Literal translation
he has more pennies than a dog has fleas
Meaning
he's extremely wealthy
Explanation
This comparison marks a wealth judged considerable, drawing on an image taken from everyday rural life. The word rendered as pennies literally means ground or soil, but is commonly used, as in French, for small change, for money in general. The second term of the comparison evokes a flea-ridden dog, a familiar and rather unappealing reality of the old Provençal countryside, where domestic animals were rarely spared. The expression thus implies a quantity of coins as uncountable, as hard to tally, as the fleas infesting a poorly kept dog. The image works through comic exaggeration, rooted in a trivial, animal-related register, giving the remark a popular, somewhat cheeky flavour. It is used to describe, with a touch of irony or envy, someone's abundant fortune, though not necessarily as a compliment: the exaggeration sometimes suggests a wealth that is almost embarrassing in its excess.