culot

nerve, cheek, audacity

noun ku-LOH Rare

Also means

base (of a bulb/cartridge)

Usage Note

Culot in everyday speech means brazenness or audacity — il a du culot means 'he has a lot of nerve'. In a technical sense it refers to the base of a light bulb or a cartridge casing. The adjective culotté means 'cheeky' or 'bold' — elle est culottée de dire ça ('she has a nerve saying that').

Examples

"Il a eu le culot de demander une augmentation."

Natural Translation

He had the nerve to ask for a raise.

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