Lexique des mots difficiles en anglais, Capes d'anglais, TOEFL, TOEIC

glitch

fig.: pépin
technical glitch = un pépin technique manufacturing glitches have limited the factory's output.

[boat, cork] flotter Something white was bobbing in the water.
to bob up and down (in water) = danser, sautiller
to bob about (in the air) = se balancer Huge balloons bobbed about in the sky above.
to bob up = remonter brusquement à la surface Suddenly an object bobbed up from below the surface.

to snicker

pouffer de rire
snickering = rire étouffé

to drain

exténuer the week's emotional turmoil had drained me.
to feel drained (of energy, emotion) = être épuisé

to clench

serrer to clench the teeth

to be up to scratch

aux normes (produit)
être à la hauteur (=to be up to the mark)

to be up to the mark

être à la hauteur (fig.) I have to watch my staff all the time to keep them up to the mark. The efforts of the security services have not been quite up to the mark.

terracotta

terre cuite A beautiful terracotta coloured villa.
(couleur) ocre, brun

to cleave

fendre

monkey wrench

clé à molette (=adjustable wrench)

puddle

flaque « the children were splashing in the puddles. »

nettle

ortie. « Nettles have a bad reputation. They sting and they're invasive. »
to grasp the nettle = se jeter à l'eau, prendre le taureau par les cornes. « I hope the government grasps the nettle and comes up with a valid, long-term solution. »

to befuddle

brouiller les idées de problems that are befuddling them.
to be befuddled = avoir les idées brouillées

solace

réconfort, consolation. « They find solace in each other's company. » « I hope you can find some solace in this book. »

castaway

naufragé

spunky

qui a du cran a spunky girl

eavesdrop

écouter ce qui se dit The housemaid eavesdropped from behind the kitchen door = La servante écoutait ce qui se disait de derrière la porte de la cuisine.
to eavesdrop on sb = écouter qn (de façon indiscrète).

parcel

colis He had a large brown paper parcel under his arm.

ferris wheel

grande roue. George Washington Gale Ferris conçut la première grande roue, dévoilée au public à l'occasion de l'Exposition universelle de 1893 à Chicago.

imho

in my humble opinion « This is imho the fastest way to find out if the table is empty. »

midget

nain
de poche midget submarines = sous-marins de poche

blurb

baratin let's clear away the blurb and look at the facts
texte de présentation ; notice publicitaire

galore

en abondance, à gogo We'll be giving away prizes galore in our great competition.
bargains galore = de bonnes affaires en abondance.

tantamount

to be tantamount to sth = équivaloir à qch His statement was tantamount to an admission of guilt.

oar

rame, aviron
ramer

forensic

légal ; légiste

meadow

pré, prairie « She loves to frolick in the meadows. »

sloppy

[work] peu soigné , bâclé
[appearance] négligé, débraillé
[film, letter] sentimental You'll write me sloppy letters

to gasp

haleter he was gasping to gasp for breath.
the last gasp of sth = les derniers moments de qch The last gasp of a monetary system.

haystack

botte de foin « it's like looking for a needle in a haystack » = cela revient à chercher une aiguille dans une botte de foin

grunt

grogner He grunted with the effort the bear was grunting outside our tent.
grunt work = travail répétitif et rébarbatif PHP does a lot more grunt work than Perl, which does a lot more than C.

catchy

air qui trotte dans la tête, facile à retenir
facile à retenir

poker face

visage impassible

to be gutted

être dégoûté => I was gutted = j'étais carrément dégoûté.

fiendish

diabolique, démoniaque (propre et fig.)
abominable, atroce
fiendishly = diaboliquement. laughing fiendishly
fiendishly difficult = abominablement difficile

to spark

susciter, provoquer. The incident was the catalyst that sparked the revolution => c'est l'incident qui a déclenché la révolution.
The news sparked (off) an intense debate => la nouvelle déclencha un débat animé.
jeter des étincelles
spark = étincelle (propre et figuré). Whenever they meet the sparks fly => chaque fois qu'ils se rencontrent, ça fait des étincelles.

wrinkle

ride

stunning

étourdissant
stupéfiant, renversant
fantastique, superbe

skull job

blow-job

aloof

distant « he became aloof and silent ». « I didn't like her much. I thought she was aloof. »
to remain aloof = rester à l'écart « They remained aloof from the controversy ».
aloofness = attitude distante, réserve

eggs sunny-side up

oeufs sur le plat

to cave

s'écrouler, s'effondrer, s'affaisser
fig.: flancher, céder I can't believe you caved!

nostril

narine

even / odd

pair / impair

BTW

By the way btw, cant u stop by the house later on ?

slit

fente, incision the skirt has a slit at the back = la jupe a une fente dans le dos
fendu (jupe), bridé (yeux)
fendre (=split), inciser, couper the skirt was slit up the side = la jupe était fendue sur le côté
to slit somebody's throat = égorger quelqu'un she slit her wrists = elle s'est ouvert les veines.

Mots difficiles en anglais