Note: many of these words have further meanings; these are just the meanings of them that I learned at the time!
Dandiner = To waddle
Dégringoler = To tumble down, to fall from a great height (dégringolade = fall, tumble)
Étreindre = to embrace in your arms , to hug, to clasp (in some scenarios, can also mean “to choke” as in an oppressive feeling)
Épopée = epic poem, saga
Ébloui = dazzled (eblouir = to dazzle)
Se givrer = to ice over (givre = frost, givrer = to frost, to ice over)
Gâché = scarred (gâcher = to waste, to botch, to ruin)
Esquiver = to dodge, to evade, to shirk
Cible = target, objective
Comble = attic/space under the roof, limit, crowning moment (this is a complicated word, with many further nuances and meanings!)
Échafaudage = scaffolding
Grignoter = to snack, to nibble (grignotage = snacks, whittling away, erosion)
Louange = praise, word of praise
Lionceaux =lion cub
I am always hearing people talk about réseaux. <<Réseau routier>>, <<réseau de connaissances>>, <<activer son réseau>>… Réseau just means network. But I find it interesting how often this word comes up in such a wide variety of contexts.
Faire une queue de poisson: I saw this expression on a poster, but I haven’t been able to find a good explanation for what it means yet (help?). Everything I’ve read so far says that faire une queue de poisson means passing someone on the road and cutting back in front of their car too soon, but this definitely doesn’t fit the context of the library poster. Whereas a similar expression, finir en queue de poisson, means something that finishes suddenly, in a disappointing manner, without giving the expected results (short article describing both expressions, albeit in French; and this one).
Many of the words this week are from my first French poetry class — that’s right, I’m going to be writing poetry in French. A tout à l’heure!
Nouvelles Connaissances 