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piétiner

to trample, to stamp one's feet

verb pyeh-tee-NEH Rare
Body & Health Movement

Also means

to mark time, to stagnate

Usage Note

Piétiner comes from pied ('foot'). Literally it means to stamp or trample underfoot, but figuratively piétiner means to be stuck without progress — les négociations piétinent ('the negotiations are going nowhere'). The noun piétinement describes this stagnation.

Examples

"La foule a piétiné l'entrée du stade."

Natural Translation

The crowd trampled the stadium entrance.

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