaphor is much more explicit: to coax, conquer, make someone obey (the fly), it is better to use gentleness or kindness (honey), than wickedness or force (vinegar).
Quote from the French humorist Pierre Dac (1893-1975) "You don't catch riverboats with vinegar, especially on a sea of oil" in Eternal thoughts.