Mon menu va vous en mettre plein la vue

Question

OK, here goes my attempt at a literal breakdown of this idiomatic turn of phrase. "The menu is going to put you in full view of all there is." So, what exactly does "en" mean or refer to in this sentence? If the contraction "en" were not used, how would the sentence appear?: "Mon menu va vous mettre plein la vue de ...(quoi)"?

Accepted Answer

Hi Sean, 
The expression 'en mettre plein la vue' is idiomatic and would translate as 'to impress or to dazzle'. The 'en' is idiomatic, here.
Take a look at my answer to a similar question -
https://french.kwiziq.com/questions/view/strange-use-of-en
Hope this helps!

Answer

Just because it's idiomatic doesn't mean it can't be explained, of course. However it may take some research to find out what that "en" originally referred to. Maybe you can work it out from this article, but I'm not sure.

https://www.expressio.fr/expressions/en-mettre-plein-la-vue

Answer

Cecile:Thank you.  I have seen that answer before, but the use of "y" and "en" make more sense to me in those examples.  "Je m'en vais" - I am making myself go from here.  "Tu m'en veux" - You want me for (doing) that.  Although "Je n'en peux plus" - I can't (take) more of that.  All the idioms using basic verbs like faire, pouvoir, mettre, connaitre plus y and en are the sayings that sound the most "French" to a foreigner like me and pose a lot of difficulty memorizing.

Answer

Alan, thanks for the article.  I read it.  It makes a lot of sense.