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crisper

to tense up; to irritate

verb krees-PEH Rare

Usage Note

Crisper literally means to cause something to contract or wrinkle (skin, leather), but the common modern usage is figurative: ça me crispe means 'it irritates me' or 'it makes me tense.' The reflexive se crisper describes tensing up with stress or clenching a fist. It is a regular -er verb. The adjective crispé (tense, on edge) is frequently used in descriptions of people in stressful situations.

Examples

"Cette situation le crispe vraiment."

Natural Translation

This situation really irritates him.

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