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French · The Basics

Crotte !

KROT · /kʁɔt/

Poop! / Darn! — the polite-company dodge for 'merde'

1/5 Grandma-safe

mild, playful; fine on daytime TV

Literally

"Animal dropping / turd"

Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.

How to use it

The word parents use so they don't say "merde" in front of the kids — think "sugar" or "fudge." Completely harmless, faintly childish, and genuinely handy when you want the release of cursing without the cost. "Crotte de bique" (goat dropping) is the extended cutesy version.

Heard in the wild

Oh crotte, j'ai cassé mon verre.

Oh poop, I broke my glass.

Where it lands

France (universal)

Quick answers

What does "Crotte !" mean?
In French, "Crotte !" means "Poop! / Darn! — the polite-company dodge for 'merde'". Literally it's "Animal dropping / turd". The word parents use so they don't say "merde" in front of the kids — think "sugar" or "fudge." Completely harmless, faintly childish, and genuinely handy when you want the release of cursing without the cost. "Crotte de bique" (goat dropping) is the extended cutesy version.
Is "Crotte !" offensive?
It's on the mild end — 1/5 (Grandma-safe) on the Punch-o-Meter. mild, playful; fine on daytime TV.
How do you pronounce "Crotte !"?
Say it "KROT" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: kʁɔt.

Related in French

Putain ! poo-TAN Damn! / F***! / The all-purpose intensifier — punctuation, really Merde ! MEHRD Shit! / Damn! — and, bizarrely, 'good luck' Bordel ! bor-DEL What a mess! / Chaos! — also 'what the hell' as an intensifier Putain de merde ! poo-TAN duh MEHRD For f***'s sake! / Goddammit! Zut ! ZOOT Darn! / Shoot! Putain de bordel de merde ! poo-TAN duh bor-DEL duh MEHRD For f***'s holy sake! — the full three-word combo

The same idea, elsewhere

Via concepts like "Damn".

how to say "Damn" →

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