Shark word

[Chancer]

Its a word that I hear lots on nature programs like tonight on Thalassa, its become part of my vocabulary yet I dont even know how to spell it as I cant find it in any dictionary nor am I exactly sure whether its a familiar or slang term or a scientific one.

It is used to describe any type of shark but usually after the type has been precised, the word sounds like Skwahl or perhaps how a French person would pronounce Squall.

What is the correct spelling and is it describing an animal group or perhaps a characteristic like man eater, jaws etc or is it a scientific term like Elasmobranch, finally is there an equivalent in English.

This has been bugging me for years!

[Tancrède]

un squale [or un requin]  =  a shark

 

[idun]

http://www.linternaute.com/dictionnaire/fr/definition/requin/

 

Some nice definitions on that web page.

 

I have done the same with many words and expressions over the years. I even bought a thesaurus in the hope it would help, but it didn't always. Haven't got the 'ear' and also having a little dyslexia never helps. 

 

My best faux pas was 'je ne comprends pas'. All I could hear when I first got to France was 'Je pompompom' and that is exactly what I would say, much it has to be said, to the suprise of anyone I said it to. And bit by bit, I got there. But really how could I have ever looked that up when I heard a 'p' sound?[:-))]

 

[Chancer]

I have a huge dictionary, a Collins Roberts but sometimes like this fairly common and proper words just arent in it, there is square and squellette but not squale no matter how many times I check.

And then I start thinking like you ,did I mishear it? is it spelt in an odd way, I have looked for skwale, sqale, squeule, squwale you name it [blink]

[suein56]

[quote user="Chancer"] I have a huge dictionary ... [/quote]

Me too, but it doesn't always have what I need. So, even though much derided, I use this. [:)]

Sue

[HoneySuckleDreams]

http://www.wordreference.com/fren/squale

 

I wonder if it is derived from the latin Squalus  - as there is a genus Squalus, mainly dog fish

[Rabbie]

[quote user="HoneySuckleDreams"]

http://www.wordreference.com/fren/squale

 

I wonder if it is derived from the latin Squalus  - as there is a genus Squalus, mainly dog fish

[/quote]I am sure you are right. Dogfish are the same family as sharks and rays.

[Christine Animal]

Then later on, you remember it but wonder if the word is French and or English.  Squale could perfectly well be an English word.

I know I've said it before, but one of mine was "café olé" and another "trop pépé" (trop épais), too thick like me!

 

[NormanH]

[quote user="Christine Animal"]

Then later on, you remember it but wonder if the word is French and or English.  Squale could perfectly well be an English word.

I know I've said it before, but one of mine was "café olé" and another "trop pépé" (trop épais), too thick like me!

 

[/quote]

Apparently it is (well American anyway)

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=squale 

[Christine Animal]

Well there you are you see.  I had a feeling it was but couldn't find it!

Thank you Norman, abracadabra!  For years I heard what sounded like "a braque a deux bras", but never realised it was abracadabra.

 

[idun]

It always pleases me that I'm not alone in 'mis hearing'. These things delight me.

Took me quite some time to work out 'donkey shot'. Who would have thought[Www], well I wouldn't, always sounds so much more elegant in english, well to me it does.

[Christine Animal]

A bit like "arshimed" (Archimedes).

 

[Christine Animal]

Just thought of two more. 

Le tissu "mollesskin" (mole skin) http://redingote.fr/breves/la-moleskine-histoire-dun-tissu/

C'est du "quatre gouttes" (cat gut).   [:D]

 

[Chancer]

From the replies I guess no-one has actually read the American derivation that Norman posted, I wonder if they say that in Amiens Nord [Www]

Mine is an agro-alimentaire and bio-carburant region, we make super ethanol road fuel from betteraves and the university de Picardie is always experimenting with trying to make new things from crops. When I first heard weet speereet I thought that they had managed to distill blé to make solvent [8-)]

[HoneySuckleDreams]

[quote user="Christine Animal"]

Then later on, you remember it but wonder if the word is French and or English.  Squale could perfectly well be an English word.

[/quote]

Squalus is also latin for dirty. It's where we get "squalid" from, or rather, we knicked it from old french "squalide"

And I did read the urban dictionary; squirrel head on a whales body...i've dated one or two of them

[suein56]

My friends use 'c'est le basard' a lot, to mean somewhere/something is in complete disorder/chaos/untidy/mess.

Word reference and Googletrans do not like my spelling but I have used every alternative I can think of, like Chancer, but with no success so far. So if anyone knows I should be grateful.

I know what it means, I know how to pronounce it but how to spell it? No chance, other than a guess.

Sue

[andrew44]

Bazar

[suein56]

[quote user="andrew44"]Bazar[/quote]

Now why didn't I think of that?

Thank you kind sir.

Sue [:)]

[idun]

Chancer which word were you wondering about, requin or squale?

 

I had read NormanH's link for 'squale' and was wondering how it would be pronounced in american english........ skwaal? and how would 'squale' be said in french......... skall? I know I have heard it in french, I just cannot remember how it was said, now I'm looking at in with an 'english' eye.[:D]

 

suein 56, c'est le bazar, as in a bazaar. Which sort of made sense to me. Where as c'est la galere, needed explaining.

 

 

[Chancer]

Pronounced Skwaal.

Bazar I got but thought it was bazaar.

There are loads of things we hear, often unsavoury that we will never see written or be able to find in a dictionary, we just have to do our best to work out the right circumstances and company in which to use them.

This can be problematic when you are surrounded by the sort of people that I am, I have to be on my guard not to innocently use unsavoury or inapropriate phrases in better company.

Heres one I hear a lot and whilst I understand the context I dont really know what it means, that is to say if someone asked me to translate it I couldnt and de coup I am not cnfident to use it, spelling probably incorrect.

Foute en l'aire!

Or at least it sounds like that to my ears.

Some other disparaging remarks that I dont really get

Gloglott

Darn there are two others that I have a mental block with, one is for someones torturer or antagonist, the other I heard today to describe a down and out, and SDF but it wasnt that that presented hisself at the casualty for an MRI saying he couldnt walk when he really just wanted a bed and a meal.

 

Editted,  What sounds like Bourreau was what I heard used to describe a tormentor although someone else used it as a very nasty way as a pejorative but not in that sense.

[NormanH]

Foutre en l'air

Polite mess everything up

I leave you to replace the first word with something stronger

https://fr.wiktionary.org/wiki/foutre_en_l%E2%80%99air

This comes from foutre in itself rather impolite

https://fr.wiktionary.org/wiki/foutre

Some other constructions with it

http://dictionary.reverso.net/french-english/se%20foutre%20en%20l%27air

Bourreau is an executioner, or someone who tortures and finishes someone off.

A bourreau de travail is a workaholic, but this is often used in the negative 'il n'est pas un bourreau de travail' as a sly way of saying he doesn't try/work too hard  and I have used it like that on a bulletin (school report) 

[Christine Animal]

Foutre en l'air

 

[Christine Animal]

A braque a deux bras Norman à 18.54 !   [:P]

 

[NormanH]

Yours looks much nicer [:)]

[Christine Animal]

Merci, t'es shoo.   [:)]