Level B1 (Intermediate)
Today you’ll learn how to use the feminine noun la gueule, which primarily means “mouth” but has a lot of other informal usages.
Meaning (including its nuances for animals and slang for humans)
Pronunciation (with IPA)
Example sentences to see it in context
Word origin
Meaning
La gueule (feminine noun) refers to the face, muzzle, gullet, or mouth of an an animal. Informally, it can also mean a person’s face or mug (slang). A common related expression is “Ta gueule!”, which translates to “Shut up!”
Pronunciation
Example sentences
This first example sentence uses la gueule in the literal sense – the mouth or gullet of an animal.
Le monsieur a mis sa tête dans la gueule du crocodile.
The man put his head in the crocodile’s mouth.
The expression une sale gueule translates literally to “a dirty face” and means “ugly mug”. The expression faire confiance à quelqu’un means “to trust somebody”.
Ce mec a une sale gueule. Je ne lui fais pas confiance.
That guy has an ugly face. I don’t trust him.
As mentioned, the expression “Ta gueule !” means “shut up!”. The expression en avoir marre means to be sick of or fed up.
Ta gueule, toi ! Tu parles trop et on en a marre !
Shut up! You’re speaking too much and we’re sick of it!
Related expressions and words
Avoir la gueule de bois – to have a hangover
Se foutre de la gueule de quelqu’un – to mock somebody
Ferme ta gueule ! Shut up!
Puer de la gueule to have bad breath
Un amuse-gueule appetizer
Word origin
Gueule comes from Old French gole, which in turn comes from gŭla (throat, neck, gullet, maw) in Latin.
Related lessons
- Body parts
- Animal vocabulary
- Espèce de (used for insults)
Reference
