empailler
to stuff with straw, to mount (taxidermy)
verb ahn-pah-YEH Rare
Origin: From en- + paille 'straw'
Usage Note
Empailler has two distinct senses: stuffing furniture or chairs with straw or other material, and taxidermy — preserving an animal by stuffing it. The person who performs taxidermy is an empailleur (or more formally taxidermiste). The verb illustrates how a craft's name can be tied to its original material even after the material changed.
Examples
"Il a fait empailler le vieux renard qu'il avait trouvé."
Natural Translation
He had the old fox he had found stuffed.
Literal Translation
He has made stuff the old fox that he had found.
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