creuser
/kʁø.ze/
The English phrase 'digging' is translated into French as creuser.
creuser refers to the general act of breaking up and moving soil or earth using your hands or a tool. If you are referring to a person or a machine that performs this action, use the noun creuseur.
Which one should you use?
While creuser is the standard verb, other terms are used for specific types of digging. Use Fouille for archaeological or scientific digging to uncover artifacts, Excavation for large-scale digging related to construction or geology and Déterrage for unearthing things in a gardening or horticultural context. In informal settings, if you are only lightly scratching or digging through a surface, you might use Gratter.
How does it change in a sentence?
creuser is the infinitive form of the verb. To express the continuous action of 'digging' (the equivalent of the English present participle), French uses the construction en train de followed by the infinitive creuser.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has two syllables and is pronounced /kʁø.ze/.
Did you know?
- The word fouille refers to an archaeological dig, but it is also the term used by French police for a physical 'search' or 'frisking' of a person.
- In a sports context, specifically in football, the phrase creuser l'écart means to 'dig' or widen the lead over an opponent.
- The verb creuser is closely related to the word 'hollow', which in French is creux.
Examples in context
- Tom continua à creuser.Tom continued digging.This sentence shows the use of creuser for a continuous action.Tatoeba #9311716 by Micsmithel, translation #2236174 by CK
- Ne t'arrête pas de creuser.Keep digging.Tatoeba #7355641 by Micsmithel, translation #2111650 by CK
- Le chien était en train de creuser un trou.The dog was digging a hole.This sentence demonstrates the construction en train de creuser to show the continuous action.Tatoeba #1339783 by sacredceltic, translation #48258 by CK
- L'entreprise a entrepris l'excavation du nouveau bâtimentThe company began the excavation of the new building
- Il faut effectuer un déterrage délicat pour replanter cet arbreA delicate uprooting is necessary to replant this tree
- Le jardinier va creuser un trou pour les nouvelles plantesThe gardener is going to dig a hole for the new plants
- Les mineurs ont pioché le sol pour extraire du charbonThe miners dug the ground to extract coal
- Je vais creuser un trou pour planter des fleurs dans mon jardin.I am going to dig a hole to plant flowers in my garden.
- Le travailleur a utilisé une pioche pour creuser dans le sol rocheux.The worker used a pickaxe to dig into the rocky ground.
- Apprendre de nouveaux mots en français est une passion qui me laisse toujours creuser plus profondément dans cette magnifique langue.Learning new words in French is a passion that always allows me to dig deeper into this beautiful language.
- 15 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Gabriel and Manon are in the garden.
- GabrielTu veux creuser un trou ici ?Do you want to dig a hole here?
- ManonOui, pour planter cet arbre.Yes, to plant this tree.
- GabrielJe vais creuser pour toi.I will dig for you.
- ManonMerci, Gabriel, c'est très gentil.Thank you, Gabriel, that is very kind.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry creuser, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries creuser, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
