Literal Translation
To sell the bear’s pelt before having killed it
Actual Meaning
Put the horses before the cart
Etymology
This expression comes from an old proverb: ‘il ne fault marchander la peau de l’ours devant que la beste soit morte.’
But it was Jean de La Fontaine who popularised this proverb in his fable ‘The Bear and the Two Companions’ (Book V – Fable 2, 1668; ‘Never sell the bear’s skin before you have killed it.’) He was inspired by a fable by Aesop (Greek author, 7th century – 6th century BC) ‘Of Two Friends and the Bear’ translated by Laurent Abstemius, a Renaissance critic.
Frederick III, Emperor of Germany, is said to have told this fable to an ambassador of Louis XI after the latter had proposed to him that the possessions of Charles the Bold (King of Spain) be divided between France and Germany.
We also say “mettre les bœufs devant la charrue”.