Winter vocabulary in Québec: pelleter, gratter, souffleuse, déneigement
Tires, shovels and towing: the vocabulary you need from November.
Short answer : Pelleter means to shovel snow; a souffleuse is a snow blower; the opération de déneigement is the city’s snow clearing, during which parking can be banned. Winter tires are required from December 1 to March 15. Two dialogues to listen to: At the garage before winter and Snow removal rules.
Beta. The voices are synthetic voices supplied by your device and vary from one device to another. The content was written with the help of artificial intelligence; a review by a native Québécois speaker is under way. Found a mistake? Write to [email protected] with the item id (F-hiver).
Words and phrases
| Québec | Standard French | English | Dialogue |
|---|---|---|---|
| pneus d’hiver | pneus neige | winter tires (required Dec 1 to Mar 15) | At the garage before winter |
| char | voiture | car (familiar) | At the garage before winter |
| soumission | devis | quote, estimate | At the garage before winter |
| ça coûte un bras | ça coûte très cher | it costs an arm and a leg | At the garage before winter |
| gratter (le pare-brise) | enlever le givre | to scrape the windshield | At the garage before winter |
| pelleter | enlever la neige à la pelle | to shovel | Snow removal rules |
| souffleuse | chasse-neige individuel | snow blower | Snow removal rules |
| opération de déneigement | enlèvement de la neige par la ville | municipal snow clearing, with parking bans | Snow removal rules |
| remorquer | remorquer | to tow | Snow removal rules |
| slush | neige fondante, bouillie | slush | Snow removal rules |
| claqué | épuisé | exhausted | Snow removal rules |
| tuyau | conseil, information | tip | Snow removal rules |
| stationner | garer | to park | Snow removal rules |
Going further
The winter-tire rules are explained in the Permis Prêt fiche winter tires in Québec: dates and rules.
“Se casser la gueule” (to fall hard) is familiar and a bit crude: to recognise, not necessarily to say.
Dialogues to listen to
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Vocabulary fiche. The content is in beta: a review by a native Québécois speaker is under way.