Meaningto be quick off the mark, to move at lightning speedLiterallyto shoot faster than his shadowRegisterinformalPronunciation[tee ray plu veet keu soh nonbreu]IPA[ti ʀe ply vit kə so nɔ̃brə]Usage notes How can someone shoot more quickly than his shadow? Obviously, a normal person can’t, but Lucky Luke is anything but normal! This cowboy from the American Old West is the star of his own eponymous Belgian comic-book series. Created in 1946, Lucky Luke, which is pronounced [lu kee luk], is such a famously quick draw that he shoots faster than his own shadow, c’est l’homme qui tire plus vite que son ombre.*While this isn’t a French idiom you’ll use or even hear every day, it’s a fun one to know and can be used with other verbs to talk about anything that happens very exemple…tirer plus vite que son ombre to shoot quickly, to be quick off the markmarcher plus vite que son ombre to walk very quickly, at lightning speedécrire plus vite que son ombre to write with the pen racing over the paper Conseil concisAs always, the possessive adjective son has to change to agree with the subject of the sentence; joues du piano plus vite que ton ombre ! Your fingers fly over the piano keys!* Another French expression from comic books tomber dans la marmite Related lessonsTirer conjugationsComparisonsPossessive adjectivesJuste pour rireLucky Luke official sitePeut-on tirer plus vite que son ombre ? video