rats
In French, rats is used as an interjection meaning damn or darn.
Meaning: damn, darn (intj)
Did you know?
- In French gastronomy, the term ratatouille is often associated with the word rat, but it actually comes from the Occitan word ratouolo, meaning a stirred-up stew.
- While an English speaker might use 'rat' to mean a snitch, a French speaker using rat is more likely to be describing someone's extreme stinginess or lack of generosity.
- While rats is a mild exclamation, the French language has an entire category of 'minced oaths' designed to replace stronger religious swears, which is how this expression functions.
Examples in context
- Les rats sont petits.Rats are small.This sentence shows how to use rats as a noun for animals.Tatoeba #4548279 by Whidou, translation #1098095 by cntrational
- As-tu peur des rats ?Are you afraid of rats?This sentence uses rats as a noun to ask about fear.Tatoeba #10612529 by lbdx, translation #5011425 by CK
- Il y a beaucoup de rats.There are a lot of rats.This sentence demonstrates the use of rats when describing quantity.Tatoeba #6473239 by Aiji, translation #4189486 by Wuzzy
- Les rats domestiques sont de merveilleux animaux de compagnie.Domestic rats make wonderful pets.
- Il y a plein de rats dans cette vieille grange abandonnée.There are a lot of rats in that old, abandoned barn.
- 29 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucas and Chloé are trying to fix a broken computer.
- LucasRats, ça ne fonctionne toujours pas !Darn, it still doesn't work!
- ChloéRats, j'ai perdu mon mot de passe.Damn, I lost my password.
- LucasOh rats, c'est vraiment pénible.Oh darn, this is really annoying.
- ChloéNe t'inquiète pas, Lucas, on va trouver.Don't worry, Lucas, we will find it.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
