What does couteau in French mean?

What is the meaning of the word couteau in French? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use couteau in French.

The word couteau in French means knife, blade, putty knife, razor shell, razor shell clam, thick, heavy, table, have a knife to your throat, fog so thick you could cut it with a knife, stab, knife blow, knife in the back, butter knife, flick knife, flick-knife, cheese knife, putty knife, steak knife, Bowie knife, kitchen knife, sharp knife, razor clam, penknife, pocketknife, table knife, Swiss army knife, bread knife, stick two fingers up to, ready for a fight, have to MacGyver , be forced to MacGyver, palette knife painting, stab in the back, knife rest, twist the knife, second fiddle, sidekick, long thin face. To learn more, please see the details below.

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Meaning of the word couteau

knife

nom masculin (lame tranchante au bout d'un manche) (utensil)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Je n'arrive pas à couper ma viande avec ce couteau tout émoussé.
I can't cut my meat with this blunt knife.

blade

nom masculin (partie coupante d'un appareil)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Il faudra changer les couteaux du mixer.
You need to change the mixer blades.

putty knife

nom masculin (outil pour enduire, reboucher)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Je pose le mastic autour de la fenêtre avec un couteau.
I apply the putty round the window with a putty knife.

razor shell, razor shell clam

nom masculin (mollusque vivant dans le sable) (UK: mollusc)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Les couteaux sont excellents cuits au vin blanc.
Razor clams are excellent cooked in white wine.

thick, heavy

locution adjectivale (très prononcé)

(adjective: Describes a noun or pronoun--for example, "a tall girl," "an interesting book," "a big house.")
Cet Allemand a un accent à couper au couteau ! Nous nous sommes perdus parce qu'il y avait du brouillard à couper au couteau.

table

locution adjectivale (à manger cru) (fruit)

(noun as adjective: Describes another noun--for example, "boat race," "dogfood.")

have a knife to your throat

locution verbale (figuré, péjoratif (être forcé d'agir) (figurative)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

fog so thick you could cut it with a knife

nom masculin (figuré (brouillard très dense)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

stab, knife blow

nom masculin (attaque avec une lame)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Il est arrivé aux urgences à cause d'un coup de couteau au ventre.
He arrived in A&E with a stab wound to his stomach.

knife in the back

nom masculin (figuré (trahison)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Cette déclaration lui a fait l'effet d'un coup de couteau dans le dos.

butter knife

nom masculin (couteau sans dent non pointu)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

flick knife, flick-knife

nom masculin (couteau à lame escamotable) (UK)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Ce voyou a un couteau à cran d'arrêt.

cheese knife

nom masculin (couteau terminé par deux dents)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

putty knife

nom masculin (couteau pour le mastic)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

steak knife

nom masculin (couteau tranchant)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

Bowie knife

nom masculin (couteau robuste à grosse garde)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

kitchen knife, sharp knife

nom masculin (outil de découpe)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Le cuisinier tranche la viande avec un couteau de cuisine.

razor clam

nom masculin (coquillage)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Ce soir, nous mangerons une poêlée de couteaux de mer.

penknife, pocketknife

nom masculin (canif)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Un couteau de poche est un couteau dont la lame se replie dans le manche.

table knife

nom masculin (couvert pour manger)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

Swiss army knife

nom masculin (couteau multifonction)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Mon père a toujours un couteau suisse dans sa poche.

bread knife

nom masculin (couteau à lame crantée)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
J'utilise un couteau-scie pour couper mon pain.

stick two fingers up to

locution verbale (ne pas respecter un engagement) (figurative, informal)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
En piochant dans la caisse, ce caissier a donner un coup de couteau dans son contrat.

ready for a fight

locution adverbiale (prêt à se battre)

(expression: Prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, or other phrase or expression--for example, "behind the times," "on your own.")

have to MacGyver , be forced to MacGyver

locution verbale (très familier, figuré (n'avoir quasiment aucun moyen) (US, slang)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Comment veux-tu que je répare cette machine? Je n'ai que ma bite et mon couteau !

palette knife painting

nom féminin (technique de peinture à la spatule)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

stab in the back

(figuré (prendre [qqn] par traîtrise) (figurative)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

knife rest

nom masculin (support de table pour couteau)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)
Afin de moins tâcher la nappe, le couteau est posé sur un porte-couteau.

twist the knife

locution verbale (figuré (insister sur [qch] de désagréable) (figurative)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Arrête de remuer le couteau dans la plaie, Tania s'en veut déjà assez comme ça !

second fiddle, sidekick

nom masculin (figuré (employé de seconde importance)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

long thin face

nom masculin (visage fin et allongé)

(noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc.)

Let's learn French

So now that you know more about the meaning of couteau in French, you can learn how to use them through selected examples and how to read them. And remember to learn the related words that we suggest. Our website is constantly updating with new words and new examples so you can look up the meanings of other words you don't know in French.

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