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verb

piger

get

C'est un mot familier qui signifie réussir à comprendre une idée, une explication ou une situation.

Definition & meaning

In modern French, the verb "piger" is primarily a colloquial term meaning "to understand," "to get," or "to grasp." It is widely used in informal conversation when someone wants to express that they have caught the meaning of something. For example, "Tu piges ?" translates to "Do you get it?" or "Do you understand?".

A secondary, more professional meaning relates to journalism. "Piger" can mean to work as a freelance journalist (a pigiste ), where the worker is paid per "pige" (a unit of work or length of text) rather than receiving a fixed monthly salary.

Historically and technically, it can also mean to measure something using a "pige" (a measuring rod), though this usage is rare in daily life compared to its slang usage.

Grammar & Word origin

"Piger" is a regular verb belonging to the first group (-er). Its conjugation follows the standard pattern of verbs like parler .

The word originates from the noun "pige," which was an ancient unit of measurement based on the span of a hand or a specific measuring rod. In the mid-19th century, the term shifted from the literal act of measuring a physical object to the figurative act of "measuring" or "taking the dimensions" of an idea with the mind. This evolution eventually established it as a popular slang term for mental comprehension.

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms:

  • comprendre (the standard, neutral equivalent)
  • saisir (literally to seize, used figuratively to grasp an idea)
  • capter (slang, equivalent to "to catch on")
  • entraver (older slang, typically used in the negative to mean "to not understand")

Antonyms:

  • ignorer (to be unaware of or not know)
  • méconnaître (to misunderstand or fail to recognize)
  • sécher (slang used when someone is stumped or cannot find an answer)

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Examples

Au début, je ne pigeais rien à leur façon d’expliquer.verb

At first, I didn't get anything about their way of explaining.

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