What does “mettre le pied à l’étrier” mean in French?

“Mettre le pied à l’étrier à quelqu’un” means to help someone get started — to launch a career or a venture. The image is horseback riding: an “étrier” is a stirrup, and you steady it so the rider can hoist themselves into the saddle. The nuance matters: you help them begin, you don’t do the whole journey for them. It’s the perfect phrase for a mentor, a first boss, or the teacher who spotted your talent.

Use it like: “C’est ce professeur qui lui a mis le pied à l’étrier.” The stirrup served as a kind of step or short ladder up onto the horse, so the metaphor frames help as that decisive first boost. The word “étrier” goes back to medieval French; the figurative “leg up” sense settled in around the 18th century. A related idiom, “avoir le pied à l’étrier,” means to be all set to go.