FRENCH WORD-A-DAY

      
  Je gratte, tu grattes, ils grattent... chickens in the Luberon (photo by JM)

Your book orders are helpful in maintaining this French language quotidien.* Thank you for visiting the "Books" section in the right hand column.

gratter (gra-tay) verb
  1. to scratch or scrape
  2. to strum (guitar)
  3. to strike (match)

Hear the verb gratter pronounced: Download gratter.wav

Also:
le gratte-ciel = skyscraper
le gratte-dos = backscratcher
le gratte-papier = penpusher
le gratte-pieds = shoe-scraper

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Expressions:
ça me gratte = it itches
une gratte = a guitar (slang)
faire de la gratte = to make an illicit profit
gratter quelques francs = to earn a bit on the side
gratter les fonds du tiroir = to scrape the bottom of the barrel
tu peux te gratter = (you can scratch yourself) = forget about it! go on and dream!

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Proverb:
Gratte mon dos et je gratterai le tien.
Scratch my back and I'll scratch yours.

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A Day in a French Life....

(Don't miss the story that originally appeared here, now a part of this book!)

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*References:
le quotidien (m) = daily (newspaper);
la pelouse (f) = grass;
Manou = endearment for the name "Emmanuelle";
le gazon (m) = grass or lawn;
for-me-dah-bluh (pronounciation for "formidable") adj = great;
le paysage (m) = landscape;
tchatcher = to chat;
une chaise longue (f) = a deck chair;
gratte for it (franglais) = scrape (save) or work for it

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Quand la démangeaison d'écrire saisit un homme, rien ne peut le guérir que le grattement de la plume. / When the itch to write seizes a man, nothing can cure him except the scratching of a pen. --Samuel Lover

Dictionary of French Slang and Colloquial Expressions lists approximately 4,500 common slang words and colloquial expressions. Entries include grammatical information, the definition in English, a sentence or phrase to illustrate usage, and an English translation of the example and, where applicable, a corresponding English slang expression. Each entry also identifies the word or phrase by type: student or youth slang, political slang, literary slang, and criminal and drug-related slang.